Dell Inspiron 1520: Viable After Market Upgrades

Thanks for a reply. I'm already cool off.
I gave it a try for one more time and I installed drivers from Dell website... Still no success :/

I'm going to return it although I think, it will be easier/cheaper for them to send me another card. Intel 5100 for example I'll try to make it work.

Don't worry, I'm not gonna tell them that card is running perfectly fine under Ubuntu and I feel good about that as they didn't inform that card is not running under Windows. Or at least, it's nearly impossible to make it work under Windows with normal human being computer skills.

 

Yeah... if the auction didn't say anything about "only works on Linux", that's fair. It's like when I bought a laptop that was sold as working, but by default wouldn't display a picture either to its display or an external display that was known-good via VGA. Maybe it's technically possible, but if it takes that much effort by default the seller really should have tested it more/not sold it with the implication that it would work as-is.

What exactly is the difference between the black, white, gray, and blue wires, other than color? I switched back to the Broadcom 1390 today since I plan to give my 5300 to a friend who has less reliable WiFi than I do (even when I have the Broadcom), but I really don't know what differences the wires cause, if any. I don't think I ever have used a blue one.

 

The wires connected to the two antenna's on the top under the display.I've used blue+grey wires in my case because they're longer than white/black but connected the same way.
That still works good and I think in the future will be the same.

 

Hi guys, stumbled on this thread after looking for some help fixing my old Vostro 1500. Made some progress (replaced dead 8600 GT), but could use a little help.

The screen was pretty dim, even on the brightest backlight setting, so decided to try out a new inverter to start. Got the part, and ended up snapping off the LCD ribbon cable connector on the LCD panel. D'oh! Came off in three little parts. I assume there's really no way to fix this, so I'm going to use this as an opportunity to upgrade to a higher resolution panel...haha. It could've been the backlight anyway, I guess?

So here's my questions:

1) Will a different resolution monitor be plug-and-play, so to speak? I want to go to 1920x1200 (WUXGA) for 1080p movies. If I install it, will it give me a signal, any resolution, when I boot up at least?

2) Can the 8600m GT handle that kind of resolution? T7500, 4gb ram. If not, what panel do you recommend?

3) I have credit on Amazon. Does anyone have links to recommended vendors for replacement LCDs? Any resolution, really. I see a lot of reviews that say their replacement panels are dim, which is the issue I've been trying to resolve in the first place. I have a brand new inverter, so doesn't need to include one.

Thanks for any help!

 

1) If you buy the right display, it will be plug and play.

2) Obviously you can't run the latest games at the max resolution, but it will be fine for everyday things.

3) Don't about Amazon; I always source everything from the cheapest guy on eBay...

 

The 8600M gt supports displays with resolution 2k so it will run your FHD just easy.
Common movies with 24\25 fps would be ok but about 60fps movies I'm not sure.
I am buying usually on Ali from the seller with most cheap price and not too bad rating.

 

Also, letting you guys know that I'll probably be upgrading to a newer laptop (most likely the new Dell XPS or Dell Precision) still haven't decided on which one, leaning towards XPS but not sure.
I'll try to help who I can, but as of next week, I probably won't be using this laptop at all.

 

I went from 1520 to precision and...from now what must be 40-50 laptops I've dealt with internally it is always on top

Why not using it at all? Are you selling?

 

Cool; good to know that there shouldn't be any major difference. Just helped a friend upgrade the WiFi on his 1520 last weekend and used a black, gray, and white wire.

No 1520 for life? Eh, I suppose you can upgrade. I considered doing so myself last year (and did switch to a desktop for non-mobile use a few years back), with the Precision being one of the options I looked at. The 1520 isn't quite the top performer that it used to be at LANs anymore.

 

So, I have a bit of a problem. The original screen on my 1520, a matte one, has had a reddish hue when it first starts since approximately last May. It goes away gradually, and within a couple minutes, everything looks normal. So, I hadn't paid much attention to that.

However, today, it took a turn for the worse. Now, about 10 seconds after it turns on, it turns off completely. So, if I boot it, the BIOS screen appears, but then disappears in about 10 seconds as the BIOS loading is finishing. Then, when the Windows welcome screen appears, the screen turns on again, but turns off a couple seconds after the desktop appears. If I connect to an external monitor via VGA, the internal screen appears again, but only for about 10 seconds. And, if I try to do a special boot menu to go to a Live CD, the screen stays off after the while-loading-BIOS turn off, so I know it's not just a Windows or driver problem.

