*HP EliteBook 2530p Owners Lounge*

I'd suggest following the steps at 2530P undervolting. I was able to run a L9400 at it's full 1.86Mhz speed at it's lowest 0.925V. This means the CPU will quickly do it's work and revert to low-power C3 state giving longer battery life.

 

So finally got around to testing my eGPU setup. Works great. Just did a quick test to see if everything worked. So no games test or bench marks yet. WEI score went to 5.7 for gaming graphics on an ati 4570 card.

Now since I don’t like the idea of having a atx psu sitting next to me, what is the most powerful card I can get that is powered by the dc input only? What happens if I get a higher spec’ed card but can not provide sufficient power, will it just freeze or will it damage the card?

Im on a PE4H v1.2 card adapter.

 

If the eGPU is supplied insufficient power then it will just stop working. This can manifest itself as BSODs, an OS or app freeze.

Can use a DC plug to power a PE4H if use an adapter as shown. There you'd be supply the slot power (75W) only which would be OK for a GT430/GT520. Could use a second DC adapter to provide another 75W to connect using the 6pin pci-e power socket so you could then drive a GTS450/GTX550Ti.

Or could mod a 203W XBOX360 PSU as shown which would be sufficient to power a stock-clocked GTX460 or GTX560. A GTX560Ti might be OK too at reference clocks.

I'd recommend the 203W XBOX360 PSU mod since it also supplies 5V (downregulated to 3.3V) so your expresscard slot isn't overdriven supplying 3.3V. An ATX PSU also supplies 5V - it's still the simplest and cheapest solution.

Only NVidia Fermi cards are recommended above since a 2530P has a 4500MHD iGPU so (1) the NVidia Verde driver will engage pci-e compression for superior performance and (2) you'd be able to use Optimus' internal LCD only mode if you wanted to run without an external LCD (at lowered performance).

 

Ok I’ll go the xbox360 route. I wanted a small over all package but the size difference from a 90w laptop PSU to the xbox360 psu, while considerable can not justify the performance lose I’ll get from using a GT430 card as opposed to the GTX460 (if I get it at a decent price!)

 

I managed to test an overclock on a L9600 2530P finding it was stable to 2.90Ghz as shown. With my GTX460 DIY eGPU attached it managed to break 3dmark06 of 14k as shown. Impressive.

A overclocked [email protected] 2530P is very near i7-640LM 2540P performance levels, has a better keyboard, a lighter chassis and costs less than half as much on ebay. Makes a i7-640LM 2540P look like poor value.

 

Impressive numbers!
Im still waiting on my ebay xbox360 psu to show up.

Just recieved a second hand intel x18m (G1) 80gb ssd. Will install that today and post back on performance.

 

So I installed the SSD, but did not do a secure earse prior to the OS install (my first ssd, so didn’t know) now the ssd was second hand. Can I do a image of the OS now then do a secure earse and restore the OS after?

Will this leave me with a OS install and the rest of the drive erased? Using acronis and not restoring a bit for bit image of the ssd, just the OS portion (about 15gb)

btw still no delievery of the PSU for the eGPU...

 

Has anyone used any of these hard drives with any success? Samsung 1.8" 64GB Thin SSD uSATA Micro Solid State Disk Drive MMCRE64GTMPP | eBay
Samsung 160GB SATA/150 5400RPM 16MB 1.8" Hard Drive New | eBay or would it be better to get the optical bay caddy and use a 2.5 hard drive or ssd? Will this one work? 2nd Hard Drive Caddy HDD for IBM ThinkPad T400 | eBay... I know it says for a T400 I'm just looking for an inexpensive caddy or replace the 80gb 1.8 existing hard drive. Thanks everyone!

 

i got this one and it works perfectly:
eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices

 

I ordered this one. Hope it works out: eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices

 

Well I got drive installed and works like a champ. Blazing fast compared to the original hard drive. This is my first SSD and I really like it.

 

Congrats drifter42, welcome to the club

Can anyone recomend the best WWAN card for Austrlian Use? (ideally compatibale with both Telstra and others, but mainly Voda/3) If it supports some sort of GPS would be a huge bonus.

I have flashed my BIOS to all all WWAN cards

 

With the unwhitelisted F.10 bios flashed, I had good results with a MC8780 as documented, but do note that pin 20, 42, 44 needed to be cellophane taped for it to work. It can link at HSPA 7.2Mbps speed, has a GPS and is inexpensive on ebay.

