Frankinbook (My Pro Elitebooks 8570PB)

If you're not familiar with the P or B designation, then you haven't got a clue to old dinosaur HP business class notebooks. They are the last of their breed, so I will try a good attempt at making what HP should have done as a special edition for early 2013.

NOS PARTS LIST:

Elitebook 8560p display panel (FHD, Map light, Webcam, Stereo mic)
Elitebook 8570p palm rest with finger print scanner and touch point buttons
Elitebook 6560b Touch point keyboard
Probook 6570b HM76 system board (born date 08/12)
Probook 8570p bottom cover

STANDARD PARTS:

UJ-272 (Panasonic Blu-ray R/W - very thin tray model - Late 2011)
M.2 A key to Mini PCI-e adapter (WiFi 6 M.2 A+E key)
M.2 B key to Mini PCI-e adapter (WWAN CAT20 G5 Ready M.2 B+M key)
2x WWAN Antennas (to add to the existing 5 antennas)
7x IPEX MHF4 to IPX U.FL adapter cables
MSATA to SATA adapter
M.2 B key re-locator / extender to Mini PCI-e
Samsung Evo 970 250GB NVME x4
Seagate Blue 256GB NVME SATA3
Unbranded/Unlocked CAT12/16 WWAN module (1Gbps Down / 450Mbps Up)
Intel AX210 Wifi 6 and adapter w/ Bluetooth 5.2
i7 3740QM CPU
Used Elitebook 8570p base
DV6 Heat sink (To be modded for high-perf cooling)
Possibly more to add as I go... stay tuned.

1st thing, some of the parts may not fit or function until modded. Though it is mainly the light up keyboard for now. I prefer the dark grey look over black, and the lettering holds up much better than the print on non light up keyboards.

Mod #1:

Keyboard

The W series uses a different base, motherboard and cover than other similar models. In fact screen assemblies have different latches, so palm rest or base will not allow swapping from unlike models. The keyboards look the same and have the same footprint, just the hold down stays to be fastened by screws are in different locations and a bit deeper than the other models.

What I noticed about the light up keyboard is that the assembly can be taken apart. Unlike the other models. So, if one is willing to remove the backing plate and carefully remove the hold down stays, they could be cut down and resign their locations to match the non work station layout on the base and palm rest. I did a test fit with the removed hold down stays, which was snug enough not even to bother with using the screws to hold down the keyboard. I doubt it will ever pop out on its own.

With that simple trick done, I can now move on to some assembly to make things operational.

Stay tuned for more...

 

All this for a laptop without an MXM slot?

I actually didn't know you could do nVME on a system without native nVME support, especially all the way back to 2nd/3rd gen!

Any access to the i7 Extreme processors? A 2nd gen 2920/2940 might outperform your 3rd gen quite readily.

 

Hi, as for NVME support... hardware will function, just BIOS limitations to boot from PCI-e. Problem for most is MSATA looks just like M.2, but it's not plug and play. Need a conversion adapter or m.2 to MPCI-E adapter, which is easier to manage and has a low price tag.

Don't know if your familiar with the lower business systems. They too have had support up until mid 2019. I have not used the 2019 bios yet on these old 2012 system boards. Who knows what goodies may lurk with the BIOS update.

As for the extreme edition CPU. I am not going there. The system is too restricted for cooling. The system Board I have is a Probook 6570b. Pretty much the same as an Elitebook 8570p system board, just ID info mostly.

It is a integrated video system board. To me it's better in the long run. Have had way too many issues with AMD. If I were a gamer after cheap old school hardware for gaming a Dell 7500 series would be a starter. Though there is other notebooks out there, just them Dells are proliferant. I sorta like the lower end Elitebook/Probook design. Not quite thin and light, but not the IBM brick house that could come in handy if mugged. Them 14" think pads are deadly.

I recently looked at the system Board and found it has a HM76 chipset. No real loss, but some are HM77 based. It lacks the ability to do RAID, and minus 2 USB 2.0 ports. Like there is not enough of them already.

If I cannot get the NVME to boot, it will be work, temp and swap drive. Video conversion and light games will benefit over keeping things all SATA.

Worst case, could adapt the NVME to use SATA. No sensemble using SSD as an upgrade anymore. Their efficiency lacks compared to NVMe.

 

Update to the 8570W keyboard mod. After assembling the system 6570b board assembly to the 8560p palm rest, I found the keyboard fit very snug and difficult to seat. So I grabbed a beat up 6570b palm rest and tried it out. It fit easier but just a wee tight. As if it were a permanent fit. Tough bugger none the less. I am not sure if the large zif ribbon cable connector for the keyboard has interference, or casting flash is the cause. Maybe it's just too thick for fit, since the P/B keyboards are thinner.

Will look deeper into fitment.

I had to trim carefully some of the tabs on each side of the keyboard ribbon cable, I noticed the alignment tabs were a wee larger than the non light up keyboards. The trim worked just fine in fitment.

Looking for RAM, Hard drive, power supply, and what not sure to get a test run going. With just the keyboard mod. Break in and overall checks to get things on a starting point.

I thought I had a bluray, only a DVD... may have to use one of my thin Panasonic drives (UJ-272) with tray, most are auto feeds, which cannot load mini discs. I might be able to customize it to work. But that is once the notebook is functioning.

 

I finally got the laptop bootable. It's now running 8GB. Has an old BIOS, as expected. The FHD display is functional as well.

As for my idea of a modded light up keyboard, was all for nil. I am not sure but once I got down to the nitty gritty it became apparent the backlight was damaged by having removed the backing plate. The glue had fused the backlite between keyboard frame and backing plate. The forces were too great. But I did see something odd, for being spill resistant. what ever happened in its life had left residue which made the keyboard function oddly with keys. Either the mapping at the lines on the ribbon cable are not the same for other keyboards or spillage was too great for the drainage to recover. Obviously this was not a new keyboard. Probably weeks old and damaged. Don't know why it was mixed in with the NOS parts. At least I have another keyboard that is proper for the laptop. It functions just right, so that is what I will end up using from now on.

The laptop is partially apart with display hinges free from body. The bottom base assembly is its foundation, even though it has mounting on the palm rest / keyboard top. Which is sort of a joke. Seen many crack or break off on HP lower lines notebooks.

Well, scratch off the light up keyboard mod option. It was an option, just because it was available in my parts picking.

 

Made the face plate fit on the UJ-272 Blu-ray R/W drive. Will need to modify further, the release button is not aligned and manual release hole as well. Right now it functions like a Mac version, eject through OS functions.

Will need to paint the top strip of the drive face plate platinum to match the palm rest colour.

