Upgrading CPU for Dell Inspiron 1520

Well, recently, I decided it would be best for my to start upgrading aspects of my laptop to pull out the most I can from it for at the very least another two years or so. I haven't really gotten around to upgrading the memory nor have I even utilized a larger hard-drive (i.e. still using 120 GB @ 7200 RPM). But when my screen cracked I had to make a decision which was should I spend money on a new laptop or try fixing the one I have.

Inspiron 1520 Specs:
Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo T5250 @ 1.50 GHz
Operating System: Windows Vista Home Premium (32-Bit)
Hard Drive: 120.0 GB Serial ATA 7200 RPM
Memory (RAM): 2.0 GB
Network: Dell Wireless 1505 Draft 802.11n WLAN Mini-Card
Video: 128MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS
BIOS: Dell Inc. 11/05/2007
1 USB 2.0 Port

Outside of the memory, I was wondering what possible other upgrade options do I have? Should I get a new processor? I keep hearing Windows 7 this and Windows 7 that, should I upgrade? I have had my laptop since December 2007 and I have only recently, like say the last few weeks decided to grow a pair and upgrade my laptop. Part of this probably has to do with me actually performing the upgrades myself, as I have before replaced the inverter on this very laptop, a couple of months ago.

Also, I keep hearing this buzzing coming from the bottom right-hand corner of my screen, would this have something to do with the fact that my screen is cracked/replaced inverter?

Thanks for all your help, looking forward to the responses!

 

The screen is pretty cheap;

http://www.blisscomputers.net/dell-inspiron-1520-laptop-lcd-screen-15-4-wsxga-glossy.aspx

1680x1050 for 105 shipped.

Your motherboard will accept any 800 FSB Core 2 Duo, your best bets are a T8300/T8100 or a T7500. You can go up to 4 GB DDR2 667 RAM, and any 9.5mm 2.5" SATA drive also, or an SSD. The GPU can be upgraded also to an 8600M GT 256 MB (UW390 is the P/N).

Or you can sell me the laptop.

 

Thanks for the quick reply!

While I was searching online, I never stumbled across anything that increased my resolution from the 1280x800, which I've always had it at. But apparently, this is a pretty good deal, I was looking at just a replacement I was going to get from screentekinc.com for about roughly the same price, but that looks like a really good deal thoguh. I'm not too big on the glossy the stuff, as I prefer the matte-styled.

Also, I was surfing online and looking through several posts about cpu upgrades and this: Amazon.com: Intel Cpu Core 2 Duo T9500 2.60Ghz Fsb800Mhz 6Mb Ufcpga8 Socket P Tray: Electronics - kept popping up. Now, I'm not sure what this means but apparently, it's higher than the models you stated. Which should I choose and why?

Also, would you happen to know, if there was a way I could upgrade my existing USB ports to USB 2.0? I have about approximately 4-ports, 1 of which is USB 2.0, but the other three are just standard ports. And I found this for a hard-drive replacement, would that work?

I would sell it but the laptop itself has a certain value as it was given to me by my recently deceased aunt. This is why I'm looking to preserve it and spending a boat load of money just fixing it as opposed to buying a new one.

 

Err the screen is matte, for some reason there's a typo in the description that says glossy. All the Dell screens from this age should be matte, and I believe all resolutions higher than 1280x800 have Truelife. Blisscomputers also has a WUXGA (1920x1200) screen for 130 shipped if you want super high resolution (too much IMO for 15.4")

Yes a T9500 would work but it is overpriced. Extra cache and "speed" isn't worth it in normal applications and gaming, only rendering and synthetic benchmarks. As stated, you can go look for a T8300/T8100/T7500 as they are very good processors for the money.

AFAIK they should all be USB 2.0 ports. My Vostro 1500 is the business equivalent of your Inspiron 1520 and all mine are USB 2.0.

Yes that hard drive will work, you may also want to consider the jump to Windows 7, as Vista driver model is practically the same as Windows 7.

Ah well something I didn't know. Just don't spend a boat load on your laptop, because even with the upgrades it won't significantly increase the value if you resell it as it is older technology. I don't plan on selling mine so I have upgraded mine pretty heavily.

 

Oh I didn't notice that, well, I'll definitely be getting the replacement screen from that site, no doubt about it. Thanks for the help, just a quick question, it wouldn't make a difference if I had a 1280x800 WXGA before and I upgrade the screen to a higher resolution.

Ahh, well, I have a feeling I'll be going with either the T8100 or the T7500, as both seem like a reasonable upgrade from what I have now.

I guess that maybe the difference between the Vostro/Inspiron, whenever I put something in that uses USB 2.0, I always have to switch it to the top port on the right side.

I don't really plan on selling it ever, but thanks for your help, your going to help me make some really well-informed decisions.

 

Take a Merom T7000 for safety bet. Or you can take T4 or T8 Penryns. But you have 965PM I'm sure. I have a similar config with HP. so gotta be around 2007-2008. They might not have fresh BIOS for T4/T8000

Other than memory... I don't think so. It's pretty common for my family laptops. My family has about 5 laptops and they pretty much have that type of configs. Upgrade to 4GB can speed up.