If you want to use the Telstra Elite 21.3Mbps network then seek out a F5521GW (rebadged as a HP HS2340). A Gobi-3000/Sierra MC8355 (UN2430) can link at 14.4Mbps - not sure which network runs that speed.

A HP HS2340 and UN2430 are the only WWAN cards that work in a 2560P as noted. Good to know if you might want to upgrade your system in the future.

 

cheers nando4,

MC 8780 seem like the way to go, the 3G is a luxury more than a need so going to the HS2340 and UN2430 is not nesssarary, and no intention to upgrade to a 2560. 2530 seems perfect so far!

 

The 2530P had an option of a UN2400/UN2420 (Gobi-2000) which has similar communication specs to a Sierra MC8780. Unusually, I needed to cellophane tape even a genuine HP UN2400's pin20, 42+44 to get it detected and working.

I still prefer the Sierra MC8780 over a Gobi-2000. It has a generic connection manager so you don't need to be tied down to HP's own one due to branding.

One additional thing I did do with the MC8780 was disable the USB port using devcon so it was dettached when not in use. That ensured no additional power utilization overhead from maintaining the WWAN radio.

Have to agree. HP's best ultraportable to date. Makes an excellent s/h bargain for those in the know.

 

thanks for the notes nando4, just purchased the MC8780. hopefully will arrive soon.

 

How is the stock webcam?

considering buying this
HP Elitebook 2530P 12.1" TOP COVER AND SCREEN BEZEL A B COVER | eBay

instead of a external webcam or hacked DIY.

Does it seem like all the parts i need are there? (waiting on reply from seller too)

[edit] so the seller has got back saying it has the webcam and all cables, but do i need any special connection from the MB to the webcam, or should that connector be already there?

[edit2] so before buying i figure i might open up mine and see whats there. and just as well, seems like im missing the cable from the MB to the webcam. in a factory 2530p with webcam, it has a different shielded LCD cable that has the webcam cable inside it. and ebay has a video cable but at $40 i dont think so...

 

somehow dust managed to get behind the protective webcam cover ... this really sucks.


Btw. nando4, the Chinese already make money with your name Sue them!

HP Laptop BIOS whitelist removed for Gobi1000/2000 | eBay

 

So received my 8780 wwan card. Did the Sellotape covering of pins 20, 42 and 44. hooked up the internal antennas (red master, blue aux) 2530p booted fine. Card was detected in device manager and sierra drivers installed fine. (used the global settings download)

Sierra watcher detects the cards and the “3” profile and connects at HSDPA speed with 3 bars reception, but I can not get an internet connection or GPS lock. I tried the sim in another machine (Viliv S5) and it works fine so I assume there’s no lock on my sim.

I’ve also changed my APN from 3netservices (detected in profile) to 3access (what i used on my phone) both connect but both do not get a internect connection.

Any idea of what to check/change?

 

I used the latest AP firmware from here which allowed Optus internet and GPS connectivity as shown. It also worked with Vodafone.

So could try that as well as a SIM from another vendor: Optus/Telstra/Vodafone?

 

cheers nando, will test tonite (at work atm)

 

ok so flashed FW and used that version of the watcher. still no good.

I have not tested with a non 3 sim though, maybe tonite. I double checked that I got the right card and not the USA version but all is good.reseated the antennas as well.

 

Hi, I have a 2530p with L9400 @ 2.1Ghz (the 8x multiplier) and intel 4500mhd @ 533mhz, but I am looking for higher performance... I am interested in this eGPU thing

I have a GT 240 (it uses less than 75W) that's sitting around, as well as a 6870 (but I hear it is more complicated with ATi and with >75W cards). Since I want something simple I want to use my GT 240 as the eGPU, but is it possible to make it use the laptop's screen? I believe GT 240 is almost like Fermi and is 40nm so idk if the modded drivers would work

What are my options? What is the cheapest option? Performance and price difference between x1 and x2?

 

x2 is not possible on a 2530P. x1.Opt using a NVidia GT240/GT430/GT520 is your cheapest option. Most bang-per-buck would be a GTX460 but you need ~160W to power it, eg: modified 203W xbox360 PSU. NVidia cards have Optimus to drive the internal LCD so are recommended over AMD if that is of high importance.