The good news is I have a backup LCD, and it works with that one. So the GPU and motherboard are okay. It also works when connected to an external monitor via VGA with no internal LCD attached. However, the backup LCD is glossy, and I prefer matte.

So I'm wondering, what is likely wrong in my primary LCD? I haven't had an LCD fail before, so I don't really know which symptoms indicate which components failing. I already disassembled my LCD once a few years ago out of curiosity, so I reckon I can probably disassemble both and use components from the glossy one to revitalize the LCD one. I'd just like to have a good idea what the problematic component is likely to be so I won't be swapping out components at random and hoping to get lucky.

Oh, and I can also confirm that if you get the right monitor, they are plug-and-play. I wouldn't hot-swap them (change them while the computer is on), but doing so while it's off works as expected and without problems.

In other good news, I did swap my CPU while debugging this, and am back up to my original T7500 from a T7250.

 

Almost certainly a sign that the backlight has gone out. You need to replace the backlight within the panel or the panel itself.

 

Eh, that wasn't what I was hoping to hear. Upon DuckDuckGo'ing it, I found this guide, which I'm pretty sure I found several years ago, too, back when I was disassembling out of curiosity. I recall that at the time I decided it wasn't worth going to that degree of disassembly go get a few specks of dust out of the screen, which was probably the right call.

So now I'm debating whether it'd be worth doing this or just sticking with the glossy screen. Being late to the technology game, I don't actually have a soldering iron, although if I stick with the two-screens approach and swap both the backlight and the cable to the backlight, I don't think I'd need one (though I would have to disassemble two panels instead of one).

Regardless, I'm definitely not doing it tonight, and probably shouldn't this weekend since I'll be using the 1520 more next week than I have been lately. But after that, it might be a good learning experience, good way to get my preferred screen back, and if it does fail horribly, a reason to get something a little more powerful than the old GeForce 8600M GT in a newer laptop. I'm actually quite surprised that the original 8600M GT has now out-lived the display.

 

Hello all,

I have an Inspiron 1520 (T7500, 2GB, 8600GT). I started upgrading this laptop with a SSD drive (Kingstone 120GB) and replaced the optical drive with WD Black Edition 500 GB HDD. I just ordered 4 GB of RAM and next month I will order T9500 CPU.

The overall performance of the laptop has increased and also it is a lot cooler than before. The HDD I have in the optical bay was the current HDD with Windows and Linux as OSs. After moving them in the optical drive I am not able to boot from it. Is there a way to boot from the HDD that is inserted in the optical bay?

Thank you !

 

Might be obvious but...did you change the boot order from BIOS? ...Pressing F2 while the laptop is powering up and changing settings?

I have never had problems with booting from CD/USB/HDD in my 1520, as long as the boot partition was MBR. IMHO Dell has the most reliable boot process.

You are using GRUB, right?

 

The boot order is changed in BIOS (1. CD/DVD, 2. HDD). Yes, I am using GRUB (Dual-boot Ubuntu&Windows).
F12 shows a menu with "Boot from Internal HDD" and this is the only option.
Later Edit: What is the best option for SATA in BIOS ? (AHCI/ATA) ?

 

AHCI...you need this especially as youŕe having an SSD. Changing the options doesnt help?

If you boot Ubuntu from live USB does it see all partitions on the HDD? I would check the MBR section and reinstall/reconfigure GRUB.

So unfair Gummiboot doesnt do BIOS...

Note: I played a lot trying to get Gummiboot to dual boot /on UEFI, another laptop/, with the OS systems being on two different drives. Should have done more research - it is impossible.
With GRUB you should be able to do this, in case u want to move Ubunto on the SSD.

Edit: Dont have my GRUB drive nor my 1520 around to test, but you should change the config file. The drive should now be either /sdb or /sr0. Link

 

Initially was AHCI ... changed it to ATA but booted directed from SSD. Entered BIOS and changed it back to AHCI => windows boots from SSD but it reboots due to unexpected error
I can see all the partitions from the second HDD in windows but unable to boot ...
So, it is impossible to boot GRUB (Ubuntu / Windows) from the second HDD ? Or I have to reinstall windows ?

 

The more I look the more twisted it seems with caddies. There are similar problems with booting out there and I unfortunately never had a caddy for my 1520.

I would suggest you give an exact description/part number/link to your caddy and wait for someone experienced to give an opinion and verdict.