Another note... the Probook 6570B does not have a built in smart card reader. So I will plug the slot on the bottom base. It's not required, nor is my system board equipped with components to allow it's function. The HM76 boards for the Probook 6570B don't have the extra USB ports. I assume the HM77 boards are to use a Smart Card module similar to the one used on the 2530 models.

Sorting out on what drive to use that I can boot with and start making mods to allow AX WiFi integration, and NVME on PCI-e x4.

 

Mod #2

Sound system

Had some parts from a old 17" with Altec Lansing drivers. They are 15% larger, and have thicker awg wires on the same 4 pin connector, which makes it a no brainer on plug and play. The key is the sound chamber the speakers mount to. The Altec Lansing speakers should fit the base assembly nicely, just have to modify the chamber layout to fit within the hard drive caddy location. There is plenty of area to make a sound box. I could add the two existing drivers within the modded chamber as push / pull drivers, or do something different. Differential spacial sound. It's based on old late 60's early 70's tech for quad sound out of stereo, using analog audio. It's great for games and live performances. I tricked out my 90's DTS sound to incorporate spacial sound for sports. Monday night footfall was more fun for my guests.

Here is my super secret spacial sound hack using stereo speaker output, I haven't searched online to see if anyone else has made a diy, but I doubt I am the only one to think of it.

Here is the speaker layout. S Sound speakers are on the outside of both Left and Right speakers. Being best mounted at the sides of the listeners, while left and right are kept forward.

( - ) S Sound Speaker #1 ( + ) ( + ) L speaker ( - )
( + ) R speaker ( - ) ( + ) S Sound Speaker #2 ( - )

Wiring is as follows:

Both S Sound speakers have the (+) terminals wired to each other.

The ( - ) terminals of the S Sound speakers are wired to the ( + ) terminal of the stereo speaker it is paired with.

Easy peasy! It is THX before THX was invented. Ha! Magic speaker elves do all the work. What happens is, the background sounds that are not shared in the left and right channels are selectively given to the S Sound speakers. It works best with 4 to 8 ohm speakers for S Sound when direct wired to 8 ohm Stereo speakers. It makes a true to life stadium sound with sports and other details within movies. A poor man's surround sound, with just wiring extra speakers.

Yes, you will get bleed over the left and right speaker channels, making them sound a wee mono over stereo. But if you have an extra stereo amp just feed the ( + ) line out outputs as ( - ) & ( + ) on the amp. The differential audio for the S Sound speakers, will keep left and right channels isolated from each other.

Just a wee bit of an odd idea that popped up, with the notebook speakers.

 

Back to notebook speakers...

Here is a comparison of my stock Elite speakers and a set of Altec Lansing speakers, shown below. Both sets were tough as nails to remove, while also keeping the housings mostly intact. I did cut one of the Altec Lansing speaker wires when removing. Each wire was bonded to the speaker housing, from head to toe. You can see the residue on the wires.

Everything about the Altec Lansing speakers is bigger and better. All but the connector. They even come with a snazzy metal surround. Ha! The replacement speakers have the encloser attached, so all I have to do is cut a diagonal section off to have them angle with the base contour, and build a custom enclosure, using a customized oem / modified Altec Lansing speaker housing assembly, by grafting bits to make a fuller sound experience. I did keep the full length (17") mesh Altec Lansing speaker grill, as to cover any additional holes needed for 4 speakers.

 

Tested the i7 CPU swap. Fan runs a wee more than expected in test system diagnostics mode. Probably because system bios does not initialize CPU full stepping and core shutdowns.

Will look at removing independent bluetooth, to convert the connection to USB for other options.

Placing tape or paint over pin 20 may be a requirement or not.
Pin 22 may need isolation with a momentary off switch to bypass BIOS check during boot.

I highly doubt my NVME will boot, but a SD card may allow a boot loader to point to NVME for the system drive.

Time is limited, so don't expect much happening right away. Still have to so more tests before assembling and loading OS.

Oh, another thing. The COA is still active. The 6570b is not widely used in corporate areas, mostly small and medium biz. They have mostly Pro COA. There are some with just Standard windows. So I can live with my free Windows Pro. I just need to carefully transfer it to the 8570p bottom cover, since it was corporate with Windows 8.

 

After a few minutes looking things over on the system board, I found a few limitations as for keeping things simple as possible without a lot of extra wires running everywhere.

Low and behold, it hit me. I don't need to move WiFi and WWAN.

The AX210 piggy back board can fit its home socket if... I shave off 1 or 2mm from the WWAN hold down stand offs. So I got busy and made the extra room for fitment. Worked out very well without much effort.

So now it's a matter of a couple of well done PCI RST disconnects at the cards to bypass BIOS checks on WiFi and WWAN.

Problem is that I eliminated a PCI-e socket for my NVME. Yes that would make a rats nest of wiring, and sleepless nights finding every hidden test point to add another PCI-e socket from the unused 4 that are available, some where.

My only option now is to remove the PCMCIA card connector and use the system board pinouts to create a 3rd MPCI-e socket or a single M.2 socket. None of my soldering kit will work for fine detail multi layer board work, so I am sourcing some kit to make the whole process smooth as silk.

Many pros say it's not the tools that shows their abilities... but skills don't cut it with the wrong tools. It's 50% skills/ 50% proper tools, if you want the best work done. Just look at what they use, and their talk is just smelly talk. Pffft!

Yes, I am killing a PC card option, but who uses PC cards now these days? Not many!

All in all it should look clean and trouble free with all the upgrades.

 

Since I have parts on order, I will make a list of to do items, as I have made a few changes in plans as I have broke through a few road blocks, in which I was detoured away from simplicity.

Here is a list of what is needed to get this show on the road.

WWAN card standoff clearance (shave 2mm on each side) - Completed

Both WWAN card and WiFi's M2 A key to PCI-e adapter card need a soldered wire connection to pin 22 on the PCI-e card edge. My plan is to bond (for strain relief) a single connection cut from a ribbon cable to be soldered to the upper end of the pin 22 connection pad on the card.

Both connections will go to the output of a momentary off, push button switch.

Once the modifications are done, I will paint both pin 22 connection pads to isolate any direct contact with the system PCI_RST control line.

Before installing the two cards, I will add USB 3.0 to the WWAN M.2 adapter while masking off the USB 2.0 pins on the Mini PCI-e connector side. I will also add another connection directly to pin 22 on the system board's pad at the PCI-e connector for the WiFi card. That connection will be to the input of the momentary off, push button switch.

One button to bypass two upgraded PCI-e cards that are not in the BIOS white list.