Consider also TME-unlocking the 2530P's PLL so can get another 25% pci-e bus overclock. Details here. Can also then OC the L9400 as well. I managed to get it to 2.6Ghz with full stability.

 

Thanks

I already have a GT 240 so I'll use that... Can I use that 75W DC plug thingy? Where do I buy it and what exactly do I need?

That 25% PCI-E bus OC, does that work even when NOT using the mPCIe and just the express card?

 

I have a chance to get a new, open-box 2530p with WWAN (no WLAN) for a good price. Can I install the WLAN module from my old 2510p into this 2530p model since I really only want to use wi-fi?

Thanks,

Brad

 

If you flash the unwhitelisted modded_bios, then yes, you can use the 2510P wifi card in your 2530P.

 

Thank you! Looking forward to the 2530p based on everything I have read here.

- Brad

 

It's an awesome machine in my book.

 

Hi

I'm about to buy more RAM, A SSD drive and a MC87090 3g Antenna, to my 2530p. But I'm a total noob when it comes to upgrade. So I thought I could ask you experts if theese parts fits:

1. UNLOCKED Sierra Wireless 3G MC8780 7.2Mbps 3G HSUPA/HSDPA/UMTS Mini PCI-E ? ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-UNLOCKE...921?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3a6da7d991)

2.4 GB PC2-6400 DDR2 SODIMM 800MHZ 200-PIN MEMORY RAM? ( http://www.ebay.com/itm/370534636302?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649)

3.Kingston SSDNow ms100 64GB, Serial ATA-300 ( http://www.kingston.com/ukroot/ssd/ms100.asp)

This might not be quality stuff, but it should be alright, right?
All this will cost around 180-200$, Is it a good deal?

Also, Will it run smoother in Xp pro 64bit comparred to Win7 Pro 64bit? I'm not sure which of thoose OS I should choose, any thoughts?

Thanks. Great lounge!

 

Welcome aboard. Answering your questions:

* the MC8780 WWAN card is a Europe/Asian model. You want the MC8781 for the US. A UN2400 is the 3G card supplied with a 2530P. Worth noting if you'll be using a 21.3MBps HSPA+ link. If so, then look at a Ericsson F5521gw WWAN card for best performance.

* the linked RAM is OK. Keep in mind you want two modules so as to run dual/flex channel configuration to improve RAM and 4500MHD video performance.

The linked SSD isn't suitable. A 2530P's mPCIe slots are for wifi/WWAN. There is no mSATA slot. So you want either a 1.8" microSATA SSD for use in the primary drive bay, eg: X18M G2, OR if you swap out the caddy for an optical bay caddy then can use any 9.5mm 2.5" sata SSD, eg: Corsair Force 3.

Win7 Ultimate 64-bit ran great when I had it installed on my 2530P. Not worth bothering with XP.

 

Actually I'm from Sweden so I need a european WWAN card.

I couldn't hold myself so I bought the 4gb Ram, could I use the new 4gb with one of my old 1gb module and run dual channel? If not, I hope A single 4gb ram module atleast works better than 2x 1gb Dual channel?

And about the SSD, Yes I want to keep the optical bay, so I will go for a 1.8" MicroSATA SDD. Will Kingston SSDNow V+180 64GB micro SATA, 1,8", fit? I could get it for 170$ here in Sweden, one of the cheapest I've found.

Okay, Then I Perhaps should Go for the Win 7 64-bit. It's just that I own a Compaq Nc6400, and it runs flawless on Win xp, and since my 2530p have about the same performance, it should perform about the same. And a Xp installation size is about 8gb less than Win7, which I would prefer since I'm about to buy a 64gb SSD. I have to think over that further more!

Also I've ordered a 93wh 9-cell battery, Hopefully it will give atleast 6-7H battery life when watching 720p movies or with normal usage (wifi,firefox,mp3, torrent, msn).

Thanks for your time. I Really appreciate the help that I'm getting.

 

Glad to help. Now The SSDNow V+180 uses an older Samsung RB22 controller which cannot do the important multi-queued 4kb Q32 reads, rather they are stuck at 20MB/s as is the case for 4kb Q1.

Suggest look at other microSATA SSDs that are newer and faster: http://forum.notebookreview.com/sol...sata-1-8-sata-ssds-available.html#post6978065 .

