ok I need to upgrade BADLY

Ok i'm on an Acer Aspire 5336-2524 laptop and i don't know alot about computers just the basics

Specs:
Intel Celeron 900
Intel GMA 4500m
3 GB DDR3 ram
250 HDD
Windows 7 32-bit
and i'm not sure the chipset unfortunely don't know how to find it

but i need to upgrade my CPU because having a single core processor just sucks honestly, and all i really want to upgrade is to a better processor, mainly cause i'm tired of running programs and it getting severely hot, i'm afraid i'm going to burn up my processor....

any advice would be greatly appreciated and i'll take everything into consideration

 

Theoretically you can upgrade to a Core 2 Duo, GL40 chipset lines are blurry about Core 2. Acer BIOS don't whitelist CPUs.

 

hmm alright

 

where do you live? in the US you can check salescircular.com for local sales.

 

Sounds like a Pentium Dual Core T4400 would be a cost effective upgrade.

Intel Pentium Dual Core Mobile 2.2Ghz CPU SLGJL T4400 - eBay (item 330537404940 end time Apr-01-11 14:10:47 PDT)

 

If the issue is the CPU getting too hot, upgrading by itself won't help. In fact, a dual core CPU will produce more heat than the single-core Celeron you currently have. I would work on fixing your current problem if the CPU is overheating (replace thermal paste, clean out dust, etc) before attempting to upgrade.

 

CPUs are pretty cheap on eBay. You could try one and if it doesn't work, sell it.

 

Even if you do upgrade the CPU (which seems like it could end up being a pain in the end) I don't think you will notice THAT huge of a performance difference (I'm sure it would help a bit with performance, but it wouldn't be a game changer in terms of heat/ thermals)

In my opinion, I think you would be better served by selling your current computer (or returning it to where you got it from, if they will let you still); and putting that money and more towards a computer that will run faster and cooler (changing out the CPU on this computer for a more powerful one won't necessary solve the heat issue you are seeing, and disassembling your computer and replacing the CPU will be a real pain for someone who isn't computer savvy, and it will void your warranty)

 

I was trying to say what Agent 9 said. If you can feel the heat, it is some design issue of the model.

 

I've seen a lot of laptops having overheating problems (especially on a gaming laptop), and you can buy a laptop cooler to put underneath it, and that seems to help a lot.

The cooler allows for better ventilation and has fans to cool off the bottom of the laptop. Getting one of these fixed the crashes my sister was having when her laptop would overheat.

Don't go for a cheap model though. The fans seem to wear out on those almost immediately. I think that she paid around $40, and it kind of looks like a trapper keeper (with fans at the top and opened on the sides). This lets it draw in air from the sides instead of the bottom, which a lot of cheaper coolers do. Pulling in air from the bottom is pointless because your legs just block it from pulling in any air.

 

the reason i brought up the heat issue is cause it gets hot cause the cpu usage is at 100%, other than that it never gets hot and i'm not sure if i can even take it back honestly, i got it as present and i'm not sure where they got it from...

 

If by "gets hot" you mean the laptop feels hot on the bottom or on the palm rest, that doesn't necessarily mean the CPU or any other component is overheating. I recommend stressing the CPU to 100% load and running something like HWMonitor to check your actual CPU temps.

If heat is the only issue (and the CPU is indeed approaching critical temperature), I would look into undervolting it. This is something you would be able to do with an upgraded processor as well, and when I did it with my Core 2 Duo laptop, it reduced temps at 100% load from 85 degrees to about 65.

That being said, if your cooling system can handle it, a good Core 2 Duo or Pentium Dual Core can be had for less than $50 on eBay and, as long as you don't do any gaming or serious video editing, should last you another 2-3 years at least if you like the rest of the laptop.

 

yes i play games, stuff like RoM (Runes of Magic) but when i play the game it never goes over 75% cpu usage unless i hit a lag spike or something but it always runs lower than that but i also play another game called Minecraft which it does decent with lags a bit on multiplayer but thats the only time i erally hit 100% CPU usage...

and when i say it gets hot, i meant it feels hot and it blows out hot air... so if it does that i just take a little fan and put it up against the back and it cools it off no problem...


and yeah there is a core 2 duo i believe on eBay someone posted it on here for me and it is like $40 but i won't be able to put it in and i don't know anyone who would be able too...

 

ok i ran the HWMontior and these are my read outs

with fan blowing on back
what each # = value min max
Acer JE51_MV 49 C 46 C 54 C
Celeron 900 35 C 34 C 42 C

without fan on back
Acer JE51_WV 53 C 53 C 55 C
Celeron 900 40 C 34 C 43 C

 

Vote: not hot

 

Well it isn't getting hot internally at all, but it sounds like the way they designed the laptop is that a lot of heat radiates to the casing (basically it is a poorly designed laptop )

yea, changing out the CPU (while it would help your situation) would be a bit of a difficult thing for someone who isn't used to cracking open their computer. and it will void any warranty there was (but some people say that as long as you put the old cpu back in before sending it in, then there is no issue with warranty... some say, but IDK if it is true)

 

oh well then i guess i don't have a heat issue lol, would geek squad do it? even though they prolly charge out the rear end.. but its the only people i could think of...

 

I'd just go to a local, small but well known computer shop, and pay them to do it. Most of the Geek Squad employees are hacks.

 

Considering that laptop is likely not the newest, before you do anything, I'd suggest just opening up the thing and cleaning out the dust that has probably built up inside. Perhaps repaste the cpu if you want.

Has the machine always run this hot?

 

i got this laptop in december of 2010 its not old at all

 

Geek squad would probably charge more than it would cost to buy a new laptop, seriously. Find a local shop and plead your case. Even for the most difficult laptop it shouldn't take more than an hour to replace one.

 

My advice is to sell this as-is and get the machine you really want/need.

Anything else is a 'bad' upgrade to this specific machine.

Except for the single core, the machine is not too bad, really.

Maybe you can try this if you haven't already:

See:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/6723837-post163.html


Good luck.

 

Geek Squad doesn't even really fix anything in house. They ship out everything to 3rd party depots.

Acers are generally pretty easy to take apart. The cheaper the laptop, the easier it is to take apart (generally). Plus Acers have a track record of being easily upgradable so usually they have easy access.

 

the machine i want is an alienware and costs inbetween 1000 and 2000 dollars lol cant get that yet, thanks to me breaking my foot

 

To the OP:
When was the last time you cleaned out the laptops insides and exhaust vents?
If you hadn't done that, I strongly suggest you do so, because laptops primarily get exceedingly hot due to dust buildup over time.

If you want to upgrade the cpu, then going with the T4400 seems like a viable upgrade as it would provide a dual core one.
Keep in mind that this would yield performance increase in CPU intensive tasks.
You could also consider upgrading the RAM to 4GB, and replacing that 250GB HDD with a Hitachi Travelstar 7k750 (500GB).
The RAM is merely to max it out, and the HDD is because it would reduce loading times by a noticeable margin (at least as far as mechanical drives go).

But other than that, the GMA4500m is a pretty weak integrated gpu.
If you plan on doing intensive gaming on it, I really would abstain.
You would be able to run games fine from about 2005/2006 that are well optimized, but in regards to latest games... I think you'd have to use minimum settings.

If gaming is not a priority for you, or you don't really play games that are intensive one way or another, then the upgrade might be viable as it would extend your laptops usability (depending on your uses) for a couple more years, but if it is, then do yourself a favor and save your money until you can get a new system.
In the meantime, you can do with cleaning out the dust from your system in order to reduce the temps (along with possible repasting).