Upgrade my Laptop

Hey guys, I am new to the forum and I was looking for help to upgrade my old laptop. I currently have a new iMac, but I was wondering if this old thing still has some juice in her. Here are my stats:

Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T7500 @ 2.20GHz 5.1
Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB
Graphics NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
Gaming graphics 1791 MB Total available graphics memory
Primary hard disk 45GB Free (149GB Total)


System
Manufacturer -
Model N/A
Total amount of system memory 4.00 GB RAM
System type 32-bit operating system
Number of processor cores 2
64-bit capable Yes
Storage
Total size of hard disk(s) 149 GB
Disk partition (C 45 GB Free (149 GB Total)
Media drive (D CD/DVD
Graphics
Display adapter type NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT
Total available graphics memory 1791 MB
Dedicated graphics memory 512 MB
Dedicated system memory 0 MB
Shared system memory 1279 MB
Display adapter driver version 8.16.11.8681
Primary monitor resolution 1440x900
DirectX version DirectX 10

Network
Network Adapter Broadcom NetLink (TM) Gigabit Ethernet
Network Adapter Bluetooth Device (Personal Area Network)
Network Adapter Microsoft Tun Miniport Adapter
Network Adapter Intel(R) Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN

I am going to upgrade to Win7 (64bit) in the next few days. I am looking for around 200 and I was wondering if that was doable for a CPU and GPU. THe computer was built by iBuyPower and is a Compal FL90, I have no clue on what motherboard it is running. ANy suggestions or help would be grealy appreciated. Thanks

 

COMPAL IFL90 Upgrade page

Also 965 chipset will support all 800 FSB Core 2 Duo's. Best bet is T8300/T8100 without spending a boat load of money.

 

nahh, go T9500/T9300, both are good with the first slightly faster.

 

Slightly faster performance isn't worth $90 more, IMO.

 

from T7500 to T8100/T8300 isn't worth either, unless you get the CPU for dirt cheap (or free) so that it can somewhat justify the effort of changing it.

passmark scores:

T7500 - 1,253

T8100 - 1,339
T8300 - 1,486

T9300 - 1,685
T9500 - 1,850

I personally went from T7500 to T9500 and it was well worth it, for me at least.

 

T9x00 only offers more cache, slightly higher clock speeds are is over 200% more expensive. You can get a T8300 under 35 dollars on eBay..

 

Thanks guys for the info. My other question is it true that the best upgrade for my laptop is really the ATI4650? Will the GTX440 not fit? Thanks for the link to the FL90 upgrade link. This is my first time digging into a notebook, but I wanted to try and get a few more years out of the old thing before having to upgrade. This is our only windows machine in the house (my wife "upgraded" to a 2011 27" i5 iMac). It looks like for the $200 price point I can get both the CPU and GPU.

Another question, would upgrading to 64 bit Windows 7 help in any way? I am basically using this computer to play SWTOR/SC2 because hogging our desktop is not an option. Thanks again for all the info!

the Compal FL90 originally uses the 8600m GT in either 256mb or 512mb configurations. The vbios is not stored on the card, but integrated into the mainboard bios. Other Nvidia cards do not work in the FL90, but ATI cards can. No resources or attempts to modify FL90 bios concerning MXM card upgradeability can be found online

 

The gtx440 regardless if it fits or not, your cpu would be the bottleneck. Especially since the games you want to play really strain the cpu. Just stick with the cheaper/weaker card and play on low settings

 

Is it a mxm 2.1 slot? if so I think you can go all the way to the 6770m, I think meaker or someone did this

 

I think highest end 2.1 cards are GTX 280M and 4870 Mobility..

 

indeed they are, the problem is if the cooling would handle it