If wanting a budget solution then MyDigitalDiscount will have Phison-based 64Gb/128GB microSATA SSDs for US$100/$190 in a few weeks. I'd guestimate it would still be cheaper than $170 when shipped to Sweden. The MDD microSATA SSDs will benchmark at ~74MB/s for 4kb Q32 reads. Please contact MyDigitalDiscount for more details/ETA if interested.

If you undervolt your SSD-equipped 2530P then a 93Whr battery will get you 10-14hrs of battery life for low load activity like wifi-based websurfing.

 

Oh I see! Then I will follow your advice and wait a couple of weeks and get thoose phison based SSd's, sounds like a good deal!

That undervolt guide looks neat, I def gonna check that out! 10-14h is crazy!

Again, thank you so much for helping me out!

 

Hi lool, they will be shipping around the 20th. Should be available for pre-order soon.

I am sending one off to Nando to put through the ringer.

MyDigitalSSD

 

Anyone would happen to have reliable source for one 2530p? I wouldn't need keyboard or memory, probably not even drives... Basically a frame that's not yet refurbished.

In my want list is L9400 or L9600 and webcam, drive brackets and decent condition in general.

Altough a working computer is fine option if it's cheap. At least it can be inspected & tested when received.

The catch is, my colleague is currently in New York and he stays there until new year. He promised yesterday to bring one over here if I can have it delivered to him before he jumps in the plane again. I'm planning to save 100-200USD in postage, customs fees and taxes Might owe him few beers though.

Ebay is apparently not an option, I can't bid on anything there since my address isn't in the US....

 

There's some 2530Ps listed on the NYC Craigslist:

HP Elitebook 2530p with docking station
HP EliteBook 2530p

You may also want to consider a a 13" Dell E4300 which I compare against a 2530P at the bottom of this post. I've used both and consider them both superior in usability to newer generation i-core systems. The 16:10 LCD has a lot to do with it.

DELL LATITUDE E4300 - Like New
*** NEW *** DELL Laptops

 

Thanks I mailed one ebay seller, if he refuses then I'll contact those on Craigslist.

Dells are out of the question, can't get parts for those easily. My choises are basically limited to Fujitsu (no models I like) Lenovo (keyboard+touchpad not my thing) or HP. I could source Acer parts also but... ...no, never.

 

Hi to all. i bought a new Motherboard with SL9600, 2.13GHz CPU for my 2530p notebook, to replace the old one which came with SL9400, 1.87GHz. but when i read the HP maintenance guide pdf file on how to replace the motherboard, i get horrified and confused; when i removed the keyboard in order to remove the motherboard, i saw a lot of cables and cables' routes, a lot of ribbon cables, and a lot of tiny things that i think it will easily break, i return the keyboard and everything to its place to avoid breaking things. my Question is; are there any easier method that demonstrates, step by step, using instruction Videos or real instruction photos, on how to replace the 2530p motherboard, no matter what it is official or unofficial, any useful videos or images will be great. please, nando4, and all other expert guys, i need your help about that to install my new SL9600 Motherboard. waiting your precious replies please. Thank you very much

 

Hi,

If your old motherboard is ok, you don't need replace it completely. You only need replace the processor. For do that, you only need remove the heatsink, change the processor, apply thermal compound over it and put the heatsink again.

Good luck!!

 

Hi PubERB, thanks for the reply, but unfortunately, it seems that you don't know the HP 2530p notebook at all; it is a small 12" notebook and its CPU came SOLDERED with its motherboard, so no way that you can remove the CPU, and the only way is to replace the whole motherboard like i said in my previous post. again, please nando4, and all other 2530p gurus, answer my previous post, i need to install my new mother board!

 

+1. Though it's really not very difficult. The most complex part is unthreading the wifi/WWAN cables from the top cover. It's not necessary to do that if you disconnect the wifi/WWAN cable, LCD cables then lift the top cover and LCD together as one piece from the bottom cover. Then you'll have access to the bottom cover + systemboard from which you can swap out the systemboard.

Recommend also applying Shin-Etsu thermal paste. It cured heating issues I had with my 2510P and worked great also in my 2530P. While you have the system dismantled, consider also applying the PLL TME-unlock for overclocking. I was able to get a L9600-2.13 running at a stable 2.90Ghz. Useful if you'd connect an eGPU and need the extra pep to deliver better gaming performance. Without the TME-unlock the L9600-2.13 can run at 2.40Ghz in dual-IDA mode.

