Dell Vostro 1500 upgradeability

Hi, I'm new here.

I'm planning to buy a Dell Vostro 1500.

I start with "smart value" model in Dell SB for $599. Trying to decide which upgrades to buy from Dell and which ones I can upgrade after market. This way I can build good system for least price and may be even eBay upgraded components later.

So I have these questions on some components. Ones that don't have questions, I'd like your comment agree/don't agree please

CPU: 1500 comes with base CPU Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T5270 (1.4GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache)

I want to upgrade (either trough Dell or 3rd party) to:
at least Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7250 (2.0GHz/800Mhz FSB/2MB cache) [add $160]
or may be even Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7500 (2.2GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB) [add $300] (mainly for 4MB cache)
Prices for the above start at: $258 at Froogle

or may be even Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7700 (2.4GHz, 4MB L2 Cache, 800MHz FSB) [add $575] (for the extra kick and because 3rd party price may be pretty close to the 2.2GHz)
Prices for the above start at: $311 at Froogle

Question is, will I be able to upgrade if I buy OEM CPU, and if so can I upgrade from Dell's base Core 2 Duo T7250 without any issues?

RAM: Kingston 2GB DIMM costs around at $50, so I could max out RAM for $100, vs. Dell's $300 upgrade. Any thoughts?

HDD: want to get 7200rpm with maximum capacity available: Base dell has 120GB 54k drive. Looks like I can get Hitachi 7k200 for $100-$200
Question: should upgrade through Dell 200GB 7200RPM Hard Drive [add $130], or buy elsewhere I and sell the Dell's 120GB - is it worth it?

VRAM: Base Dell comes with 128MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8400M GS. They provide upgrade to: 256MB NVIDIA® GeForce™ 8600M GT [add $100], I want to upgrade to NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT 512 version which is priced around $300.

Question: do you think I can install this in Vostro notebook and is it worth it to then sell the 8400M GS, or should I just go with 256 Dell upgrade for $100?

Any other considerations? Any other comparable notebook models I should consider in the similar price range that is not as bulky as Vostro 1500 (I intend to run Win XP)?

Thanks!

Dave

 

CPU - You will NOT be able to upgrade this. Get the CPU you want from Dell. Laptops are completely different from desktops in this respect, and are not user upgradeable.

HDD - You CAN upgrade this on your own. Dell's price isn't too bad...but it's not very difficult to change on your own. You could probably sell the old Dell drive, but you may not get a whole lot for it. It may be easier to just go with Dell's upgrade, but you figure the cost and value, and go with the best deal!

Video Card - These are proprietary for each laptop, therefore, you will NOT be able to upgrade on your own. The Vostro only offers up to the 8600 right now, so if you want a better card, you'll have to go with a different laptop that offers that upgrade. Get what you want from the beginning!

RAM - you can change this. Go with Dell's 2MB, and then if you want more, it's definitely cheaper elsewhere (newegg, fry's, etc.)

Similar laptops - the HP dv6500t isn't quite as big, and is a little nicer looking, but does not come with XP. Another option might be the Lenovo T61.

Have fun and good luck on your decision!

 

You can change the CPU yourself. But It will void the warranty.

The GPU you wanna upgrade to is for desktops. The best you can get in a 1500 is a 8600M GT.

 

Thanks thesensei,

A follow-up questions:

. Whether it comes with Windows XP is not an issue for me. Will that HP have any issues with downgrading to XP? I have read some reports that there may be a hardware driver issues if you downgrade an HP.

 

Thanks for your reply fabarati.

thesensei's answer contradicts with your's regarding the CPU. Voiding warranty is OK, as long as I don't have to get in there with a soldering iron. How difficult the physical installation would be and would I have any BIOS or other Software issues?

Regarding the GPU, my mistake. Is there a better NVIDIA or a competitor I can upgrade Vostro 1500 to?

Thanks

 

Installing a new CPU should not be that difficult at all. Dell's service manuals clearly illustrate how to disassemble the machine such that you can access the CPU socket. The chip for the Vostro 1500 is not soldiered to the board so you can easily replace it.

I do not think there is a GPU better than the 8600M GT for the Vostro 1500.

 

My mistake, fabarati's answer is correct. It's just not something I would mess with on a laptop, so I wasn't thinking properly.

Regarding "downgrading" the HP to XP, there are a number of tutorials on the web that cover it pretty well. You should be able to get everything working.

 

I'm almost sold on dv6500t and might even bite the bullet and get Vista (ultimate), even though I tried to resist it.

HP is, it only offers two GPU choices:
Intel(R) Graphics Media Accelerator X3100 and 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS. I really want to go up-to at least 256MB on VRAM.

So will I be able to upgrade the dv6500t to NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT, if I choose Integrated X3100?

 

The GPU is not upgradeable in that notebook, and it's impossible to upgrade an integrated GPU in general.

Notebooks aren't desktops...
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=86864

 

...but if I choose 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS upgrade option with dv6500t, then I can upgrade, right?

 

No. When I said "the GPU is not upgradeable in that notebook" I meant it's impossible to upgrade it, and read the link I posted .

 

Yes, I've read your link and learned that integrated GPU cannot be upgraded. Also learned that Dells you listed can be upgraded, however, HP dv6500t does come with upgrade option to 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS (extra $79.00), so the MOBO it will come with this HP upgrade, can theoretically be upgraded. So why can I not remove GeForce 8400M GS and put 8600M GT in its place?

 

Because the GPU is soldered to the "MOBO".... plus, that notebook isn't designed to handle the power consumption and heat of the 8600M GT.

 

got it. That's a better explanation, thanks.

 

CPU is very easy to upgrade. Just make sure to use thermal paste.

 

I finally decided on dv9500t, configured it extremely well for what I wanted and got $1700 notebook for $1185. Blogged about it here. Thanks to all who advised!

 

Personally, i don't like to upgrade laptops major components. If its time that they need to be upgraded, sell the laptop on ebay, and buy a new one again. You will get a much better value for your money.

 

I agree 100%!

 

Considering he wants to upgrade the laptop now I dont think selling it on ebay after he just bought it is a good idea. LOL Link

 

You just had to make your 200's post a smart ass comment did not ya

 

It was just a joke. Why would I sell the laptop I just bought?