[SOLVED] CPU upgrade

[Rak11]

So recently my dell inspiron 15r se died which has a core i7 3632qm (3rd gen )
And i have a laptop Toshiba Satellite c640 which has a core i5-2430M .so the question is should i swap the i5 with an i7? Will it work both processors has a tdp of 35 w i7 sits in rPGA989 and i5 is in ppga 988? What should i do ? Will it work ?

 

[dchen2105]

Most laptop CPUs are soldered in place. If that's the case, you won't be able to just swap it out.

 

[robert600]

From what I can see: both processors use the G2 (rPGA988B) socket. So ... I think you're ok fit wise. Whether or not the toshiba motherboard supports the i7 quad core or not is anyone's guess. It would be a nice upgrade to that Toshiba (I'm a fan of quad core).

Personally, I would try ... it'll either work or not ...if it doesn't, it's not likely (no promises here ha ha) to do any damage. Just put the old processor back in. It'll have new thermal paste and a nice clean cooling system (always a good thing) so it wouldn't have been a complete waste of time.

If you go for it, do let us know the result!

 

[dchen2105]

From what I can see: both processors use the G2 (rPGA988B) socket. So ... I think you're ok fit wise. Whether or not the toshiba motherboard supports the i7 quad core or not is anyone's guess. It would be a nice upgrade to that Toshiba (I'm a fan of quad core).

Personally, I would try ... it'll either work or not ...if it doesn't, it's not likely (no promises here ha ha) to do any damage. Just put the old processor back in. It'll have new thermal paste and a nice clean cooling system (always a good thing) so it wouldn't have been a complete waste of time.

If you go for it, do let us know the result!

Aren't most laptop/notebook CPUs soldered in place?

 

[Cyborg_guy]

Aren't most laptop/notebook CPUs soldered in place?

yeah most for them are smt

 

[robert600]

Aren't most laptop/notebook CPUs soldered in place?

I don't think there's a simple answer to this question. I'm not all that up on current laptops but from what I can gather from reading posts on here ... if you went in to Best Buy or any such place today and looked at their laptops ... 95% of them would have CPU soldered to the motherboard. A lot of them would even have the RAM, SSD, battery, wifi, usb ports etc ... similarly soldered so .... you're pretty much stuck with what you get. Any little problem with any of the above and it's time for a new laptop (or I suppose a motherboard). If you're lucky ... you might be able to replace the keyboard but who knows ... maybe that's soldered as well. These laptops are not designed to be repaired ... only to be replaced. It seems only the very 'high end' laptops have replaceable (upgradable) parts.

BUT ... go back in time to 2012 (I believe that's about when the OPs laptops are from) ... go into the same Best Buy or wherever and it's the exact opposite. Virtually every laptop will have socketed CPUs (as well as socketed Ram, hard drive, battery, wifi card etc). The exact same laptop (with the same motherboard) can be had with a different processor as an option, different batteries, different hard drives as options etc. Back then, they were designed with a bit of flexability in mind and were both upgradeable and fixable.

So ... most laptop/notebooks CPUs soldered? ... Depends on the era

Older CPUs can get confusing because sometimes the same CPU will come in 2 versions ... a PGA version (pin grid array, these go in sockets) and a BGA version (ball grid array, these are soldered directly to the motherboard).

 

[dchen2105]

I don't think there's a simple answer to this question. I'm not all that up on current laptops but from what I can gather from reading posts on here ... if you went in to Best Buy or any such place today and looked at their laptops ... 95% of them would have CPU soldered to the motherboard. A lot of them would even have the RAM, SSD, battery, wifi, usb ports etc ... similarly soldered so .... you're pretty much stuck with what you get. Any little problem with any of the above and it's time for a new laptop (or I suppose a motherboard). If you're lucky ... you might be able to replace the keyboard but who knows ... maybe that's soldered as well. These laptops are not designed to be repaired ... only to be replaced. It seems only the very 'high end' laptops have replaceable (upgradable) parts.

