Changing intel gma mobility 965 by replacing the MOTHERBOARD. POSSIBLE?

I got a dell studio laptop with intel gma 965 in it. My processor is Intel Core 2 duo. Is it possible to change the video card by replacing the motherboard? If so, how much will it cost me? Will my dell 1year running warranty help? Any answers would be apreciated.

 

You never stated the exact model (15 or 17) so I can't be too specific. It seems that you would be able to change the MB for one that has a 3450/3650 as long as they have the same port location, fan location, etc.
The cost to change the MB will be nearly the same as a new laptop.
You could check with Dell to see if they could swap yours for a reduced price (won't likely happen), so your best bet might be to sell the laptop and just get a new one with a better GPU.

 

The board should cost you 200-300 dollars (on ebay for example), and Dell will not cover any of that. I would say sell the laptop, and get a different one if you're looking for a GPU.

 

Dont listen to them. You would buy the new motherboard off ebay for $100-$200 then sell the old one for $100-$200 you would break about even well you would have to spend between $50-$100 on misc stuff im not sure how your laptop works.

 

Ok my laptop is dell studio 15. And i just got this computer last year september and this is computer is very good except for its graphic card. So.. I wouldn't really sell it. My computer also got 4gb ddr2 ram. Can anyone put link to a motherboard that i can buy for a cheap price with better graphic card and somewhat ok processor?

 

I think you'd need to use a motherboard that came from a Dell Studio 15... otherwise I don't think it would fit the machine.

And your warranty is only relevant in that changing the motherboard will probably void it.

 

You need to use a studio 15 motherboard with the onboard graphics, I think the 3450ATi. You may need to buy a different heatsink, but thats it. The dedicated graphics should be a direct drop in to your studio 15 chassis.
Please note that this will void all waranties with Dell, and will require you to completely dismantle the laptop. If you are good, you can sell the old board, and maybe in the end spend about $50-100 on say the difference in board cost, and possibly a different heatsink.

Its worth it to me, you just need to find a working studio 15 motherboard with the dedicated graphics card

K-TRON

 

See K-tron is optimistic.

 

Here you go. Its $100 and it has an ati radeon 3450.

http://cgi.ebay.com/DELL-STUDIO-15-...ryZ60265QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
And you will need a heatsink. Someone correct if im wrong but this heatsink looks like it would work
http://cgi.ebay.com/Dell-M139C-Stud...ryZ31512QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

Those two should work together fine. As mentioned alot of systems are pretty versatile, however the owner must realize that they need to buy a new motherboard and heatsink (designed for the same model) to perform the operation. Tippey has pulled the links, so its up to you if you want to upgrade. I would do it because I love modding and building computers, but if you are new to computers, i recommend buying a piece of junk laptop and just messing with it for a while before you become comfortable taking apart a expensive machine.
Just take your time and be careful. Do not rush when taking the system apart, and take lots of pictures along the way so you can see how everything goes together.

K-TRON

 

well I'm just 13 years old... so I don't think i can afford a new laptop even though if its a junk. If i give it to like bestbuy's geek squad will they replace it for me? or should i take the risk of taking it apart myself?

 

With your experience I would not take the risk. If you have an older friend or brother who is into modding, ask them if they can do it for you. It is very easy to be over-confident and breaking something or not putting it back together properly.

 

Can anyone also give me a video of how to taking my studio 15 apart?

 

Will tippey's motherboard fit my laptop? My laptop is intel core 2 duo 4gb ram and studio 1535.

 

Well I just ordered it. Thanks for the link Tippey. Also, can you tell me more about heat sinks. And please put a video up if you find one about replacing motherboard of studio 15.

 

Well this isnt a video but its the guide from dell. http://support.dell.com/support/edocs/systems/1535/en/SM/index.htm
Also did you order the heatsink to? You will need it because your current heatsink dosent cool the graphics card because you dont have one right now. And yes that motherboard will fit socket P core 2 duo's ( like yours ) and it will support 4gb's of ram. You should be able to just swap the boards out boot windows and have it say " new found hardware "

 

I just need to know, when I take out my motherboard, is the processor(intel core 2 duo) integrated into the motherboard?

 

Also, is the system board same thing as motherboard?

 

And yes I did order the heat sink too. I just ordered the both thing that you gave me the link to.

 

No. You will unscrew the HSF and then you should see something that looks like the CPU pick below.

Yes.

And for next time, there is something called the edit post button.

 

So guys.. Do you think it is worth the $150 for upgrading my studio 15's motherboard? Intel gma 965 to ati mobility radeon hd 3450.