Those two mods will be done firstly, and fully tested for their stability with manual override, of enabling PCI-e devices during boot, before I start on a custom 3rd PCI-e socket, using data and control lines from the Express Card (PCMCIA interface) on the system board, for using a NVME to Mini PCI-e adapter. It too will be modded, since it's easier and cleaner for solid and secure connection. The PCI-e mounting pads are easier to solder to than the very small pins on a connector. I may get away with mounting it so the Express card slot can allow removing the NVME drive like an SD card. The full length of the NVME allows it to slightly protrude out of the Express Card slot, having a connector close to the system board's connections for the Foxconn Express Card adapter.

I doubt the BIOS has a white list on Express Card devices, and may allow booting. Though that part won't be known until final testing.

Thinking things over on how HP setup buttons to control devices, going this route will allow the buttons to function as it would with OEM hardware. Hopefully I will have 1900 MBps R/W data speeds on the system drive when all is said and done.

 

Found a thread about making a NVME boot with just enabling Secure Boot, and UEFI drive settings, within the BIOS. The trick is having Windows detect the hardware in the initial setup. Having a driver for the NVME should do the job. Since Windows can create all the boot info for the BIOS to detect a UEFI device to boot from. Assumming the BIOS reads all media during initialization.

It's one option I can setup for, and see if it works, before making a boot drive, since I was expecting Windows to be installed to the NVME as a secondary drive.

 

I think I got the proper system board schematic for the Elitebook 6570b with HM75 chipset.

After a good look through, the design seems a bit limited. The issue is the docking port not having a PCI-e connection, like the W series Elitebooks. Or it is possible the 8570p system Board or any HM77 chip set system Board has more capabilities within the design? It's just a theory for now.

Anyway, I do have various options to obtain 4 lane M2 capabilities. The Express Card interface on the system board has 2 lanes as it is.

Just giving out my thoughts, as I tend to look at all the options, before making a change or two.

 

After verification that Wifi PCI-e is PCI only, and WWAN PCI-e is SATA and USB. I can assume my schematic is appropriate to the board layout.

I will need to make a wired connection from pins 102 and 103 of the docking station port to the WiFi PCI-e connector. I think that will be the shortest and the least intrusive option. The docking station port has many other USB assignments available, sot there is no loss with options, unless you have 6 USB devices that need plugged in. Ha!

Once I have every pin and tap assignment mapped out and tested for the system board mods, I will post it for reference.

I am thinking of adding a header in place of the Express Card inteface on the system board. It will allow ribbon cable to be used to keep the wires neat and low profile. It may even look OEM when completed. Just thinking more into what style of connection I prefer, I may convert a LVDS connection since it is a short distance and easy to mange with the cable.

 

I changed the info I placed here... I was on the right track to begin with. It seems that I need to add another set of channels., which I had in mind to begin with.

The bits of info with nomenclature can be confusing and give the wrong impression, as well as being misinformative.

It looks like all the PCI-e connections are x2... thus only 4 being used within the system.

As it goes in simple terms.... both channels used in the PCI-e interface have a bidirectional throughput of 5Gbps. So there are no PCI-e lanes with any more or less channels, than 2, being used within the system. All the remaining 4 are disabled by a lack of channel width to assign. If there is a way to override pci-e assignments, then it would be possible to use an unused PCI-e lane.

 

Updated my previous reply, as I was way off, from being a bit confused, on some information gathered and tried to make sense of it. I searched too far into PCIe, SATA, and NVMe. Nothing above 2012, will fit right in the details. It's a limitation I did not look into. So I am still on as planned, may think of something as I get further along in testing. Small steps, to get there.

 

After a bit of navigating information on the net and on my system Board schematic, it looks like I will need to do a change in order to get PCI-e x4 on the NVME drive.

Since WiFi is pretty much a norm for connections now with laptops, and with the planned AX upgrade, 1Gbps should be still obatained through WiFi 6 card when using ac or ax, if I should remove the PCI-e lanes from LAN.

I could then use the two lanes on the M.2 M key interface for the NVME. This type of hack would be the only option for gamers who like old dinosaurs like this laptop. To use an x4 PCI path to external GPU, and have raid with a HM77 chip set. Though I have no built-in raid, so I am going for a fast single drive for OS.

Ordered all the components to make it happen. Though one odd thing stands out. The Foxconn Express Card interface has 26 pins on my system board. The schematic has 30 pins. Now I am not sure how accurate my schematic is with my system board. I can do a few manual pin ID checks with voltages and grounds to verify pins with schematic. But there is no guarantee any or all pins coincide. It may take a bit of time to track down each pin to to its origins within the system. Reverse engineer the pin outs for Express Card with 26 pin interface. At least I know my plan is not a pipe dream, just a bit of work needs to be done, before any connections are done.

I also decided to keep the original SATA drive connection. For fun, I will add a M.2 B key convention adapter for any drive upgrades for the SATA. No need to remove the internal Blu-Ray for more drive space. Could add another SATA connection as there is room in the SATA drive bay. Just Daisy chain from WWAN PCI-e, since WWAN does not use SATA. I ordered a second B key adapter for a Windows driven Raid 0 if one likes to double the SATA speed for the SATA conection.

As for graphics, online games should not be a problem, as the i7 3740qm is capable. Also having a better heat sink, should allow quieter and cooler operation. The oem heat sink sucks on the P and B series Elitebooks.

 

Don't know if I mentioned this, so I will update anyway. It is impossible for me to use any pin connection from the docking port on the system board. It covers too much of the pin to get a good angle of attack on soldering, without melting the connector housing. The pins are very fine and close together.

I have 3 areas where USB is left open and unused. The areas are at the soon removed Expess Card interface, another is the removed standalone bluetooth connection, and lastly an unpopulated connection for Smart Card Reader. I am thinking of using the cable for blue tooth and extending it, to have one end soldered directly to the PCI-e H Key to PCI-e mini adapter. Thus leaving less noticable impact on the system board from mods. All three locations are far and away from the PCI-e mini slots, so I took the cleanest rout with adding USB for the AX200's internal bluetooth connectivity.

It seams easy peasy to get most of what I need to work. Just a bit of hunting for all the proper connections for adding to my M.2 M Key adapter mod.

 

I just had a bummer moment. Two things actually, popped a component. But it's repairable. Looks like I was on to the right track earlier before I removed the details. My ideas were more correct with PCI-e than I thought, when correcting myself mid stream. All the PCI-e interfaces are x1, not x2. It's sort of what I get when I over think in various directions simultaneously. That's why I list ideas out, especially here to keep track, and recompile them as I see the direction I take becomes more effective.

