Acer Extensa 4420 Upgrades

I'm thinking of upgrading my aging Acer laptop finally.

Right now it's running a 1.6ghz AMD Athlon 64x2 Processor. I've found that the TL-66 (AMD Turion 64x2 2.3ghz) CPU has come down in price and even seen it on eBay for about $80 new. From what i've read this is the max CPU it can take, based on the fact that was the highest CPU this model ever sold with.

I have 4GB of RAM (2x2GB Modules) installed already and i'm running Windows 7 Pro 64-bit and Ubuntu 10.4 64 Bit. Both OS's can support more than 4GB of RAM. I know Acer states 4GB is the max the laptop can read, but i'm wondering if anyone has tried installing 2x4GB modules in the unit and if they've been successful?

I also want to upgrade the Wireless G to a Wireless N module. Any recommended modules?

I'd like to have a built-in webcam, found the components to add it to this acer, but not sure if it's worth the effort. Would be nice for video chats with some of my friends and family. This ones on the "maybe" list.

Since the Optical Drive interface is IDE i'm restricted to the older Blu-Ray drives:
I've found 3 possibilities: Panasonic UJ-120, SONY BC-5500A, Panasonic UJ-225 (Slot Loading)
Leaning towards the slot loader.

Then of course there's the LCD itself, which is probably going to be the trickiest part to upgrade. Based on research i'll need to modify the cable. I know the video card can handle an HD res but not sure i want to go that high, so i was considering a WXGA+ / 1440x900 or maybe even
WSXGA+ / 1680x1050.

Trying to price out and prioritize the parts to upgrade. I figure the CPU and wireless will be the easiest to do, and cheapest to start. Then the memory (if possible) and the Blu-Ray drive. I'll leave the LCD to last, if i even want to attempt it at all!

Thoughts, experiences, anyone?

 

What are you thinking?

Buy a new system: cheaper, better and 4yrs newer technology (go with Intel...).

 

What tilleroftheearth said,
Just save up your money, list your current rig on ebay at a decent price, and once you have enough money buy exactly what you will want (don't compromise on things like screen quality, or GPU power as they are usually the most important, and are not really possible to replace later)

No point in sinking more $$$ in a old laptop (an old AMD laptop at that) especially when your needs/ wants are pushing past what your system could deliver even if fully upgraded.

so, it is time to look at new systems instead of extending the life of a old one by a tiny bit.

 

i actually did some number crunching and when all is said and done it would only cost me about $143, not including the RAM and LCD (which i admit are the most prohibitive upgrades but also the least important based on how i use the system), + labor on my part. Which really isn't bad at all.

And those upgrades would bring it more in line with what I want. Considering buying a laptop with comparable (note can't obviously find one with almost identical) specs will run me no less than $500 and my current system is only worth about $180 (due to a slight issue with the LCD screen itself) those upgrades are actually a better deal.

 

You could upgrade some other things more cost effectively.

I've noticed that for some reason, the Acer AMD stuff seems to sell for more than the intel stuff.

So Id guess you can sell that motherboard for about 100$, and I know you can get the Intel socket P version for about 70$.

This motherboard also supports MXM graphics cards, so you will have to buy one separately. However, you can get one for about 50$ that is much better than your current one.

I really doubt the system supports 8gb of RAM, and the LCD might give you issues.
WSXGA+ is more common than WXGA+ (I found some for about 50$) but they generally require more pins than most WXGA screens.

Going from an athlon x2 to a core 2 duo (which can be found for under 50$) will probably make more of a difference than anything else you want to do.

 

I remember reading about the MXM graphics cards a while back. After you posted that, I looked up a few things. Seems compatibility would be a pain. Fairly restricted on what type would work on what board. Seems like MXM is not that popular an option anymore either, ah well. s'ok not a big deal really.

On good news i ended up getting the 2.3ghz AMD Turion x2 CPU for $50 on ebay, brand new even. Sadly looks like i'll only get around $7-9 return on the old 1.6ghz Athlon x2, but i already knew that in my original calculation on cost. Still not bad for a total cost of about $40.

For now i'll nix the LCD and Wireless N upgrades. I don;t use my laptop at any of those wifi areas, nor does my Job or my home wireless network support Wireless N anyhow. After reading another thread on LCD upgrades i'll probably just let that option go, for now. Really don't want to possibly fry the mainboard. The next, and last upgrade piece is Blu-Ray drive

Overall i should be able to get another 3-4 years out of my laptop until it's time to drop down cash for a brand new unit.