The only advice I can give you, since both drives are up, is to set Ubuntu on the SSD and try to configure GRUB to dual boot Windows from the caddy. If even this fails I would assume the caddy unbootable and move OS permanently to the SSD. This is anyways what you would be doing if you are to utilize your SSD.

 

Are you able to access the hard drive in the optical drive bay at all? The easy-to-fix problem would be related to the fact that the optical drive has an IDE connection, versus the hard drive bay's SATA connection. So you'd need an IDE to SATA adapter in order to be able to use a SATA hard drive from the optical bay (or just an IDE hard drive... but I'm guessing a WD Black 500 GB isn't IDE).

If you've got that set up properly, though (and it sounds like you probably do since you can see the partitions), I'm out of ideas.

 

I can access all the partitions from the HDD inside the caddy.
I will try to install Linux of the second HDD .. that might solve the problem.

 

Hi guys!
I just want to give you an update (I hope for some this might be helpful)

1) First thing: PATA-> SATA HDD CADDY
On the beginning I bought on ebay:
2nd HDD Hard Drive Caddy Adapter for Dell Inspiron 1520 P... (281145623968)) from a seller parts-wholeseller | Feedback score of 14342 | 99.9%

I had many problems with it. I put it inside. Played with it for about 10-15min and I gave a positive feedback to the seller but later this day first problems started... Somehow, drive was GONE... couldn't do anything... restart and it was fine. It was happening all the time, especially when drive was under the pressure (like copying, defragmentation etc). I started to drive me crazy!
I'm editing video (just some holiday family vids but in 1080p). Lately I was producing that video and it takes a lot of time as you can imagine with our machines... After a day of producing drive unmounted itself and I had to start it all over again. I have more examples like that... Anyway, you get it right? Pain in the ...
There was no rule. Sometimes it unmounted itself after an hour, few minutes or couple of hours. I was trying to fix it in a bay in different pressure. I tried many things I don't want to admit (duct tape). Nothing worked.
So... after trying everything I bought new one:

NEW Universal 12.7mm PATA IDE TO SATA 2nd HDD Adapter Caddy DELL HP ACER W30A from seller: notebook-part2008 NEW Universal 12 7mm Pata IDE TO Sata 2nd HDD Adapter Caddy Dell HP Acer W30A | eBay

It's about a week after and nothing wrong happened so far it's working like a dream

Long story short: If you have problems with your 2nd drive caddy... buy another one!

2) Wi-Fi... Some of you know that I bought Intel 5300 wifi card. I couldn't make it work under Win7 (under Ubuntu works just fine). Apparently I wasted my time, your time (guys on the forum), and my friend's time Nothing helped.
I bought Intel 5100 and it's working perfectly fine just from beginning. Win7 found drivers without any problems. I downloaded and installed new drivers from Intel's website and it's still fine

So... If you want new wifi card and you want to run Windows do not buy Intel 5300, get 5100 instead


Last thing. This morning when I wanted to switched on my laptop it didn't... I tried many times... After pressing power button power LED light went on just for a split of a second! :/
I have that luck that I have another AC adaptor 85W and even one more 65W... they work
So my AC adaptor died but why? how? when? What the hell?? How this could happened? It was working perfectly fine a day before very odd...

That's all my updates so far. I hope you didn't fall asleep

 

That's nice to keep warning ppl who just want to upgrade their own dinosaurs with success.I think this thread will help a lot of guys.Even the machine is an old one it's still have a honest users circle.
I'd add more about "led light turns on for 1 sec then it turns off".I've had that problem and solve this by repasting chipset.Some pieces of paste was lay arround the core and it was the cause...
I've repasted and put all only just on core...Then it works fine.But in my case I was lucky to switch on the laptop by trying about 5-10 times.

 

This isn't a hard-and-fast rule, however. I ran the 5300 for many years without problems on Windows XP 32-bit. Last month, I switched back to the Broadcom 1390 since I didn't really need 802.11n, and gave the 5300 to a friend who also has a 1520. It got set up and working with no problems on his Vista 64-bit installation. So it's possible that there's an issue that affects Windows 7 but not XP/Vista (which is what the 1520 shipped with), or it's possible that you got a lemon.

My original AC adaptor went out a few years ago. It never did work the same after I disconnected the cable that goes from the wall to the charger from the charger part for more compact storage one time. The connection in the wires just wasn't the same, and I had to have the adaptor at a particular angle to get a charge with it. So, they do fail. The good news is you didn't have any sparks shooting out of the adaptor as happened a few times with one of my friends's 2006 Toshiba laptop's charger.