N and P are for - and +, after so many looks at various details from so many sources. I had too much in my thoughts to sort simplicity of data line markings. So there are two pairs per lane. Channels have nothing to do with pairs. Just too many say Channels or Lanes. So channels IMO have been mistakenly used for terminology. Each pair in a lane is two channels. Some have stated channels for lanes, making my head spin with counting channels as lanes.

Anyway, it looks like I will have to dive deep into finding all the data, control and clock lines for the lanes and end up making a rats nest of wiring.

Also find a proper schematic, the one I have is not quite the same as my board. I can't trust it, but it does give me some paths to take in locating what I need. I may end up finding all the PCI-e traces or none at all, depending on how the circuits are laid out.

It's not worth getting just two lanes of PCI-e, when I see four as a possibility. I will forge on and await my kit before I repair and mod any further.

 

Because of the lack of accurate information in my schematic, the only other means to identify pin outs is directly at the CPU. Since the CPU is socketed, it allows for obtaining connections far easier than removing components with desoldering. Plus Intel gives out accurate details on the CPU, which makes for a lot less guess work.

I have started leaning towards an old school hack for extreme modding and overclockers. Way back when, we would used a piggyback board under the CPU, mostly for AMD Pentium class architecture. They were very elaborate in design. Like a mini motherboard that was sandwiched between socket and cpu.

Since there is no market for 3rd party sources to make breakout piggyback circuits, for adding hidden data lines on limited capability system boards, for adding more PCI-e sockets or lanes , I may be able to do some modding doing an old trick with CPU zif sockets.

We had to use magnet wire when no available products to tap into cpu data pins, for use on mother boards. It required one to siamese a wire and cpu pin within the socketed hole. Care must be done as to keep the wire from being pulled too far out, as to bridge between two adjacent pins. The trick is to place the folded (doubles the gauge) end of the wire between the pinch sides, not to be pinched against the pin when zif socket is closed.

I would have thought of this earlier, if I had known of the limitations with design and schematic. As it's the only way to get what I need, especially when there is very little to work with on a system board. I would say it's easy, but when you have up to 32 pins to deal with in adding lines, your compounding the possibility of error greatly. I will do a few tests with piggy backing known data lines for testing continuity with the wire I choose, it may require various changes in wire gauge, before finding a perfect fit.

Once tests complete, I will create a M.2 x2 connection to verify it works. Then add the remaining connections to create a M.2 x4 port.

Because of the fine wire is prone to be unwieldy, I will have to make a header card to keep the CPU breakout wires in line and stablized for a cable connection. I will probably use a shielded flat style Ulta ATA cable to route nicely, without any signal interferance within the system.

Since there are 4 PCI-e lanes not being used, I can leave the system intact without much modding done to the existing hardware.

 

Now that I have my thoughts in order, I updated a few bits and corrected as I had missed the need for corrections as went along. I may still need to correct further.

I have an idea to hide the perst disable control to disable BIOS PCI-e scans on WiFi and WWAN devices. Once I test it live, assuming it works without any issues, I will post my hidden switch mod. No, it's not the upper, nor the bottom right button at the touch pad. Ha!

Gosh, after totalling all the goodies I ordered, I could have bought a new laptop. Ha!

I am almost ready to make a speaker chamber for the Altec Lansing speaker mod. I could not do it until I was able to create a caddy for the SATA to NVME SATA adapter. It's a good deal wider and almost has the same volume foot print as a drive. I may have to trim down my caddy a bit to make more free room for other options with speaker chamber. The bright side of not having a Smart Card on the system board, is that there is more room for the speaker chamber mod at its original location under the empty space for the Smart Card components.

Still waiting on my parts, especially the angled and fine tips for my soldering iron. I got some old 12v and 5v motors and radio transformers for unwinding the magnet wire from. The gauge looks to be of the correct size to start with.

I think once I have completed operational tests with system stability after the WWAN and WiFi mods, I can assemble everything and do the CPU breakout wiring mod with out any troubles with obstructions.

We will see how it all sorts out. Just a lot of time to allow for wire placement and tacking in place before CPU can be dropped in. If any of the fine wires gets in the way of a pin as it seats, it could be severed and may allow a short between pins. The only ease to the hack is no soldering is done when doing the job. Also it will be a one time trick. Once CPU is in place, removing it will probably pull out a few wires, so back to setting up the dominos. Ha!

 

I was able to complete 1/2 of the speaker mod as for speaker fitment and its isolated sound chamber. Each speaker will have its audio isolated from the other. Which most notebooks don't do.

The left side speaker chamber is of proper area. While the original was too thin and had little resonance to apply fuller sound. It is a squeeze but un-obtructive, as fitment before screws are tightened down is even with seams closed.

The oversized speaker just fits within the opening to the base chasis, and looks almost as if the notebook was to use these bigger and better speakers.

As for the right side speaker, there should not be any issues with mounting the speaker as nicely as the left. The sound chamber will still need a bit more room from my custom NVME SATA caddy installation. Still need to work on trimming as much as I can to allow more volume within the chamber. As I want both sides to be fairly equal with internal enclosure volume.

Once done the speaker assembly should look like an HP late refresh part with part numbers. Mwhahahahahaha!

Decided to dump the Altec Lansing speaker mesh cover mod. It is not required, and there is no room to fit any extra speakers to utilize it. Also I would be damaging the bottom base integrity to force installing another set of speakers.

On an odd note, the Altec Lansing speaker assembly is made of ABS, while the Elitebook is of some lesser quality plastic. Less dense and flexible, without much resilience to cracking from being folded over. Even if it were doubled in thickness to equal the ABS, it still is an inferior plastic. Softer less rigid, more like a vinyl than ABS.

 

Argh! Not going good... I was working on the right speaker placement and noticed the brass trim ring surround was loose. So I pressed on it to see if it was ajar by my cutting away the speaker sections. Low and behold it was the cone that was offset. I may have pressed on it when messing around with cutting parts away. Though I did check the other speaker I finished with. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Since one speaker is toast, I looked deeper into the other. So I pressed on the cone to see how much pressure it would take to give. It did not take much to notice that the cone surround seal had deteriorated, like old speakers do after time. So they must be around 20 years old or so. Much earlier than the Eliteabook I am dealing with.

Anyway, I am seeing this issue as a God send, as I may have had issues with sound after completing my tests, either by hearing faint buzz sounds at various frequencies, or lack of volume and frequency response.

Not sure if it was how the old parts were stored or being the type of glue or surround seal was used. As it seemed like how old Scotch tape would peal away when yellowed.

Scratch that one off as a loss.

Though I will keep the parts to build the rest of the speaker assembly, as to use, if I find another set of speakers. Preferably better made. Seems that the Elitebook speakers have a better sealing surround, even though they are small and weak.

