The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    Can I upgrade my processor and optical drive?

    Discussion in 'HP' started by Blizzblaze, Jul 15, 2011.

  1. Blizzblaze

    Blizzblaze Notebook Geek

    Reputations:
    74
    Messages:
    79
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    If I order a dv6t with an i5-2410 and normal optical drive, would it be possible for me to update the processor to a quad core later om, and a blu ray drive for the optical drive without too much of a hassle?
     
    Blizzblaze, Jul 15, 2011
    #1
  2. AutoArc

    AutoArc Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    64
    Messages:
    280
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    The optical drive upgrade should be possible, just order a new laptop drive with the same dimensions on newegg and do a replacement. It would require disassembly of the laptop to one degree or another. You would also have to install drivers and codecs for blu-ray, which is, I am assuming, why you would do the upgrade. However, upgrading the CPU is highly un-recommended (by me, at least). While theoretically possible, there are many things to consider. Number one, you would have to find a processor with the same socket, which I don't think even exists in quad-core. After a short check on intel's site, I came up with this:

    i5 2410 supports these sockets: FCBGA1023, PPGA988
    i7 2630qm supports this socket: FCPGA988

    As you can see, the numbers don't match. The only thing I think you could do is to upgrade to a higher end dual core CPU, like the i5 2520m. It does support the PPGA988 socket, so it would probably work. I don't know which socket HP used, but I would guess they used the PPGA988 because they also offer the 2520m in the same laptop, and it only supports that socket. However, the difference in performance you will see with that upgrade would be minimal. A far more worth-it investment in my opinion would be to upgrade the HDD to an SSD. Going that route, you would see a dramatic increase in speed with disk operations like opening programs and running them, as well as just file operations. If you decide to get an SSD, I reccomend the crucial m4 for general use. Newegg has got them for a reasonable price. This site also has several threads about ssd's and replacing the hard drive. There is a version of the m4 that has a cable and software to make a clone of your original HDD on the SSD, so you can just run the software, swap them and go.

    EDIT: If you really need an upgraded processor, the best option is to get it that way to begin with. When I ordered my dv6t, I decided it wasn't worth it, and just got the 2410m.
     
    AutoArc, Jul 15, 2011
    #2