And.. screen buzzing? Okay. I'm not deadly sure, but usually, under the 4 corners of screen, under the rubber dudes, there're retention screws... it's not where invertors usually are. invertors are usually below screen in that bezel space. Just see if the screw went loose. use a screwdriver to .. just secure it.

 

Thanks for all the replies, I really appreciate you guys helping me out and so I went online searching for CPU Processors for the laptop mentioned above, I was wondering if you guys could tell me if I am picking out the correct one:

Those are a few that I am considering, I'm not sure which one I should get, but could you guys perhaps let me know of any side effects I may encounter after installing one of these chips? For instance, I'm currently running a T5250, if I jump to a T8300, it's not going to overheat my computer to the point where I cannot use it anymore is it?

 

Your best bet there is the T7500/T8300. The T8300 has the same TDP as the T5250 so you should be good. The Inspiron 1520 should be able to handle a 44 watt TDP processor (X9000) as I have seen people running their notebooks with it.

 

Well, I started looking for the processors you recommended, I ran into a bit of a wall, because I kept getting two different processors with the same model however it different sockets? I would see one for a Socket P and the other was something along the lines of FCBGA6. How do I know which is the correct one?

 

All the listed processors are Socket P.

 

Oh I see, I was looking at T7700 and T7800, my mistake, I'm assuming Socket P are the correct ones to get right?

 

The Insprion 1520 uses a GM965 chipset and thus compatible with both Merom and Penryn CPUs; ie. any T7xxx, T8100, T8300, T9300, T9500 & X9000. Yes, these are all Core 2 Duo 800Mhz FSB socket P CPUs and as of BIOS A09, it has support for the 1st generation 45nm Penryn Core 2 Duo CPUs.

The T8300 is my recommendation as it provides a decent performance for your daily working needs.

More importantly you need to know why you are upgrading your current CPU... And for what purposes, you will see a performance gain from the upgrade.

The buzzing you hear is related to the CPU whining issue which is apparent for these Inspiron machines which is quite a known issue. The workaround is to use RMclock to disable the C4 mode and the whine will disappear.

 

I was upgrading primarily because its getting old and well, 1.5GHz really doesn't do it anymore. Now, if I am upgrading just the processor, do I need a new heatsink/fan?

 

If you're not doing anything CPU intensive and you feel your computer isn't any slower then the upgrade isn't worth doing so. What exactly are the tasks doing on your machine? Checking emails, surfing the net and mild non-fps gaming will not benefit from any CPU upgrade.

No, you do not need a heatsink interchange as there is one of them only designed for the 1520. The heatsink is already pre-stressed and designed for a 35W Core 2 Duo based CPU.

 

I'm a graphic/web designer and it sucks how I can't apply effects in Photoshop without having to wait a minute for the computer catch up. And when I open Dreamweaver and have music playing, each time I do something, it becomes s problem and the song skips and etc. I just need it to be faster, so I dont have to wait so long and perhaps I can work on multiple layouts at once.

 

Good. I'm glad that you specifically mention what programs you run on your PC. It's important for us to know what you do as the upgrade affects it. If that's the case, 3 things you need if you really want to beef up your system to handle your work and multi-task:

1. RAM up to 3GB. (4-6GB if you upgrade to x64)
2. A T9300 CPU with 6mb Cache
3. A faster and bigger harddrive.

Or even better, a new Quad core machine to handle your workstation needs.

I do graphics, video and 3D rendering as well. I do posters and high resolution illustrations and photography; I can understand the pain we go through when opening and handling large 1GB files with over 10,000+ layers or more in photoshop.

In my experience, what you're lacking is RAM. And since you open many applications at once, I'd be honest here, 2GB doesn't cut it. The CPU cache is important to speed up the instruction sets input by photoshop and dreamweaver to speed up and multitask the information given. A fast harddrive is essential as scratch disk. What I observed from your above post is multi-tasking capabilities and processing power; which RAM and cache comes into place.

I too, got my machines upgraded to the higher end specs to cater my workstation needs. (Which in my opinion, still not powerful enough)

Hope this helps.

 

As Human stated, yes you would greatly benefit with all those upgrades, but you could also start considering a new laptop. You are mostly limited by age of the chipset, not that we aren't saying it isn't worth it. Your laptop is your laptop and I love the older Dell chassis, but when the costs are equal or more than the value of your notebook you might want to start considering a new laptop. You could take a look at a refurbished Precision or newer Latitude, a decent Precision can come to 600-700 with coupon, Latitudes even cheaper.

 

I'll have to see what the cost-effective ratio is but please understand I'm very new to this upgrading my laptop, I haven't ever handled hardware outside of upgrading my RAM. I actually found a really good deal on the T7800 but I also found something decent albeit used/plucked from an unopened computer, T8300 but I'll have to check if the guy has a T9300 or T9500. I noticed that the cache size for the T9300/T9500 is 6MB while the ones I was looking at was 4MB and 3MB, respectively.