It was an idea, and seems doable. I will also continue with trimming down my custom caddy, for the custom speaker chamber, as I will continue with making the speaker chambers for when I do find a good set of speakers.

 

Finished my custom NVME SATA caddy. It fits nicely and allows ease of removal of adapter and drive as a single unit. Just need to drill the 3 mounting holes on the tabs and clean up the rough edges before plasti-dip coating.

Now there is plenty of room for the custom right speaker chamber, to match the internal volume of the left speaker.

I will need to enlarge an opening near the mounting post for the caddy, to pass through a tube to connect camber with speaker. The small footprint print of the 15" model limited the speakers to be done sort of cheesy with the layout.

Awaiting on parts to complete the Mini PCIe connections.

Oh, as it stands without making much for bottom base mods, the only way to swap the WiFi card is with the bottom base removed. The antenna wire pathway and pinch points is a wee too close to the card edge with it's M.2 A+E adapter. A small price to pay for the nice upgrade that is probably never going to change in the rest of the laptops life time. Both WiFi6 and Bluetooth 5.2 is hardly implemented, and there is very little being made this year to force such an upgrade, other than price. Probably one of the rarest times that one has seen, for upgrade costs on new tech. Usually it's the other way around.

Had to cancel order on WWAN... Huawai is not my bag man. No wonder it was under $100. Ever hear of engineering ports? If in the event of war, China could enable a billion devices to do packet flooding, just by enabling a code within the engineering port of their 4G and 5G devices. I doubt they are the only ones, as the US companies have been using engineering ports on network interfaces since the 80s.

I figure next year at this time, 5G will make 4G devices very cheap, for upgrading. No reason to invest in the latest 5G, when 4G should obtain 1Gbps speeds by finally having its standards fully implemented through 5G. Think, it took how long since 4G was introduced to get there, and it's not fully implemented yet? Just repackage some of the better points and sell it in a better version. They won't tell you 4G is 1Gbps capable, because the are selling 5G Like all tech, you never get the full enchilada until it is considered obsolete, and replaced with so called better tech.

Example, most can't tell the difference between 8K and 4K because very few have a true 8K monitor or tv. Plus digital content lacks a pure domain. Compression, and conversion within a so called standard. When we got our TV in 2009, only some Blu-ray and some digial ota content looked good and proper. Now almost 10 years later, content is better with true HD... not up converted to HD content as much. But how many will take the time to properly calibrate a TV, when sold on its HD capabilities. Very few TVs come with perfect setups, even when THX certified.

Old tech is not that old, just standards are lost within renaming and changing its layout. DP is an early version of HDMI, PCIe is a less restricted M.2, THX is a simpler version of Dolby Vision, yet it does the same for viewing quality. Funny thing is you must down grade Dolby Vision to view image detail properly. Once proper calibration has been done, it's all around THX standards. Your screen will be not as bright or dark as before, just to view 90% of the content available as inteneded.

Enough on my rant... I guess Huawai and China's policy brings me to a boil inide.

 

My super duper heat sink mod is ready to be brazed in place. I also modded the fan assembly slightly to allow for the oversized heat sink.

I'm stoked big time, as it was one of them, off on shore leave, wee Asian girl... A will it fit moment?

Just needed a wee more on the opening (fan assembly)... and Bam! We are in like Flint.

Fan assembly installes and removes like OEM. Heat sink installs, like OEM, just bigger.

Because it's now 20% bigger, and of better quality, I doubt higher speed fan kick in will be needed much. This setup is at leat 25% more efficient just in static (no fan operation) heat dispersement.

Still waiting on parts. Some are and have been trickling in, but are not the critical items to get things rolling.

 

I have a funny feeling that the ProBook DVD face is molded differently than Elitebook. It's slightly noticeable, but does fit within the slot. One thing that troubles me, is even though I am able to align on the slim body 272, the eject button is difficult to use. I think HP made a mistake with the eject button. Seems like many HP buttons that are the slim rectangle shape are not so easy to use. Even lower end laptops, like the G6 have funky DVD eject button issues.

Anyway, ejecting the bloody thing can be done in Windows, easier than reaching without adjusting the notebook and pressing the button. I will make a brushed stainless steel overlay for the button so it is easier to press down on. Since the button is too stiff and flush with the face.

 

I finaly got the UJ-272 Blu-ray just right with the ProBook DVD face plate. Discovered the eject button pin was a wee offset and shallow. Luckily I did not need to drill a mounting holes for a properly placed pin to push down on the eject switch.

Now it is not so difficult to eject, using the button. I will continue to create an overlay for the eject button, as to allow for some protrusion for quickly locating by feel, and easier button press action.

Since the ultra thin is too shallow for the open area in the slot, I will mount some Neoprene, to take up the gap under the frent of the drive. It will silence vibration rattle and cushion, while keeping alignment with the slot and the front panel of the drive.

Tick off all the fitment ajustments and corrections for my mods, outside of adding a functioning M.2 x4 slot and NVME drive.

Perhaps some day when I am board, I will attempt finishing my speaker upgrade, and possibly convert a non light up keyboard for the B/P series to have light up abilities. As they seem doable enough for me to keep them in mind.

 

I realized that I never added another important tweak. I mentioned about doing a Sony Blu-ray firmware upgrade a while back on my Panasonic Blu-ray drives, that I used one to mount in a USB 3.0 external caddy for my Dell. None are compatible to SATA. I also found a late 2013 firmware released by Sony. My UJ-272 build date is late 2011, and is non branded. Once the firmwarest is upgraded, it will be a UJ-272S. I also discovered them drives are still around $70 US.

Anyway, I will install the Sony Firmware using a hack I developed way back. Even though I have not done the hack since 2011, I still remember what to do, oddly enough. I may look up on the net to see if it might still be in the archives of a programmer hack forum which it is kept. It will be interesting if so.

Once I get everything tidy with the notebook as operational, I will do the hack firmware upgrade to the Blu-ray.

 

Here is how most everything fits with some slight mods. Yet to get the rest of my order, so some items are not in place.

Note, the fan assembly is slightly modded for the oversized heatsink. You may see some sheet metal at the opening for the heatsink to fit.

I was able to fit the WiFi card and adapter into place, with out removing the bottom base. It was a bit of a puzzle, but can be done.

The custom caddy for the M.2 SATA adapter is almost finished up, needs clean up after holes are drilled, and then painted with a black rubberized coating. I may try some primer that looks like bare ABS plastic, which will also work.

The UJ-272 Fit's just fine now with the rubber spacers mounted on the bottom of the drive. They allow fitment as if the drive is thicker, without cause to adjust the bay, for ease of replacing with a standard sized drive or caddy.

