upgrade HP notebook processor

I'm wondering how hard it would be to upgrade my notebook's current processor (Intel Celeron M 530 @ 1.73GHz, kind of sluggish at times) to one of Intel's dual core processors that get at least 2GHz (is there a significant difference between centrino, core duo, and core 2 duo?). The notebook is a Pavilion dv6500t with a Mobile Intel 965 Express chipset. I already know that digging down far enough to reach the processor is a lot of work, but I have the dv6500t's maintenance manual, so at least I know exactly what to do in terms of hardware. I'm not sure if I need a BIOS upgrade, does anyone know if the latest version of PhoenixBIOS is supported? And if I do have to get a different BIOS, how would I? Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

I dont think you can upgrade to core or core 2? Im not really sure, someone else might know, just wait a bit, someone who knows will post.

 

Support for PDC - T2310 and T2330

Support for 1st Gen Penryns - T8100, T8300, T9300 and T9500

Update to the latest BIOS version....F.58A

Centrino is a platform, and your notebook is based on the Santa Rosa Platform.

Core Duo is dated, and are Socket M - Hence, not supported !!

Pentium Dual Core - Found support only for T2310 and T2330, not worth it !!

Core 2 Duo - Only Socket P Core 2 Duos (2nd Gen Meroms and 1st Gen Penryns)

Check out this CPU Comptibility Guide and look for Socket P Core 2 Duo CPUs.

 

yea im not so up to snuff on my celerons, and MB compatibility.

 

Are you sure your notebook has a 965GM/PM chipset ??

Does it have a dedicated GPU or integrated graphics ??

What is the exact model no. of the notebook ?

Socket P Celeron Ms are normally accompanied with the GL960 chipset, but there seems to be no limitation in terms of BIOS support.

 

Thanks for the info Andy. And as for your questions, yes, it has a 965 chipset (looked it up in Device Manager); it has integrated graphics; according to hp.com it's a Pavilion dv6500t CTO notebook (not sure if that's what you're looking for, but that's all I could find, unless you mean the sticker on the bottom, which says HP Pavilion dv6500). Also, according to Device Manager, the processor to DRAM controller is a "Mobile Intel PM965/GM965/GL960." Not sure if that means anything to you, but it does list what you said in your previous post. Thanks again for your help.

 

I am not sure which chipset that notebook has. It could be the GL960.

You can run PC Wizard 2008 or Everest Corporate Trial to see which chipset/northbridge the notebook has.

But the BIOS does support the Penryns, and the GL960 chipset does support the Penryns as well, so I don't think you will face any issues with the CPU upgrade. (Remember to update your BIOS to the latest version)

(But advance at your own risk !!)

 

You're going to be limited to Merom (Socket M) core Core2Duos (listed here at NewEgg). These include the T7200, T7400 and T7600 (2.0, 2.16 and 2.33Ghz, respectively) and they're a tad pricey, so if you do decide to go with one I'd make sure you're planning on keeping the laptop for a while, and are satisfied with the other aspects of performance it offers (if you're not happy with the laptop's videocard, upgrading to a $300 CPU isn't going to help much in things such as games).

It's important to note the Core2Duos are supported by your chipset (and your BIOS should work fine) and were offered initially as ugprades from your processor (probably for more cash than you'd pay ordering them and installing seperately), and should provide a pretty good performance boost, but again, I'd really double-check to see if you're going to be happy putting that kind've cash into your laptop.

Installation shouldn't be too tough. I'm not sure how straight-forward HPs are to open up (ironic, considering I work for HP), but I know my Dell Inspiron takes maybe 10 minutes to get to the CPU socket, but I also know Dell designs theirs to be a bit more friendly in terms of ripping them apart, whereas the HPs are more mechanically streamlined (for aesthetic reasons).

 

Also, you might want to consider upgrading the RAM with the CPU. DDR-2 is cheap as dirt these days, and the FSB on the Merom Core2Duos is 800Mhz, so you'd want to go with 800Mhz DDR-2 (your system would've probably come with 533Mhz DDR-2, with 667Mhz being the fastest it would have come with).

