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    Can I upgrade the video in my Inspiron 8500?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by JesterPoet, Jan 17, 2006.

  1. JesterPoet

    JesterPoet Newbie

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    I have an Inspiron 8500 with the radeon 9000 (32MB RAM as far as I know). I’d quite like to put a new video card in the machine, and am not intimidated by the process of doing so, however, I’m unsure if there are any better cards available that will actually fit in the machine. Does anyone have any suggestions of cards with a bit more VRAM that I may be able to buy and substitute for what I already have?

    Are there radeon9000s with more VRAM? Or is there a GeForce4 4200 with more? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


    Thanks!
     
    JesterPoet, Jan 17, 2006
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  2. Jenson

    Jenson Notebook Evangelist NBR Reviewer

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    From what I know 8500's do come with 32MB 9000 cards. I did a search on ebay and found a video card that said it woudl fit these: Dell nVidia Quadro FX Go700 128MB Inspiron 8600 8500 . So I would think that you should be able to upgrade, although you may have to adjust the bios and/or maybe something else also.

    Matt
     
    Jenson, Jan 17, 2006
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  3. JesterPoet

    JesterPoet Newbie

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    Well, I was looking at the ATI Mobility Radeon 9600, but the modding (to fix a heat issue) looks like a pain in the ass.

    I’m not sure what to think of the Dell nVidia Quadro FX Go700 128MB that’s available on Ebay... anyone else have any suggestions. Apparently it’ll work in the 8500 without any modifications.

    Mainly, I’d like to boost performance in World of Warcraft (loathe though I am to admit it). Anyone know if this part will fit the bill?

    Also, it might be possible to get hold of a NVIDIA GEForce FX Go 5650, but I don’t know whether that would have to be modded or not. Anybody out there seen anything about that?

    Thanks again for all help!
     
    JesterPoet, Jan 17, 2006
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  4. damole

    damole Notebook Consultant

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    I think this is the best place to start.

    http://www.bay-wolf.com/8500video.htm

    I have an Inspiron 8600 with a nVIDIA GeForce FX Go 5650, I wouldn't bother upgrading to this card, the Radeon is always reported at being much superior.

    I get the following numbers

    3DMark03 2557
    3DMark05 262

    I was planning to upgrade to the 9600 Pro Turbo but decided I needed to go down the route of a new machine. I play a lot of racing games and none of them will run anywhere near their limits. Quite dissapointing as when I bought the machine just two years ago it was state of the art.
     
    damole, Jan 17, 2006
    #4