 

I found out why my Panasonic UJ-272 is still gold. Cinavia seems to have made pre 2012 Blu-ray recorders/players sought after. Though it's 2021 and Blu-ray is practically dead. Even with the latest Sony firmware the decode chip is not effected and passes content without detection.

Also my old hack on a forum is lost and unrecoverable. I noticed a lot of old programming hacks are now gone forever. Oddly enough, they have been replaced with Hackintosh stuff. Ha!

 

I will start on assembly soon, now that the main components are in place. I decided on using a SATA 3D NAND drive as bootloader, apps, recovery, UEFI tools, and storage. But for now to burn in the mostly newly purchased and NOS components, the SATA drive will be the OS, until I modify for x4 PCI-e and placement for the NVME drive, for OS and working files.

As it stands, I may modify the bottom base to fit the M.2 adapter and NVME drive. The drive is thin and long enough to allow access for removal through a modified Smart Card slot while having a connection near the CPU. Even though it may look very clean within the confines of the notebook, it will not allow my speaker mod to coexist. The speaker mod housing fills that area completely.

In the age of BT, ear buds and remote speakers are common. If anything, internal speakers are more for system notification, rather than entertainment value. So its now a matter of weighing the benefits of faster storage, with dual drive options, over better internal speakers. Do I need to even contemplate the latter?

Still awaiting WANN components and other items or soldering and connections.

 

While assembling, I measured up and found there is a way to mount the m.2 NVME to the system Board and have enough clearance to fit and allow connection to CPU, as explained in my previous update. Because it is mounted to the board, it will not be removable. No problem, just a pain to replace or upgrade if needed.

Problem, the speaker chamber must be removed to install a heat sink to the NVME and use the bottom base to sandwich as part of heat sinking process. I doubt the NVME will heat up, since it is running about 66% its maximum speed. I proved that with my Dell, on using a 980 pro instead of a 970 Evo Plus, for x2 interface.

Here is a picture of how it is mounted.

 

Notr, in setting up the BIOS, I found the options are more advanced than thought. It appears that I have a QM77 system board. Until I make the system fully updated, I will verify with Intel driver and chipset feature security validation tool. BIOS has never been updated, so that will be done before all drivers are installed.

Spent some time in a slight mod to the botom base. There is a small section of wall, that touches the NVME just behind the zif ribbon cable connector. Now that it is removed the base cover is nicely fitted.

Finished with the assembly enough to install my free Windows 10 Pro, that was grandfathered from Windows 7 Pro COA key.

The new SATA 3D NAND is plenty fast enough to keep the system speedy enough for most all types of work.

The heat sink mod is doing well. Fan noise to a minimum, with less high speed kick ins. Pumps hot air well enough at low speed before need to step up. Most of the time it is Luke warm air, and this is with a 3740QM i7.

The UJ-272 will benefit greatly with Sony firmware, in upgrading from v1.0 to v1.05. Fairly the same in revision as in my past hack updates with base Panasonic to Sony.

Compaired to my upgraded G6, with similar spec 2nd gen CPU with a hard disk, I see now how much of a difference 3D NAND is in speed over my Barracuda hybrid hard drive.

The FHD display is a lot better than expected, without a single bad pixel. Screen angles are to be expected with such an outdated display, but much wider angle in viewing than most of the period, without the optional advanced displays used in work station notebooks.

It's going to be a big and beautiful beast when I am done. Probably toss my G6 as its a bit beat up from travels. One of the most durable cheapy laptops I ever came across. Even after droppage, hinges are as good as when it was new. Only the case mounts cracked, which was easily fixed, and is stronger than ever, with the right type of repair work done.

Any way, let the burn in begin!

 

I had some time to install a new updated BIOS and drivers, while buttoning up various applications that would come with the laptop.

Found out the 3D drive protection is not compatible with Windows 10. Besides who is running mechanical drives any more? Ha!

Removed the 3D protection application and removed the associated detected driver. I also disabled the accelerometer in device manager.

I replaced Cyberlink PDVD 12 with Cyberlink's Media Player 14, since it has a cleaner interface. Updated one of the media suite apps. Yet to find Power Directer to install.

Installed the Advanced Docking Station driver, to clear up all the hardware driver installs.

I have yet to pillage Microsoft Catalog Update for updated Windows 10 drivers that are mostly manual catalog installations, as they are not released through the automated Windows Update processs.

With everything mostly updated, the heatsink mod works very well. The only time I feel hot air, is in the short instances of 3/4 speed fan kick in. Which is for a short duration. Mostly its cool and quiet when just doing light to medium work. Installing updates mostly heated the NAND drive @ 55° C rather than heat up the laptop under ones hand. I will need to add a heat sink on the NAND storage drive, as it seems its heating up like the EVO.

The UJ-272 is very speedy, and fairly quiet at top speed spin-ups. Probably a bit more versatile than the OEM Blu-ray.

The old rule of thumb to boost Windows speeds with more RAM, is no longer. I left the original caching system alone. It obviously runs well enough with NAND devices on PATA6, without the need to go bonkers with RAM. 8GB runs smoothly and efficiently as if on a new system, with faster storage technology.

I really doubt, once I hack the system to run NVME, the bottle necks of RAM to storage will not be as noticeable, with limited ram or in doubling RAM. Unless you heavly multi-task. The built in caching stratagy and RAID abilites of the HM77 chipset won't do much good with the newer tech upgrades. HM77 had its day when storage was much slower and slower OS builds, now with faster storage, the HM76 chipset performs just as good, minus Vpro and enterprise management abilities.

Two setbacks actually. Because I undestood Widi is not part of HM75 architecture, I assumed I had a HM77 system board. As it seems USB 3.0 and WiDi are available, so it leaves the HM76 chipset to do the job. As explained from above, no real loss, as for comparing the two chipsets, performance wise, they perform the same with newer tech storage devices.

2nd bummer, is that I need to override EDID for the display panel. Its not an issue mostly, since that can be done manually through Windows registry.

Seems all but the 3D protection is fully functional at a hardware stand point. The display just needs an override, but functions none the less. Even though it's raw data throughput is not as fast as the new Dell, it should do far better than expected for video editing.

So far at the basics of Windows 10 setup, all seems functional for the years of tossed in a box to be binned. Shelf wear has made its mark on some parts, which are not all that noticable.

 

After a wee waffle about the plus and neg side of adding a custom m.2 socket and to make things nicely integrated. My main concern is how everything but the m.2 socket is easy access. I did mention i can use the Smart Cart slot with some modification, so i set out once again on another option for easy m.2 device access.

Crossing fingers on this one...

