Question about processor and memory in notebook

Can i replace a Intel Core Duo T2500 2Ghz S 478 with an Intel Pentium 4 chip , 3.0GHz, S 478? Wont that be faster?

I want o put new memory into my notebook but i noticed that in the store they have 200 and 240 pins memories, which one do i need cause i cant see the difference?!?

Thx in advance for your awnsers

 

You cannot replace a Core Duo with a Pentium 4, no, and nor would you want to. The Pentium 4 is hot, outdated, and inefficient. A Core Duo T2500 will blow a 3.0GHz P4 out of the water. You should take some time to read articles and find out more:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3414&article=Laptop+Technology+Year+in+Review
And there are plenty more articles to be found on the Net.

240-pin memory is for desktops; your notebook, considering that it has a Core Duo, takes 200-pin, DDR2-667 (PC5300) SO-DIMM RAM. Check www.newegg.com and www.zipzoomfly.com.

If you could provide us with more information about what exactly you want to do, that would be helpful. As in, why do you want to upgrade, and what are you hoping to accomplish.

 

Would it make much difference if i replace an t2300 core cuo 1.66 ghz with an t2500 2 ghz?

I want faster speed to play the games more swiftly and so it also takes less time for my lapyop to think when im working on the notebook.
This notebook that i have (asus a6ja) came with an 1024 mb ram pc4200, but i presume pc5300 is faster but is my notebook complitable with an pc5300 mem card or am i stuck with pc4200?

 

It depends - what else do you do with your notebook? For gaming, the bottleneck is your video card, so even if you installed a faster processor, it is not going to make much of a difference, and certainly not enough of one to justify the cost. Upgrading the CPU is very cost ineffective.

Your notebook can use either PC4200 (533MHz) or PC5300 (667MHz) memory; there is basically no performance difference between them, but preferably go for the faster sticks. Do you know what memory configuration you have - either 2x 512MB sticks or a single 1GB stick?

 

I have 1 stick of 1gig and 1 bank is still free.

 

If that is the case, then you can quite easily upgrade to 2 GB, as all you have to do is install another 1 GB module. If you game alot, as you have mentioned, then 2 GB is recommended, as games are becoming more and more RAM intensive, such as Battlefield 2/2142.

 

In that case, I suggest going with another 1GB stick of the PC4200 memory. Upgrading to 2GB RAM will help with some of the more memory intensive games.

 

But as Chaz has mentioned my radeon x1600 seems to be a bottleneck so im wondering if there a software that i can overclock my card a little?

 

Does it have to be the exact same stick (eg brand) in order to work for them in dual channel?

 

If you play a games like Battlefield 2/2141, the RAM it uses is so much that it bottlenecks the rest of the system. The processer and Mobility X1600 are fast, and they can run the game better, but they need that extra RAM. Chaz is right, the Mobility X1600 is the bottleneck, but only when everthing else in the system can can keep up with it. All components have to be a right match, for the performance to be in balance.

 

Go for the PC4200 memory; even if you did get PC5300 memory, the memory in your system only runs as fast as the slowest stick, so it would downclock to match the PC4200 one. Might as well simply get PC4200.

 

Actually i was planning to sell the pc4200 and buy 2xPC5300, would that make noticable difference then 2xpc4200?

 

With currently available PC5300 RAM, it makes next to no difference at all. The extra bandwidth is lost due to increased latency.

 

Wondering if anyone can explain what the difference 1 pin makes on a processor.
Intel Core 2 Duo They show 2 models of the same processor but one has an extra pin.

Does this mean you have to be extra careful when you go to upgrade?
Is it even worth the hassle of upgrading processors these days? Considering that technology is moving at such a rapid pace, wouldn't it just be better to hang on to what you have for a year or two, then buy a new machine that has better components?

 

The number of pins on those processors, are actually all the same. The difference in pins arose when Intel moved from Pentium M to Core Duo. There number of pins actually didn't increase, but the location of one pin on the package did, and that is why Pentium M cannot be upgraded to Core Duo. When Intel replaced Core Duo with the Core 2 Duo, there was no physical alteration made to the package, and that is why the upgrade fomr Core Duo to Core 2 Duo is possible.

Upgrading is not really worth it. It only helps if you really need to the extra processor performance in a short space of time. The upgrade from Core Duo to Core 2 Duo was mostly to get ready for Vista and 64-bit, and a little extra performance.

 

Yes I'm afraid they have to be the exact same sticks to work in dual channel mode. I wouldn't worry though, Dual Channel is overrated and really doesn't add much in the way of speed.


Concerning pins:

Pentium 4 and P4 based Celerons operate on socket 478 and have 478 pins.

Pentium-M and Celeron-M operate on socket 479, and have 478 pins. The difference is that the pins are in different places, so to make sure people understood that they are not interchangeable, intel called the new socket 479.

Core Duos and Celeron-M 400s use socket-M and have 479 pins. They are not compatible with socket 479 as it only has 478 pin slots.

Hope that helps!

 

Thanks for the quick replys

Really wasn't thinking of upgrading, more curious than anything.

Gonna wait a year or two before upgrading to a new notebook. About the only thing upgraded would be the memory. Then two 1 gig sticks may find there way into the budget, and that's only if the price drops.