BUT ... go back in time to 2012 (I believe that's about when the OPs laptops are from) ... go into the same Best Buy or wherever and it's the exact opposite. Virtually every laptop will have socketed CPUs (as well as socketed Ram, hard drive, battery, wifi card etc). The exact same laptop (with the same motherboard) can be had with a different processor as an option, different batteries, different hard drives as options etc. Back then, they were designed with a bit of flexability in mind and were both upgradeable and fixable.

So ... most laptop/notebooks CPUs soldered? ... Depends on the era

Older CPUs can get confusing because sometimes the same CPU will come in 2 versions ... a PGA version (pin grid array, these go in sockets) and a BGA version (ball grid array, these are soldered directly to the motherboard).

Well I guess your best bet would be to try to find what's the case for your exact models. And part of the reason why CPU's are soldered in place now is to save space. Now is an age where they try to make laptops as thin and compact as possible, while being able to stay cool. This is why fully modular laptops that are standardized aren't very practical. In a case, leaving a bit of extra room is no issue, but laptops have no such luxery. Also, even my Dell Inspiron 15 3567 that I bought just 3 years ago(recently upgraded to a real gaming rig) has replaceable RAM and storage. I believe the CPU is soldered in though. It is not upper end, it carries just an i3-7100U, 1x8GB RAM(with an empty slot) and a 1tb HDD(the one on my brothers identical laptop got busted, which I am looking to replace with a 500GB Kingston A400). Surprisingly, despite being fairly recent, it carries an optical drive(some can be replaced with an external drive bay, like in my dads laptop). So they aren't doing this to make it hard to repair(although they do make it very confusing to open up intentionally. This is to make consumers come to repair shops to have it repaired). It is in fact because of the tiny space required to have a socket and a CPU, instead of it being soldered to the motherboard. You don't want your laptop to be 4mm taller, just to have the CPU replaceable, when most consumers won't need that(or more importantly, care about that).

Maybe we should get some type of standardized laptop form factors. With CPU and motherboard bought together, soldered, front and back IO shields, cooling decided by motherboard, with 15", 17" and 19" display form factors. Keyboard is pickable(in a certain sized cutout for it to pop in). A certain sized GPU slot, with a PCIe extender. That would be awesome. Please don't steal my buisness idea. lol(patent pending)

 

[robert600]

I believe the CPU is soldered in though. It is not upper end, it carries just an i3-7100U

Yes, my understanding is that all U processors are soldered.

 

[dchen2105]

Yes, my understanding is that all U processors are soldered.

U is for ultra low power consumption:

Intel® Processor Names, Numbers and Generation List

Understanding Intel® processor names and numbers helps identify the best laptop, desktop, or mobile device CPU for your computing needs.

www.intel.com

.

Seems that the Q is for quad core, but no indication on M. WHY, INTEL?!??!

 

[dchen2105]

Yes, my understanding is that all U processors are soldered.

According to wiki, the M on all gen 3 Intels indicates its a 'Mobile' processor. So it just means it's a laptop CPU. No indication on soldered or not.

Searching up exact model numbers on manufacturer websites will be your best bet. Maybe a support team can help you out.

 

[robert600]

CPU world is pretty good. Like I mentioned ealier ... it gets confusing when the same model of processor comes in both a BGA version and a PGA version. For instance, if someone tells you they have an i5 3230M processor well ... if they have the BGA version ... it's soldered ... if they have the PGA version ... it goes in a socket. Windows of course doesn't list which of the 2 versions it is using ... to be sure, you have to download a program that goes into more detail about the machine's hardware (or just take the laptop apart and look). I like SiSoft Sandra ... it gives TONS OF DETAIL. Rumour has it the pro version will tell you what color of socks the assembler of the motherboard was wearing lol.

 

[robert600]

Searching up exact model numbers on manufacturer websites will be your best bet. Maybe a support team can help you out.

If you ever tried to do this you would know it's a road to nowhere.