I found another option in modifiying an Express Card tray and making a special caddy to allow insertion and ejection. A bit more elaborate than just an oversized SD Card slot.

Don't worry, i have added the critical parts with my other parts in one order, so there is no extra wait, other than on initial delivery.

It's holiday, so I am expecting late next week for stuff to roll in.

 

Good news and bad news... found my issue with display. The LVDS cable i used did not belong. I realized when building parts to make a fully functional notebook, the display panel was from another model. Plus in finding out my circuit diagrams were for a different system board, I decided to disassemble my custom notebook to identify the cable, since HP used two different cables between the p and b series.

Going to scrounge around for a proper cable, and convert my existing cable, assuming a data channel has been swapped around between the connector ends, since two different designs. Oddly enough picture is full and that there are no issues other than resolution is limited.

While I at the LVDS cable issue, i will pull some extra antennas for 4x4 WiFi upgrades some time in the future. Make this bad boy a moble hotspot besides a laptop.

An odd thought popped up after posting my previous reply. I am possibley creating a M.2 Express x4 port. One way to combat not having Thrunderbolt, if not using it for storage.

 

I forgot to mention, in all my other findings, the good and wonderful parts I have accomplished. Found Lenovo to be a good source for finding updated Windows 10 drivers, and used their Broadcom driver. Works just fine and installed without a hitch. Also i gave up on the Windows 8.0 drivers. Windows compatibility mode is not my cup of tea. The only drawback is the loss of Internet browser button functionality. Though it does try to launch, and flashes as if something is being started. Cyberlink Power Director is another no go. Just like the G6, you must have an original HP drive, as it looks for some unique data that is installed on HP system hard disks, unlike reading from BIOS.

A final bit to add, I have made the adjustment of balanced power with optimal performance set in power settings. It runs nice and snappy without unnecessary battery drain of ultimate performance mode always set. System is stable and can run with a minimum swap file, and system dump files disabled. Leaving the old super cache system in place makes the slower SATA6 storage seem as fast as NVME, with simple tasks and operations. If i set my Dell the same, both would blaze through boot to login, in less than 5 seconds after BIOS boot screen. Having no cache setup on my new Dell, makes it less speedy on boot, but the 8 second boot is speedy enough, not to bother. The only negative side to allowing Windows 10 caching is the amount of system memory being consumed. 8 GB is good enough, when memory management will make do. Also keeping all unimportant apps from running in background helps keep free momory stable when in and out of applications.

Once the NVME runs in x4 mode, caching will be disabled.

 

I see that your Frankenbook also has the Broadcom 20702 Bluetooth 4.0 Adapter, as does the 8570w.
However, I think it has really bad reception/transmit performance with very limited range, at least on Win10.
Any connected device has to be positioned right in front of it and the connection is quite "shaky".
As a Bluetooth adapter, it is almost unusable.
Is this due to the Windows 10 standard drivers, or is this just bad design?
Are the Lenovo drivers any better in terms of the device range?

 

Hi,

I haven't bothered testing as of yet. Reason being once I make the modifications for BIOS WWAN and WiFi module detection bypass, I will have BT 5.2 built into the WiFi adapter, which is far better.

I plan on using the internal USB 2.0 used on the module for other things.

On a side note... Windows 10 used some generic drivers that detect the module as BT 2.0. I think that is the root problem you speak of with BT connection issues.

I have another BT module that I can test with to see if there are any different options between what parts I am able to sort and use.

Once I get back to the notebook and test, I will reply with results. Also I will post a link for downloading the Lenovo driver... If it is a cure.

While I am on the subject with system board sharing... The system boards have some small and unique oddities, that I did not realize.

The 6570 has WWAN option but, it is an option... not all system boards have WWAN. Also keyboards.... there are Win7 and Win8 keyboards. I haven't a clue to the differences, as I it matters.

If building a fresh install of Windows 10, use the 850 G1 drivers and what not. I also use Envy 15-J or K series for multimedia and some other things.

Dont bother with HP utilities unless it is power and UEFI tools. The UEFI Tools are the best for hardware checks. The power utility has battery calibration if you choose to use it over the UEFI tools.

 

About bluetooth... My curiosity got the best of me. Last night I dove into the module identification. Found that I had a module from a 6560b or 8560p. Luckily the other module was correct for the 6570b / 8570p. After the swap out, I installed the driver from HP for Win10, early 2016 date. All was good after reboot.

Decided to check out Lenovo driver. It was a no go, their driver was 2015 and mostly for Win8.1.

Decided to check search Update Catalog, this time using Broadcom 4.1 bluetooth as the search. Found a mid 2016 driver and updated.

Now i have a proper driver install, the primary being the latest build from MS and a most recent oem driver to rollback to if issues are detected during tests.

Wont be able to test right away. Time limits with further work, for now.

 

I had some time, and tested the bluetooth 4.1 module. It seems flakey with both HP and MS drivers. I am not going to diagnose further. But did find a true Windows 10 diver, and will leave the link to obtain the Lenovo Win10 driver for T430s.

https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/sk/en/...IES-LAPTOPS/THINKPAD-T430S/downloads/DS103428

It may work, but most likely it wont be any better than what is available.

 

Now that most of my os setup is complete and hardware is sorted out, have been searching for the tool I once had for my blu-ray hack to use Sony firmware.

I will have to resort in testing various programs that will hopefully do the same job. I may take a bit of learning in their use. Just my luck it will be a few days just to do 10 minutes worth of hack. Luckily I know what needs to be done, just need to learn where to go within the app i use, if it has the ability to do what I need.

Copying live data and replacing it, during program execution is one thing, but bypassing a subroutine properly is the tricky part.

 

I have some of my order in, so everything is apart. I got down to examining the LVDS cables and from the internet, it seems the cables are different in that one year has a light detection module and the other doesn't. I tried to pin out and re-arange wires, but things are glued and would end up damaging the wires.

So I figured i could use the dual mic web cam without the light detection section and still use the map light. Maybe later when i am bored I will make a light sensor for the map light functional.

I could not add two more antennas... the extras i have are too big and cannot fit without distorting the display panel. I may find an other option at a later time. Like adding external antenna connectors, to use 2 router antennas.

Right now LVDS functionality for FHD is my priority.

I am done with the LVDS cable swap, and display is assembled for installation.

I should have my Wifi bypass switch and Wifi card adapter mod done soon. As for WWAN, I may not need to add any mods to make it function. Some where it states the BIOS allows any aftermarket WWAN module.

At least I will start testing out the bypass and Wifi functions along with setting up FHD before i start wiring up a test run with m.2 x2, once things are assembled.