 

I looked at the dv6500 series service manual. You have to remove just about everything else before you can finally get to the processor, it's the last chapter of the disassembly guide. It refers you back to every previous chapter to remove those components first. Not much fun...

 

But does the chipset actually support DDR2-800 speed? I haven't checked, it may not go above 667...

 

No my friend, you're getting it all wrong. The T7200 etc etc are Socket M CPUs, which are not compatible with the GL960 - it supports only Socket P CPUs.
And the Santa Rosa Platform supports DDR2-667 max.

I am surprised, even Newegg has listed the Celeron M 560 in the Socket M CPU section, but its actually a Socket P CPU.

You guys better have a look at this guide to clear up your doubts/misconceptions or whatever....

 

I have upgraded the cpu in my dv6500t from a t5250 to a t7100 it is very easy you can use any t5x50 cpu t5x70 and all of the t7x00 serries exept the t7200 thats only in socket M you need s****et P yes they are diffrent. Also make sure it has a 800mhz FSB if its a t7x00 serries that means its socket P if its 667 its socket M. You can use 800mhz fsb penryns like t8100 t8300 t9300 and t9500. The upgrade is easy and you will see a big improvment.

 

^ Yeah, OP: Try out the T8100/T8300 for a nice boost in performance, which are available at good prices.

 

Agree with Andy here. It's definitely upgradable to T8100/T8300 and the Celeron M is a common misconception and often confused with socket M and socket P, as the 530 came in both configurations.

 

Thanks for the warning, but as I said before, I have the maintenance manual, plus I've read through the disassembly section (which is rather tedious once you reach the end).

I'm fine with the current 2GB I already have, no need for more. Plus my current platform doesn't support 800MHz.


BTW Matt Woller, I have to go with what Andy's been telling me since I started this thread, mostly based on his experience/rep power (never thought I would actually use something like that here). Plus, that processor guide is very extensive; it covers laptops with processors that date back to 2002 (props to Commander Wolf for making it).

After running PC Wizard 2008, here are my laptop specs as far as this thread is concerned:
Mainboard: Quanta 30cc
Chipset: Intel GM965
Processor: Intel Pentium T2370 (although Device Manager says Celeron M) @1733MHz
Video Card: Mobile Intel 965 Express Chipset Family

 

About how it says you have a celeron M in device manger. Click on them and uninstall them ( i know it sounds moronic ) Anyways when you restart it will say new hardware found and then say pentium t2370. My laptop has a t5250 and a t7100 in device manger because i only deleted 1 core lol.

 

Confirm the CPU and the chipset with CPU-Z....(or RMClock for only CPU)

 

Now I'm confused. CPU-Z says my CPU is in fact a Celeron M, while PC Wizard said it was a Pentium T2370. Both said that my chipset is a GM965 though. Is there a definite way to tell which one is right?

 

Don't worry. It really doesn't matter what your current CPU is. PC Wizard could be wrong. The main thing is that the chipset is a GM965, so upgrading should not be a problem. Install a T8300/T9300 and update the BIOS to the latest version, before upgrading....

 

Hello Tippey,

I saw your post regarding upgrading the processor of the DV6500. I talked to hp tech support yesterday and the guy informed me that I can't upgrade the processor because it is integrated into the motherboard/chipset. I think he didn't know what he was talking about because he tried to convince me to upgrade the RAM and hard drive, which I have already done!

Anyhow, I currently have T7250 CPU and I am looking at the T7700 (2.4 Ghz with 4M cache) but you had mentioned that I can go with T8300/T9300. Is that true? How difficult was it to get to the CPU? Thanks in advance

 

The CPU upgrade wasent hard at all. Some where within my house i have a picture of when i had the whole thing in peices on a table if i can find it i will post it. If you update your bios you can use the t8100 t8300 t9300 and t9500 in your laptop. I would reccomend the penryn chips because they support sse4 and are 45nm. To get to the cpu you basically have to remove everthing on the laptop i used a giant table designed to fit 8 people to make it easier to keep track of everything.