With RAM, I didn't realize my system could go up to 6GB, everyone I know told me that the maximum I can have is 4GB. Is there a way around this? Also would it help if I upgraded my GPU? I currently have the 128MB nVIDIA GeForce 8400, I know I can maximize my potential with the 8600 but I'm not sure if that's going to help my case or not.

Currently I'm looking at a 750GB @ 7200 RPM Hard Drive from SeaGate, but I don't know if it's 9.5mm or not because it doesn't specify on their website. The only site that has specified that for me is trying to sell it to me for $150, I found a 500GB @ 7200 RPM for about $85, it's definitely not cost-effective to get that if I don't find it for cheaper.

I was able to determine that it would cost me approximately $220 with the T8300, 4GB RAM and 750GB HD ($100 from SeaGate but still don't know if it's 9.5mm). It beats trying to buy out a brand new laptop, at best I'll find one that's mid-tier with my budget ($400-$500) and even with that, I'd probably end up getting the Inspiron 15 or something close to that. I'd rather hold out with this machine and get one in two years that's top of the line.

I have to agree with you, especially about the part relating to their chassis because a friend of mine has the new Sony VAIO EB/XPS 17 (either of which I would get in a heartbeat if not for them being around $1400 customized) and I'll be honest those things don't look really durable. What I mean by that I feel as my current laptop can with stand a good deal of pressure as opposed to something new. Not that I drop it often, but I have had it fall a considerable distance (in a protective case) which if it were a MacBook Pro or something smaller, I probably could have kissed it goodbye.

 

Not all GM965/PM965 can take 8 GB DDR2. As I found out with my Vostro 1500 with latest BIOS, it does not post with any 4 GB DDR2 sticks, it is a BIOS limitation. Human has the Inspiron 1720 which does support 4 GB sticks.

The Seagate 750 GB is a 2.5" 9.5mm SATA drive, just a bit overpriced right now as it is the largest sized 7200 rpm notebook drive. You could consider the Scorpio Black 500 GB which goes for 65-70 dollars.

You can upgrade to the 8600M GT 256 MB, P/N UW390. It is a drop in upgrade and if you are doing all those upgrades might as well knock it out at the same time as you upgrade your CPU as you have to remove the palmrest. The Inspiron 1520/Vostro 1500 are a breeze to work on, you should be able to get to the motherboard in 10-15 minutes, I've taken mine apart so many times I can do it half that time.

I don't recommend Sony due to their track record for parts. I would take a look at a Precision M4400/M6400, you can always upgrade them later. Or you can look at a E6410, and get the Quadro graphics.

 

Is there a way to get around the BIOS limitation? Perhaps a better question is why is there a BIOS limitation and if I were to magically discover a method around it, which 4GB sticks would work with my laptop?

Yeah, I'll be upgrading the GPU at the same time as the processor, I just want to knock out all these aftermarket modifications as efficiently as possible. I don't want to open/reopen everything all the time as it becomes a hassle to put back together and then you get hungry.

Sony's bad w/parts? I've never had a problem with my PS3 so I was actually honestly thinking about giving the VAIO a shot, but when I customized the XPS, I realized you get slightly more options with it than you would w/the VAIO.

 

I just posted my T7500 on ebay for sale .. and it's currently at 0.50 USD price. Damn.

I've also posted the voltages that it ran on the whole time (with RMClock).

.. just saying, if you decide to go for it.

 

I haven't seen a BIOS fix, but if anyone else has any information would be appreciated cause I got a 4 GB stick of DDR2 lying around!

If you view my repasting Vostro 1500 guide, it has some pictures of disassembly.

Yes, Sony are notorious for not having parts available, for their notebook line at least. That and their SPA/SPAN part ordering system has been down for 4 months we nobody can service warranty Sony notebooks, must be RMA'd to Sony for warranty repair.

 

Post the link, I'll look at it, I'm not in a rush because I'm planning on acquiring the Hard Drive and Memory first and then upgrading the processor.

If I find anything on the topic, I'll be sure to check with you before going to work at it. If the Inspiron 1720 and 1520 at best have only a screen resolution of a difference, then would it be possible to utilize the BIOS from that in the 1520? That could allow us to utilize 8GB of RAM theoretically, would it not?

I'll take a look at the repasting guide, I haven't ever done a complete tear down and in fact it looks exceptionally scary but I'm always up for a challenge.

That's way more of a problem, because the next laptop I get (in 2 years or so should last me at the very least 5 years). I've had my Inspiron 1520 since December 2007, it was manufactured and put together in November 2007. I'm hoping it'll last til the end of 2012.

Edit: I was able to find the memory, I would use to replace the one in my current laptop: http://www.crucial.com/store/partspecs.aspx?IMODULE=CT2KIT51264AC800 - Can someone tell me if this is the correct one?