Those parts are still on back order, being shipped separately from my original order.

 

Still working on my hidden switch mod.

Had to completely remove all the components to the palm rest top cover. It was interesting in getting all the components out without breakage. The switch hole has very little room as it is a tolerance fit. So there is a lot of taking apart and reassembley going on. Custom fitting switch contacts in place while adjusting for lock release mechanism to function.

Just a wee glue smudge makes the button sticky. So a bit of clean up once i get things completly fitted proper.

 

Made some headway on the hidden switch, though I think most of my problems were the use of thin sheet metal for contacts. I am thinking the metal is low quality stainless. Very hard to solder a wire to. Made another set of contacts and crimped the tinned wires. It should be good enough.

Also i was able to find another modem jack and a connector. Removed the head as to use the twisted pair for a trouble free connection to the newly created hidden switch. I decided to modify the WiFi adapter board and leave the Wifi card alone. If i need to remove the WiFi adapter, a simple disconnect at the hidden switch, using the modem cable connection directly to the Wifi adapter.

Pretty much as if HP would have done it.

The new fine tip for my soldering station is doing a bang up job to remove board mounted, tight density components that have very small mounting pads. Some minor surface burn to plastic connector, mostly from the grounded mounting pad to keep pins from being stressed.

Should do a clean job with lifting pins from boards and fine wire solering between pins and pcb pads. Mostly I will lift all 3 of the LED enable pins and the much needed PCI_RST, to dissble detection and keep WiFi LED from staying on when switched on/off.

As for WWAN, I will leave it un-modded until I see an issue with its function. If need be I can do the same mod to the WWAN adapter board, and make a jumper from both boards PCI_RST pins.

For a simple mod, the hidden switch was a pain to properly fit nicely without interference to the unlock / lock mechanism. Seems like every wee mod has had some odd changes, either by HP design, or in my case having to make contacts for the release button.

 

I also have been gutting a HP remote, as to test my M.2 x4 Express Card options. For adding another Express Card slot ejecter, it looks that a wee mod to the bottom base is required. As for mounting it, a pin will be glued to thr corner cut out area to fit in the system board mounting stand off for the optional smart card interface. One of the tabs to the ejecter will be bent over as a alignment and hold down to the edge of the system board. The oposite tab will need an extension to mount to the hole just in front of it. Once mounted to the hole the two tabs will secure it, while the pin is just to keep any pressure from effecting the frame of the ejector mechanism. Should be failry sturdy once done.

Here are my pictures of the custom m.2 express card adapter and fitment with gutted remote.

 

Had to make a few adjustments. Moved the m.2 stick to the inner edge of the gutted remote's fake express card port. There is too little room for clearance between mounting points on system board.

Also I moved the m.2 stick to fit deeper in the modded remote shell.

Because there is limited space for the m.2 connector, shifted the eject tray to fit closer to the edge of the card slot. Also there was no way to allow ejection to function, since the m.2 connector is stationary, when mounted.

The custom adapter will fit with some protrusion, as to allow easy removal. I will try and make a snug and secure fit, so the adapter stays in place if grasping the area when lifting.

I did have time to create a heat sink cover plate, and will modify the bottom to allow for a similar plate for added temprature control. Using both plates to sandwitch the m.2 stick and secure it by pressure. Without doing so will allow the m.2 stick to slide out of the gutted remote.

Also I have the NVME fitted, so the image represents what will be used, ready for insertion.

 

Here is my hidden switch mod for disabling BIOS detection of WiFi modules. Note the connector along side of the system board.



Here are pictures of the PCIe x4 port mod. Note because of the angles used it does not represent how flush and even the card fits with chassis. Only the bottom section protrudes, mostly because of the bottom base design. The bottom base fits nicely without the new mod obstruction.

 

Redoing the express card ejecter mounting. Its a wee too tall. I had started on enlarging the smart card slot to allow the thickness of the modded express card remote body to properly fit through it.

Its not a problem... will need to make a mountable base to glue the bottom of the ejecter tray to.

As for the m.2 connector, it's a bit skinny. I will need to modify how to mount to the ejecter tray for proper alignmet. Luckily it allows straight plug in and hold, instead of standard angled fitment before laying down to hold in place for most m.2 sticks.

It will be easy peasy to just push and slide the custom adapter to seat the m.2 stick nicely, with perfect alignment.

Here is an image of fitment and the closeness of the mounting hole for the bottom base. I doubt I will need to shave off any area, from the bottom base's mounting pad foot, as it has a smaller diameter foot print, to the surface around the hole on the system board. Plus the angle of the image, makes it look like a considerable overlap, with the adapter in place.



It will take some time to reinvent the mounting, and clean up the base smart card slot mod , though the front mounting tabs are easy peasy to remove and will allow for a cleaner appearance.

The nice thing with using the PCI-e to M.2 adapter, is that it allows for ease of soldering wires, since pin pitch and thickness are much better on manual soldering of connections.

 

Taking some time away from my project. My cat kind of started the cool down. A few nights ago, I hand left the notebook open on the table, testing my hidden button function with screen release. Because the screen release required the panel assembly to lock and unlock, I forgot about the antenna wires and LVDS cable, being free, out in thr open.

My cat is highly technical, and once i returned, it quickly pointed out a defective antenna cable. If the meow of joy was not clear enough, it decided to quickly put the defective antenna cable in its mouth and snip it off like a pair of diagonal cutters. I am left contemplating an option to add additional antennas, assuming my cat expects to have this old notebook upgradable to 4x4 WiFi.

It's what one expects when their cat actively submits code to github and other android development sites.

Anyway, i have been keeping my sanity by working on the PCI-e card x4 M.2 adapter. Mostly its been fitting an integral heatsink and m.2 card stay. It also reinforces the rigidity of the thin plastic.

Decided to wait for my WWAN adapter to minimize how much modification is to be done. Modifying the WiFi adapter was a wee complicated to complete. Very little area to solder without creating a bridge. Because my tests with board mounted connectors on scrap boards, i am left thinking too much lifting of a leg for clearance to solder to the pad of the system board, may weaken it, or in worse case, break off. Thus I am tackling the mod with the least prone to complications in the modification as possible. Which turns out simple if WWAN actually is not scanned under BIOS white list. All is needed is to solder each wire to the hidden button mod to each adapter on pin 20. Then paint pin 20 on the WiFi adapter to isolate from the PCE_RST signal from the system board. This way the signal is given only from the switch being closed. The great thing is that there is no cutting of traces, no desoldering and lifting legs, and most of all no messing with the system board. Only the adapters have a single soldered wire, which makes it clean and simple. Crosses fingers HP info is correct about WWAN upgradablity.