 

Thanks a lot Indrek, and nando4. i really appreciate your expertise in 2530p. i will try to follow the 2530p official maintenance guide step by step, and hope i will do well.

@ nando4 - mentioning about External GPU; can you please tell me how could i get a DVI output from my 2530p? i can output a VGA from it, but as you know the VGA signal is susceptible to noise and attenuation coz it is an Analogue signal, so the picture is somewhat not clear and have some lite white waves. i want to output a Digital Signal from my 2530p (DVI output), to avoid any noise or attenuation on the picture, but without using an External GPU, is that possible? and if not, what the options that i have for that purpose? Thanks

 

The 2530P doesn't have DVI wired on the circuitboard to any output port. So only way of getting digital out would be one of the following:

(1) via an expresscard-slot based eGPU

(2) via a USB Displaylink adapter, though USB 2.0 is too slow. New USB 3.0 ones are trickling onto the market. Would require a USB 3.0 expresscard then the USB 3.0 Displaylink adapter.

(3) Swap the 2530P for a 13" Dell E4300 + docking station. The Docking station has DVI. Note: no 9-cell battery option for them, but they do have a backlit keyboard option. Weighs about the same as a 2530P.

 

Hi nando4, I prefer your first option (via an expresscard-slot based eGPU), and i think it is the cheapest choice, but can you please send me a brand name or a part number for that hardware? coz i need to buy it from ebay

 

The GPU solution is certainly the best value for money. See links to the PE4H-EC2C product at D IY eGPU implementation: [email protected] 12.1" HP 2530P + NVidia GTX460/GTX560Ti @x1.Opt.

 

Hi nando4. Thanks for the useful link. i dived in the website that sell the ExpressCard to PCIe kit, and found the following product: http://www.harmonicinversion.com/pr...ory_id=24&flypage=shop.flypage&product_id=176 , can that product work with my 2530p laptop when connecting it to one of its USB ports?

 

Yes, there are many USB DVI adapters. Problem with USB 2.0 is the 480Mbps is only fast enough for viewing. Forget about movies/games being shown on there. Same devices but using USB 3.0 ( Displaylink DL3000) wouldn't have such performance constraints. Then you'd need to get a USB 3.0 expresscard adapter.

USB 3.0 to HDMI/DVI Multi Monitor Video Adapter - 2048x1152 | eBay
expresscard USB 3.0 | eBay

You could still make a very inexpensive, passive cooled GT430/GT520 DIY eGPU using an AC adapter. Shouldn't cost that much more but then you'd get accelerated graphics as well.

 

Hi nando4, i don't play 3D games frequently, i don't spend a lot of care in 3D Texturing process. but the most important things for me is watching 1080p MKV files on my 2530p, so i need a good DVI source that can produce FULL-HD 1080p video with complete vivid colors and smooth playback without any lag and without any attenuation on video signal from my 2530p, when connecting that DVI source to my FULL-HD 42" LG LCD via DVI port (or HDMI, but i think the DVI source is much reliable than the HDMI, coz all the bandwidth goes to video data in DVI, but in HDMI video and sound signals share the bandwidth). so, does the proposed solution from you:

USB 3.0 to HDMI/DVI Multi Monitor Video Adapter - 2048x1152 | eBay
expresscard USB 3.0 | eBay

does that solution do the job i've explained completely for me? (in other words, i need a Digital video produced from my 2530p, exactly like the Digital video produced from a Desktop computer DVI card, is that solution serve that purpose?) Thanks

 

The expresscard slot in a 2530P can deliver 2.5Gbps of bandwidth, not enough for FHD video. It needs some compression of data to be able to do that. The NVidia Fermi x1.Opt eGPU does that. Not sure if these USB 3.0 to DVI adapters do as well. Still, the USB 3.0 port you'd be getting would be *half* the 5Gbps bandwidth of it's specification.

If you go a USB 3.0 expresscard + USB 3.0 DVI adapter then please report your findings. It's certainly something I've seen asked on here before. If it was me, I'd get a GT430 or GT520 eGPU or consider a Dell E4300 + docking station instead. Some nice E4300 customisations, including overclocking is here.

Then again, a 2540P has a Displayport which would solve your problem.