Luckily Dells are pretty flexible with the chargers. I use the charger for my work laptop, a 2013 Latitude interchangeably with the charger for my 2007 1520 (and I bought the exact same model as what I had initially secondhand on eBay, so it's the same as what I got in 2007). They're both 90W and perform well. 65W will probably work in non-intensive tasks, but I wouldn't try to play Crysis with it.

 

Greetings, friends, I have a inspiron 1520 with Mobile Intel GMA and Intel Core 2 Duo Processor T5450 and I want to upgrade the processor to Intel Core 2 Duo T5800 in there will be a problem or do I have to buy another motherboard thanks greetings

 

The T5800 will work fine.

 

Only in case if you want to upgrade your GPU.All the processors in head will work.

 

I felt like disassembling my laptop tonight, and since it has a Vostro 1500 motherboard in it currently, I checked that the PLL chip on the 1500 is the same as the one on the 1520. And CY28547LFXC (the quote leaves out the X, but RussianEnthusiast's picture shows it). I must say, the font on that chip is really tiny! It looks a lot bigger in the picture. I wasn't able to get as good of a picture as I don't have my good camera with me, but it looks the same as RussianEnthusiast's except a bit more gunk from the black film thing (fortunately not over the CY28547LFXC, but over what is below it).

I don't plan to do the pin mod, however. The pins also look smaller in real life than in the diagram, as well as smaller than I'd expect based on CPU pins. Makes you respect those who do successfully do these pin mods when you see just how small of pins they're working with.

- - - - -

In other news, I'm curious if anyone's tried flashing a Vostro 1500 BIOS to an Inspiron 1520 or vice versa. I reckon it would probably work, and it would be nice to have the BIOS screen say Inspiron again. Although for me, it probably ought to actually say "Vinspiron 1510" or something like that.

Edit: Has anyone painted their Inspiron? I'm considering painting it orange, and reckon I'd start with the palmrest, and probably also do the display bezel and the plastic area where the power button is if the palmrest goes well. Combine that with the Vostro's black keyboard and the black back of the screen, and I reckon it'd look pretty nice. I'm a novice to painting (outside of art class in primary and secondary school), though, so I'm out-of-the-know on questions like whether I should sand down the palmrest first. It still has most of its original paint, though some did come off due to heat and friction when gaming.

 

Hello all,

I just upgraded my Dell 1520. I bought a used T9500 CPU and installed 6GB of RAM memory. Unfortunately, I have some problems with this configuration.
CPU: The CPU is not recognized by the BIOS or Windows. BIOS sees it as "Dual Core Processor" and Windows sees it as T7500 (original CPU). That is not the real problem, the problem is that it should work at 2700 MHz and CPU-z and Task Manager shows that it works at 2400 MHz (Full load).
The Memory that I have installed should have the capability of 800 MHz, but BIOS shows that the memory are working at 667 MHz.
Comparison with my original configuration (T7500 with 2GB RAM):
- The CPU is a lot cooler 40 C in idle vs. 45-48 C
- CPU is more responsive and a lot faster
- Able to watch HD movies smoothly without raising the CPU temperature at 60-65 C
- Able to run Virtual Machines without glitches

I was unable to change any settings in BIOS regarding CPU or Memory Frequency. Could someone how did similar upgrades can help me with an advice? Thank you!

 

My understanding is that the identity of the Vostro 1500 and Inspiron 1520 is baked into their motherboards somewhere distinct from the BIOS. This isn't exactly proof, but I recall an issue a while back where 64-bit Win 7 was causing problems on Vostro 1500 because it didn't contain a bug fixed in the Inspiron 1520 BIOS, and nobody suggested just using the Inspiron 1520 BIOS, even as a workaround; instead, somebody had to mod their own Vostro 1500 BIOS that fixed the problem.

There's a post about that problem here.

 

You should look into your BIOS version first. It should be A09 which is the latest...and last...release. I believe your computer not being able to recognize CPU is due to your outdated BIOS.

The memory is downclocked to 667 MHz, the 1520 doesn't support 800.

There are none. If you are looking to undervolt your CPU there is a great undervolting tread here. It will reduce temperature even further. I am not sure how overclocking will have to be done, never done so myself. But you will certainly not be able to do it in BIOS.

 

eviltruth - As others have suggested, you need to update your BIOS. One of the updates added support for Penryn CPUs, including the T9500. I don't remember which update, but the latest one, A09, includes it.

