How to Upgrade Nvidia MXM Notebook Graphics Cards

Upgradeable graphics have long been an elusive concept in the notebook world, but there’s an increasing number of gaming notebooks that support Nvidia’s modular MXM technology to give you that very capability. Don’t think you can simply purchase any MXM notebook and be able to upgrade the graphics, though. We’ll discuss why in this article.

Read the full content of this Article: http://www.notebookreview.com/howto/how-to-upgrade-nvidia-mxm-notebook-graphics-cards/

 

Have to say this article would have been great years ago but replaceable GPU (and MXM in general) has been dying for a few years now.

 

Yes - lots of people are still looking for upgradeable solutions, so someone has to be the bearer of bad news.
The biggest difficulty with upgradeable notebook graphics, IMO, is the heatsink design differences. Having a card that fits in many notebooks is one thing. Accommodating the different design characteristics of each notebook's cooling systems is another.

We'll have a follow-up to this article shortly on external graphics solutions/eGPUs.
Charles

 

I think the only reasons the use of MXM modules is not universal are:

1. Consumer ignorance is the norm
2. Knowledgeable enthusiasts are a minority
3. Producing high quality products is a lower priority than profit
4. OEM greed - drives notebook sales and blocks the ability to service/repair/upgrade the products previously sold

The companies that cater to enthusiasts will continue offering machines that meet their expectations, and are serviceable rather than disposable. Their relevance as a business and their products being distinguishable from the mass production junk in a niche market depends on it. No self-respecting and knowledgeable enthusiast will waste their money on one-shot, dead-end, disposable BGA garbage. It is a shame to see a company like Alienware cave in and go with the flow on the disposable design. Having to use an eGPU and tether a notebook to a desk is counter-intuitive and defeats the purpose of owning a high performance notebook. Might as well build a desktop and get your money's worth in terms of performance if you have to be bound to a desk.

 

Nice article! The mobile workstations can be upgraded too, if a crappy system BIOS is not on their way that is.

 

Speaking of notebook upgrades, Eurocom has a poll on their web site that might be of interest. They are looking to gather intelligence on the subject. This poll is open to anyone regardless of their brand preference. Please feel free to cast a vote. It is easy to find on the main page. http://www.eurocom.com/ec/main()ec

Below are the current results. After casting a volte, please do not hesitate to chime in here to comment about why you want or need to upgrade. If you want to and cannot due to the design of the machine, please share how that makes you feel, and whether that will influence your future buying decisions. I know I would be very unhappy to find out after the point of sale, when it's too late to do anything about that problem.

 

I upgraded because my old GPU was dead even though I was going to upgrade it eventually, the 860M was too slow & I hope the BGA dumbos realize how important the MXM / socket HW are for all types of power users.

I think I'm those few last Alienware 17 owners who like this machine and stayed despite the Full UEFI pain and will until there are no options left , glad to have Prema & Svl7, John without them all this hardware throughout these ~7 years or so would go wasted in vain. And the 980M, I hope It holds the power for some time.

 

For those interested in high end upgrades, AC adapter capacity can be a problem. Some Clevo beast owners are even finding dual 330W is barely enough. For those of you that are running into this, please vote in this poll.

https://polldaddy.com/poll/9372297/