What is the CPU looking thing on my laptops motherboard?

[Ajayajayaj]

My laptop has a easy to open flap that gives access to ram, hard drive, mini pcie port, and a thing that looks like a cpu, but when I found an image of my laptops motherboard on Google, I realized that the cpu is actually somewhere else. Here is an image.

Thanks!

 

[Gam3r01]

What specific board? More importantly, what specs?

Looks to me to be the GPU, or more likely some motherboard chipset (controller)

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Chipset, technically the Southbridge. It's where the SATA, USB, and other ports connect to.

 

[Ajayajayaj]

Oh sorry I completely forgot to mention it. It is an Asus U57A laptop. It has an Intel 15 2450M with integrated graphics. I was thinking that, but since it is integrated graphics, would that still be it?

Thanks a lot!

 

[Ajayajayaj]

Chipset, technically the Southbridge. It's where the SATA, USB, and other ports connect to.

Oh ok, thanks. Is there a reason why that is in the easily open-able spot?

 

[Gam3r01]

Given the specs, Its a motherboard chipset as SomeoneSomewhere said.

 

[Ajayajayaj]

Given the specs, Its a motherboard chipset as SomeoneSomewhere said.

Thanks a lot! I was confused and thought it was a soldered cpu, but the motherboard from online said otherwise. It is weird that they chose that to be in the spot requiring the least screws to open.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

Laptop motherboards are very very space-constrained, and lots of things need to be 'near' lots of other things. Given that the CPU is basically surrounded by its VRMs, the memory, and the space for a dGPU to be soldered in, that was likely the closest place that they could put it.

 

[W8TERM3LON]

That chip is mos likely a Northbridge as its closest to the CPU and the RAM.

Heres a picture to describe what they generally do.

But again I might be mistaken since to me it appears as it lacks a southbridge chip. In that case the chip you are trying to figure out might be a Southbridge, because some modern laptop CPUs already have a built in northbridge.

 

[Someone Somewhere]

All intel CPUs since the first generation Core chips have an integrated northbridge. Most of AMD's newer ones do too.

Northbridges are long gone.