Swapping the GPU

I keep hearing that in 99% of laptops it's impossible to replace the gpu because it's soldered to the motherboard. Couldn't you just replace both of them thus upgrading your gpu? or isn't it that simple.

 

Sure, but replacing a motherboard is a big job. And more to the point, motherboards aren't standardized across models, so the motherboard for one model almost certainly won't fit another one. As well, motherboards tend to be expensive; often something like half the cost of the entire notebook.

 

you raise fair points guess it just isn't practical then.

 

Yep. Exact answer. Notebook MBs are often customized and model-specific (even sub-model specific!)

 

Pretty much. It's like, oh, turning a regular gasoline car into a completely electric car; unless there's some sort of kit or motherboard revision with the parts you want, it's going to be a custom job, and it's going to involve essentially gutting the entire machine. So, yes, not practical is the general answer for it.

 

Or if the car happens to be from a company that likes to use the same chassis for several different models.
Like the acer aspire 5315, 5720g, 5520g, 7720g, 7520g... shall I continue? Ok, you do have to cut a few holes in the plastic sometimes but its pretty easy...

 

Aren't most of those Acers you mentioned MXM notebooks anyway, and thus not subject to the necessity of having to replace a motherboard in the first place? Or more to the point, the graphics cards are not soldered to the motherboard as mentioned in the OP, and thus are in a different category.

 

No, they aren't all MXM. Its actually a somewhat profitable hobby to get a 5320 with a dead motherboard and throw in a 5720g motherboard.

The MXM ones ALWAYS have a 'g' at the end. And for every one of the G models there is a version without a g, that is identical except for the graphics which yes are soldered on. There is an empty space with solder tracks for the MXM connector on these laptops, its sort of pathetic because you could easily fit a 2nd hard drive in there.

I think pretty much all of the 5*2* have the same chassis with slightly different ports depending on how much of a budget model it is except for the 5920. And the 7*2* actually use the same motherboards as the 15". 5315 and 5715 also have this same chassis.
Thats all I really know about so far. This is only with Aspires mind you, the extensa 5720g for example is completely different. I think they do things similarly with all the lines though, the extensa 5720 and 5620 probably have the same chassis.

Oh and one more thing - I don't know if this type of thing is still going on, and if it is its hard to spot but the dell inspiron b130 has the same motherboard as the HP dv4000.
I would bet that it is still happening and that there are some laptops that we will never know can be upgraded to a different chipset or graphics card because the other motherboard was only released in laptops of an entirely different brand.

 

Though most of my knowledge is through Dells, unless a model offers that higher end GPU you are pretty much stuck where you are. Point in case: my Dell Latitude E6410 has Intel HD Graphics (I don't need it for more than that) and offers a 512 MB Nvidia Quadro NVS 3100M graphics. In order to "upgrade" the graphics all I need to do is change out the motherboard. Any laptop which the EXACT same model offers discreet GPU you can change out the motherboard, but that is such a pain in the behind and the costs are expensive as motherboard and sometimes the LCD are them most expensive parts of a laptop (GPU/CPU can be next but not for the average laptop).

What it boils down to: if you uncle gives you a free notebook and it has crummy IGP then just use it and save up for a nice notebook, it isn't worth spending the money on upgrading it.

 

Unless its a crummy notebook, and not an e6410 seriously, you can imagine your uncle giving you one of those?

Lets take step back and look at this a little more logically. Say your uncle gives you a dell d531. Now tell me you wouldn't upgrade the motherboard on that...
Like I proved EXACT same model isn't really true. With 14" laptops its hardly ever a good idea I agree, but if you had an e6510 with integrated graphics? Man, if you could find an m4500 motherboard with the quadro fx 1800m for around 150$, that would be totally worth it.

 

Yup, it was the same with my old XPS. I had the motherboard with the soldered on Nvidia 7400m. I had the motherboard replaced once and they mistakenly gave me the one with the Intel IGP. Doh!

 

What? And I was using the E6410 in my signature as an example. I meant if the exact same model offers a discreet option then you change out the motherboard, provided you get P/N for the motherboard. Never did I say you can swap a E6410 mobo into an E6510 chassis. And what difference does it matter of the screen size? The E6410/E6510 are very similar in design only one is larger than the other.

Plus, very likely with a motherboard swap you would have to reactivate Windows, and good luck with that.

 

A lot does depend on your comfort level with computer repairs, though. If your technical expertise is limited to being able to plug in a PCI card or something similar, then changing out an entire motherboard, is probably a bit beyond what you're willing to do.

 

Thats probably more true than anything I said lol

I'm one of those people who can watch someone doing something with their hands and not understand how they seem to have so little focus and so much clumsiness and disregard for the physical/technical layout of things.
I've never used a service manual, ever. I think there is some way to mesh and understand electronically engineered things on an intangible level, obviously I should not be expecting everyone to do that just so they can save some money

 

Stay away from my computer!! It's a good way to crack a bezel or strip a screw. Unless you've opened up your laptop so many times (I've probably opened up my Vostro 1500 over 100 times, I could practically do it in my sleep).

 

I wasn't saying that either, I was saying that the e6410 is not a great example because people are not going to have one laying around for a while then decide to upgrade it, its just not likely.

I was saying that it doesn't have to be the exact same model. Although with 14" come to think it that is more true, thats where screen size makes a big difference. Dell simply doesn't seem to make as many 14" off the same chassis, and if they do the upgrade usually isn't as worth it because none of them have great graphics.

I don't know if they have a budget version of the d630 for example. Whereas the budget version of the d830, the d531, can of course be upgraded from its crappy AMD turions to everything that works on intel pm965 and the best graphics available on the equivalent precision series.

Also - you should consider that there could sometimes be a chance that it is possible to swap a 14" motherboard in a 15" chassis or vice versa because of how Acer does it with some of their 17" and 15" models.

 

Haha.

As soon as I got my m570tu I stripped it down to the motherboard and resoldered the mounting for the chipset heatsink. It runs just fine.
Yes, a few screws are missing there are about a half a dozen screw sizes.
But I didn't crack the bezel (although I don't use it at all)

yea, all I'd really seen though was the exterior and the the bottom plate taken off.

 

Course I know it wasn't the greatest example, it was just the first thing that came to my head that offers a GPU upgrade option that wasn't removable.

lol it was a joke. As long as you are careful, you don't need a service manual but sometimes companies like HP or Sony will use double sided tape or a hidden screw and you will break plastics trying to just yank stuff off, I hate it. That's why I <3 Dell.