Looking for Upgrade CPU for Lenovo Edge E530 Laptop

[clutchc]

Is it possible to upgrade from the i3-3210m to an i7 processor? Or is the existing cooling insufficient? If an upgrade is possible, please show me the available CPU(s). I'm not having any luck with my searches.

 

[voltoid27]

I was able to find this that shows CPU-Z screenshots indicating the processor is socketed, so upgrading is possible:
http://www.notebookcheck.net/Review-Lenovo-ThinkPad-Edge-E530-NZQBQGE-Notebook.76963.0.html

I don't see any such processor as the i3-3210m, I found an i3-3120m and an i5-3210m :/

Anyway, here's a list of what'll work:
Core i7-3632QM
Core i7-3612QM
Core i7-3540M
Core i7-3520M
Core i5-3380M
Core i5-3360M
Core i5-3340M
Core i5-3320M
Core i5-3230M
Core i5-3210M
Core i3-3130M
Core i3-3120M
Core i3-3110M

I would personally go for the Core i7-3540M to maximize single-threaded performance, but that's just me.

 

[clutchc]

This is my processor I have in now: http://ark.intel.com/products/71053/Intel-Core-i3-3210-Processor-3M-Cache-3_20-GHz
I don't think I want an i5 after all since they are H-T dual cores like I have now. Same with the non-Q i7s. And I still don't know if the i7-xxxxQM processors will work w/o updating my BIOS. Where did you find that list of supported processors?

 

[voltoid27]

??? That's a desktop CPU...

Anyway, I basically took the detailed specs from Lenovo's website... https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/documents/pd024684
...and filled in the gaps between the various tiers of chips on Socket G2. In essence, the i7-3612QM is guaranteed to work since it was shipping with the higher-end E530's at launch, and the i7-3632QM will most likely work because this exists: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834312165 (that logic isn't the best, but it counts for something)

 

[clutchc]

Thanks. Yeah, I did post the desktop processor by mistake, but only because CPU-Z ID'd this CPU as a i3-3210 and I failed to notice the missing "m" for mobile when I posted the link. My bad, but then that means CPU-Z is wrong. (???)

Maybe I have the i5-3210m. I'll have to dig out the paperwork. But back to the upgrade...
Do you suppose I will have to find a later BIOS to run an i7-3612QM?

 

[voltoid27]

Judging by the lack of AES, it's probably an i3-3120M, in which case it's just a typo. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'd say that no BIOS update is necessary since the 3612QM was a launch processor for the E530, but here's the link just in case: https://download.lenovo.com/ibmdl/pub/pc/pccbbs/mobiles/h0uj16ww.exe

 

[clutchc]

Judging by the lack of AES, it's probably an i3-3120M, in which case it's just a typo. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I'd say that no BIOS update is necessary since the 3612QM was a launch processor for the E530, but here's the link just in case: https://download.lenovo.com/ibmdl/pub/pc/pccbbs/mobiles/h0uj16ww.exe

Just so I'm not getting my nomenclature mixed up again, this is the processor you think will work in my E530, correct?
http://ark.intel.com/products/67356/Intel-Core-i7-3612QM-Processor-6M-Cache-up-to-3_10-GHz-rPGA

I guess I won't gain much in base freq, but at least I'll have turbo and more threads. Thanks.

 

[voltoid27]

Yes, that's the one. Happy to help!

 

[clutchc]

This is a bit of an oddity...
The Bios I have now is version 2.50 dated 1/15/2013
The "newest" BIOS is version 2.56 dated 12/14/2012

A later version but an earlier date?

 

[voltoid27]

Who knows... Better not risk it IMO.