You can't really overclock with the T9500 (you'd need an X7800, X7900, or X9000 for that), but you can use ThrottleStop to lock the CPU to its maximum frequency with Intel Dynamic Acceleration on both cores, which is 2.8 GHz (compared to the 2.6 GHz stock clock). I've used a (very outdated by now) version of ThrottleStop to do that on my T7500, and it successfully took it from 2.2 GHz to 2.4 GHz.

mumpsimus - That's an interesting post. It's funny that no one so much as mentioned trying a 1520 BIOS, although I see the very last post has someone who successfully used an Inspiron 1318 BIOS. I may go ahead and try it myself, although not right now, as I plan to use the 1520 tonight for its webcam and my desktop can't replace that function if it doesn't work.

Edit: The Inspiron 1520 BIOS wouldn't install from Windows with the Vostro 1500, detecting the Vostro motherboard as not the 1520's. I didn't try to work around it since I don't have a great reason to do so.

 

Hi all,

Thank you all for your replies. I already have the latest BIOS version - A09, but the CPU was not recognized by the BIOS or OS. After a few reboots, windows OS shows that I have T9500.

I will try ThrottleStop for OC, thanks for the tip ! I am happy as my "old laptop" is now fast and cooler

 

Hi all,

My Dell 1520 has a sound problem since I bought it. When the volume is set above 50%, the sound get distorted and can't be played for long. I have tried headphones on and off, different video and audio software to test. I tried to reinstall the audio driver and also the OS. The motherboard was replaced but it did not fixed my problem so it might be software not hardware.

Is this the only laptop with this problem? Could I fix it? I think that there are some bad equalizer settings saved somehow but I was unable to change them.

Please help !

 

Did you try changing speakers?

 

Simply replace your speakers - type "dell 1520 speakers" on ebay
I had problem with mine. I replaced them - now it's great

 

So for the past week or so, my 1520 has been making beeping noises at startup. At first it was four, now it's thirteen (it may be four on battery and thirteen on AC? will have to test that more). Everything seems to be working as expected, however, and when I ran the on-board diagnostics (just the regular ones, not the advanced memory ones; it was 1 AM), everything passed. Temperatures are also normal. Does anyone know what thirteen beeps in short succession at startup indicates?

 

I found this: The complete BIOS beep guide - but didn't find any reference to '13 beeps' for a Dell. (More Dell-specific codes here.)

Is it showing the amount of memory you expect? Are there any devices with errors (or missing) from the Device Manager (even devices you don't use, such as the card reader or modem)?

What about the LEDs, do they flash in any particular pattern while this is going on? Sorry can't think of anything else at the moment.

 

I saw that guide too, but likewise saw no 13 beep item. Hadn't seen the Dell, but no 13 there, either.

FWIW, there's only 4 when resuming from hibernate.

The hard drives light are flashing a bit during the beeping, but I'm not sure if that's odd? Other than the power LED (which is on), I don't see any others on then.

The full amount of memory installed shows up as available (well, the 3.5 GB max with 32-bit OS anyway), and I don't see anything suspicious in Device Manager.

I may just disassemble and reassemble and see if that solves it.

 

will a t9550 work in my vostro 1520? it has a celeron 900 2.2ghz
thanks :thumbsup:

 

The T9550 won't work, but the T9500 will.

 

well that's a bummer, i bought one i saw cheap on ebay already. out of curiosity whats different about it that makes it not work?
i took a chance because on wikipedia the top specd laptop had a t9550 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dell_Vostro#Vostro_1520

 

Commander Wolf, I think he's asking about the Vostro 1520 (not the Vostro 1500 or the Inspiron 1520), in which case this thread might be more appropriate.

(For what it's worth, I do see Vostro 1520s on eBay being sold with T9550s...)

 

Whoops, I did not see that. The T9550 has a 1066MHz FSB which is why it won't work with the Inspiron 1520, but will with the Vostro 1520.

 

cool cool, thanks for the help. i'll let you know how the installation goes

 

That will be a great jump in performance.:thumbsup:

 

Hi fellow 1520 Owners!

TL;DR Version: I am thinking about buying a new LCD panel+inverter on ebay or aliexpress. While I'm at it, I'd ideally prefer a 1440x900 panel (2nd choice: 1680x1050, 3rd choice: 1920x1200). However, my original panel was 1280x800. Will these different resolution panels work? Do I need to do something in hardware, BIOS or OS to make it work? It would be even better if you gave me a direct ebay / aliexpress link.

The service tag is 5G7F33J in case anyone wants to look up the specs on support.dell.com.