 

Ok, since no one else said it, for 13, you really should know how to read. Use the edit button instead of posting 2+ times in a row. For a $150 upgrade, yes, it is worth it, but installing it is a different monster. Good luck, and remember, "Edit" is your friend.

 

I think its worth the upgrade,
You bought the right stuff, so it will work. You jut need to be careful when disassembling and putting it back together.

The cpu is installedd in a socket, and can be removed with the use of a small flat head screwdriver. You just need to use the screwdriver to unlock the cpu from the socket.

Their are some precautions you should be aware of before working on your system:
1) wear rubber shoes, and do your work on a large clean desk. Preferably have some foam so that your laptop does not get scratched by the table.
2) make sure you are grounded. Touch a metal object every once in a while, or wear an anti-static wrist band
3) grab all of the materials you will need: Small flat head screwdrivers (phillips, flat head), a camera for pictures, and possibly a Dell PDF stating how to take the system apart
4) remove AC power adaptor, and main battery before taking the system apart
5) when disassembling, be careful with all of the components, and do not force anything if it does not work. If you need to force something to fit you are doing something wrong.
6) when you get to the processor, make sure to clean off the old paste from the top of the cpu and from the botton of the heatsink. You can use rubbing alochol and q-tips to do this
(please note cpu = processor, and system board = motherboard
7) when the cpu is clean, it will be very shiny in the middle. When clean, use a small flat head screwdriver and turn the screw on the socket 180 degrees to unlock the processor.
8) remove the motherboard from your system, and install the new motherboard which has the ATi dedicated graphics card
9) install the new processor into the new motherboard, turn the screw 180 degrees in the other direction to lock it in place.
10) install thermal paste onto the cpu die (the shiny part) and proceed to mounting the heatsink and so forth
11) continue to put the system back together, if you have any left over screws, please take the time and figure out where they came from, and do not power it up until everything is in place and properly connected.


if you need help just post any questions you have,

I hope this helps,

K-TRON

 

Well.. yea sorry about the editing thing. And how will this graphic card do for future gaming? I don't play hardcore games. I just want to play StarCraft2 and other RTS stuff. Oh yea what's in the motherboard? Would it decrease my computer's performance after I replace it? Also, is the ati radeon mobility hd 3450 the best choice for my laptop?

 

The Radeon HD3450 is a relatively low-end mobile graphics card. It will handle old stuff just fine. I have the same computer, with the HD3450, and mine can handle Half-Life 2 and Team Fortress 2 at full resolution with no AA or AF, for a frame of reference. It should be just fine for RTS games. It gives me no trouble with Dawn of War.

It's definitely nothing high-end, though. I guarantee it won't run Crysis at all, even on minimum settings. For newer games, chances are you'll have to turn down graphics settings and/or lower your resolution in order to get an acceptable frame rate.

What's "in" the motherboard"? To put it simply, everything.

Replacing the motherboard will not decrease your performance since you'll be using the same processor and memory, and apart from the graphics, it's the exact same motherboard.

And yes, the ATI mobility 3450 is the best choice, because it's the only choice. There are no other graphics options for the Dell Studio 1535.

 

Would the ati mobility hd 3450 run dawn of war 2, Spore and Empire: Total War? If so, how much playable and at what settings? Around what fps?

 

Maybe just to clarify (since I can see this ending in tears) the use of the screwdriver is just to turn the locking screw on the socket, not to pry the CPU out. Also I find it very useful to draw a quick sketch of the top and bottom of the notebook noting where the screws (and other items go) and lay each physical piece on the sketch in the correct location, this will stop you from putting a wrong length screw in the wrong hole (I have screwed right though the mobo and out the top side of the case before) :-(

 

Yes, the cpu socket has a small screw on the one side of it. You just turn the screw 180 degrees to the unlock position. It is labeled on the cpu socket, so you cant mess it up.
Do not use the screwdriver to pry the cpu out

Drawing a diagram like you mentioned will be a great idea, that should work well for you.

Since this sounds like your first laptop mod, you may want to borrow a digital camera from a friend just for a few hours, it will come in handy

K-TRON

 

Upgrading the motherboard is no harder then upgradeing the cpu ( in most case's ) you all ready get right down to the motherboard in my dv6500t to replace the cpu so while your at it you would just be throwing in another board.

 

I wish you the best of luck. :] Remember, don't panic.

 

Spore you should have no trouble with, but Dawn of War 2 and Empire: Total War are both newer, graphically demanding games. You'll probably have to run them at a resolution like 800x600 with settings turned low or medium, to get a playable framerate. I consider "playable" to be anything upwards of 20fps for an RTS game.

