Inspiron 6400 CPU upgrade: T2500 up to T7600?

Hello

I'm thinking about upgrading my Dell Inspiron 6400 from T2500 to either T7200, T7400 or ideally T7600.

Some questions to confirm:

Will the MM061 A17 BIOS support the higher processors and if yes which is the highest one it supports?

T2500 and T7200, T7400 T7600 are using the same socket (M), and they are not soldered, right?

Can I just change the CPU or should I replace the heatpad and sink? Where do I get them from if I just get the CPU?

Are there different flavours of the T7200, T7400, T7600 in terms of voltage, socket, chipset I need to look out for and might not be compatible with the T2500?

Is there a Dell tool that shows me what chipset I have?

What's the current fair price for a T7200, T7400, T7600? I have seem them ranging from GBP 70 to GBP 150. Worth ordering from Hong Kong or can lower processors be faked like SD cards appearing to have more capacity than they do?

Thanks very much for your time, help and effort,

Martin

 

you can replace your cpu. just update the bios and apply as5. btw IMO just sell your laptop. it is not feasible to upgrade your cpu because of bloated prices due to its obsolesce (merom)

 

Thanks boypogi. I agree that I should just sell the thing but then thought to wait for Montevina or better Calpella and keep it for one more year since I upgraded almost all other components. Just would like to take advantage of running 64bit apps and the 4MB L2 cache. What's as5, what does it do and where do I get it from?

 

Thermal Paste!

 

artic silver 5- thermal paste

 

I'm in the same boat, I want to do the same upgrade on my Inspiron 6400/e1505. My only question is, are all t7400/t7600 socket m, or do they come in different socket styles? I've seen some on eBay and elsewhere online and they all say different things like socket 478, socket 479, etc. Is this just bad information on their part?

 

Maybe a dumb question, but would it void my warranty to replace the stock thermal paste with arctic silver? I'm trying to do everything to keep my temps down and make my laptop last, but it's brand new and I don't want to ruin my warranty with something stupid like that...

 

Well, to replace the paste you would need to open the machine which voids the warranty IMO..

 

On my own E1505, I decided on the T7400 as the best compromise, for a variety of reasons.

Works perfectly and gives quite a MIPS boost compared to the 1.83 GHz Core Duo it replaced.

 

I have the A14 BIOS with the T7400. Works perfectly.

 

Hey,
Matt is pro, or anyone else who can help, i got a question for ya.... i have the same laptop you had:
Inspiron 6400
t2500 with 2gb of 667DDR2
x1400 256mb
anyways, my question is, how difficult was it to replace the processor on the laptop? is there a guide to opening it? the t2500 is driving me nuts, cant do anything with it lol
anyways man, any info you can give, i would GREATLY appreciate.

PS: i know it voids my warranty if i chance the cpu, i want to do it anyways.

 

Hi

The 6400 Service Manual can be downloaded from Dell. Forum won't let me post the link here. Google "Inspiron 6400 Service Manual".
It's very easy to take it apart. I just gave it a good inside clean recently.
Haven't replaced the CPU yet as they are at around £150. It really would be a just for fun upgrade as it's too expensive to justify. So can't comment on it. However, upgrade to 320GB drive worked fine 2 x 2GB RAM modules are arriving tomorrow.

All the best,

Martin