My 1520 from 2007 is about 7.5 years old now, and I've decided to give it a final round of upgrades and see how long it holds out.

The primary reason I'm holding on to this 3+ kg. beast is that I can't stand 16:9 screens on new laptops, I need 16:10, and I need something at least 14". The only new laptop on the market that fits that is the MBP and I can't afford that.

It still has the following parts from original configuration purchase:

CPU: T7100
LCD: 1280x800 Glossy
GPU: 8400M GS

It's been through quite a few changes over the years, chronologically :

RAM: 2x2 GB (Replaced 1GB)
DISK: 120 GB SSD (Replaced 120 GB HDD)
BATTERY: 9-Cell Aftermarket (Replaced 6-Cell Dell)
AC ADAPTER: 90W Dell (Replaced 90W Dell)
OS: Windows 7 x64 (Replaced Vista x32)

I recently went on Ebay and bought even more new stuff ! Check them out:

- The hard-to-find 7-Pin "044CTV" TV-Out Cable Breakout Box that gives S-Video, Composite and the famed Coax SPDIF Digital Audio output! Installed old Vista drivers for the Sigmatel Audio to get back the Digital Audio Output device, hooked it up to my AVR, and it works! (It only worked after I also connected the Composite cable) After all these years I get digital audio out. Yay! This really should have been included with the original purchase, perhaps instead of the Dell Remote that I never used.

- I ordered a T9300 CPU, and I'm still waiting for that delivery.

So finally, here's my question:

A month ago the LCD Backlight decided to die (hot black spot in the bottom right corner, and complete failure followed in a few days) so I got it replaced. Unfortunately the repair shop did a dirty job, and it now has 3 dead pixels and a few visible smudges on the screen.

I am thinking about buying a new LCD panel+inverter on ebay. While I'm at it, I'd ideally prefer a 1440x900 panel (2nd choice: 1680x1050, 3rd choice: 1920x1200). However, my original panel was 1280x800. Will these different resolution panels work? Do I need to do something in BIOS or OS?

 

Another question regarding the Nvidia 8400M GS chip. I remember news from a couple of years ago that all these chips were faulty and bound to die eventually, is that true? Mine seems to be doing fine still. What has been your experience?

 

I did read the entire post, but only quoted a bit for brevity's sake. In short, any hardware-compatible monitor should be plug-and-play. After my motherboard got fried, rather than just buying a mobo, I bought a whole new 1520 so I'd have spare parts. It turns out it's a good thing I did, as my screen kicked the bucket earlier this year. Before it kicked the bucket, though, I'd gone back and forth on the screens a couple times. And both times, it was just take it apart, attach the new screen, and it's good to go.

I should note, however, that these were both screens that shipped with a 1520 (or, technically, Vostro 1500). And they were both 1280x800. I don't think you'd have any problems with a higher-res one, but some more homework is probably a good idea if you're buying one that wasn't originally sold with a 1520/Vostro 1500. I believe the connector is the LVDS one, but other things to consider are the cable length and antennae.

The other upgrades sound pretty solid. You can go higher on some of them, of course, but it's a nice set of upgrades over the years. I agree on 16:10 being a bummer, and have never bought a 16:10 screen myself. I also agree on the MBP being too expensive, however, which is why I went with a used circa-2011 workstation when replacing my 1520. The 1520 is still my main notebook until it arrives, but less than a quarter of the price of a MBP was rather attractive.

Yeah, that was Soldergate. It affects all GeForce 8M chips, and many GeForce 9Ms, too. The risk of the chips dying early is significantly elevated versus other chips. And many did. But we're at the point now where if it's still working, it's past the point of dying early. My 8600M GT is also still original (I transferred the one from my fried-mobo laptop to the good mobo), and it's also still going strong. At this point, I consider the risk of it failing to be no higher than any other 7.5-year-old GPU. In 2009, it was somewhat concerning. Now? I've gotten my money's worth out of it. If it does fail, I could always try baking my GPU for fun and profit, and if that also failed, Inspiron 8400M GSes are cheap on eBay.

Put another way, all GPUs will die eventually. The 8Ms are more likely to die early, but as the IT guy at work says, even if you have a product where 4 out of 5 of them are lemons, one of them is going to last forever. And it looks like we both got lucky with regards to this GPU.

 

When you get new cpu dont forget to undervolt it via rmclock. It will help with keeping temperarures down a lot.

 

I also have this problem when I connect headphones to the laptop. Are you sure that the speakers are the problem ?