 

Will 4Gb help in gaming?

Also, I was looking at removing motherboard guide in dell website and I got a little bit scared when I saw the "To avoid Electric Discharge"..

 

It should help if you plan on switching between the game and the desktop alot if not well once its going not really. How much ram do you have right now?

 

I got 4gb DDR2 Ram. And while replacing motherboard, can I get SHOCKED?

 

you can get shocked only if you are charged with static electricity.
Read my steps I provided, a few posts back. I laid all of the info down, so you can follow it.
Simply touch something large and metal every so often, that will discharge any electricity stored in your body.

K-TRON

 

I get shocked every morning when I look in the mirror..

K-Tron said everything, nothing to add.

4Gb might be useful for some newer RTS

 

THe fact you will have no warranty at all should be enough to deter you from this tbh.

 

Also, Is it possible to add another ram into my laptop? If so, If I add a DDR3 one what will happen to my ram? Will it be DDR2 or DDR3 since my current ram is DDR2.

 

You can't change the memory type, they're physically incompatible. Which makes the other questions irrelevant.

 

I would also recommend into checking if you need a different heatsync for the motherboard with the graphics card.

I went through this with my inspiron 1520. I ordered the new graphics card and motherboard without thinking I would need a new heatsync. Ended up having to dremel the heatsync to make it fit properly.

 

I did order a new heatsink. Also, I just saw the info about dell studio 1555 with ati radeon mobility hd 4570 so if it comes out, will the hd 4570 compatible with studio 1535 too? And is 3450 and 4570 big difference?

 

You will not be able to swap your system components with those of the studio 1555, they are mcuh too different. You would need to do a lot of modding to get the system board to fit, let alone line up.
These swaps are only possible if your system was offered with a motherboard specifically designed for your system.

K-TRON

 

Oh yea. Can you also put steps for replacing the heatsink K Tron?

 

replacing the heatsink, well its easy.

1) take your laptop apart significantly enough so you can get the heatsink
2) unscrew the heatsink so that the heatsink can be removed from the system
3) gently and slowly twist the heatsink from side to side. (DO NOT PULL STRAIGHT UP, THE CONNECTION BETWEEN THE CPU AND THE HEATSINK MAY BE VERY GOOD, CAUSING YOU TO RIP THE CPU OUT OF THE SOCKET)
Gently twst back and forth in order to break any bonds
4) gently pull up on the heatsink.
5) when the heatsink is removed, clean off any thermal compound on the bottom of the heatsink with rubbing alcohol
6) than clean off any thermal paste from the processor. You can use rubbing alcohol and q-tips for this one. Continue to clean until the core in the center shines, and their is no compound remaining
7) unscrew the processor from the socket. Than carefully lift the processor out of the socket.
8) install the processor into the new motherboard
9) lock the processor in by turning the screw 180 degrees.
10) put a bit of thermal paste on the shiny part of the processor
11) gently install the heatsink, line up the holes
12) screw each of the screws in part of the way, and than continue to tighten each of them tighter by going from one screw to another. This helps distribute the forces more evenly when installing the heatsink
13) when all screws are tight proceed to putting your system back together

Good thermal pastes to use are: arctic silver 5, arctic cooling MX-2 and Tuniq TX-2

K-TRON

 

What do I have to do first? Installing the motherboard or the heatsink?
Cheers! The parts should come on wednesday!

 

You need to disassemble your laptop first. In the process you will need to remove the heatsink, than finish removing the motherboard.
When the old motherboard is removed, install the new motherboard. When you get up to it, you will need to install the new heatsink.

Where are you located? I could do this for you on a weekend if I have time.

K-TRON

 

I'm located in NY11731 East Northport.(Long Island) If you can help, that would be great but is saturday good? Because Sunday I have religion and it's quite far away.

 

I live in NJ, do this stuff for a living, always willing to help out fellow NBRers.
You'd have to come to me though.

 

I sent you a PM, I would be able to do the swap for you if I was home this weekend, but I am going back up to college probably Thursday morning. It would have been easy, since I am only 10 miles away from you. Hep is an honest guy, I have done business with him in the past.

K-TRON

 

chlwotjd678 just came to my house about 3 hours ago. We swapped the motherboard. It took all of about 90 minutes to do. The motherboards are very similar. The original motherboard had the Intel Integrated video card and the new one has the ATI 3450 graphics card. The ATI card is integrated into the motherboard, and its about the size of a penny.
Other wise the motherboards were near identical. All he needs is the new heatsink, which will reach over and cover up the ATI 3450.
He did not have the heatsink today, so when it comes later this week he will install it and the system should work perfectly.

K-TRON