The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
The CPU is socketed and can be changed, if you are so inclined. The
specs here indicate that the Q35 can handle up to a 2.33GHz T2700.
However, a CPU upgrade with less than a 25% increase in speed is unlikely to give a noticeable benefit in normal usage. What CPU do you have now?
The upgrades I would consider first are (i) RAM (the specs may say maximum 1.5GB but I'm sure you can put in a 2GB module and get 2GB + whatever is on board) and (ii) hard disk (what HDD do you have now?).
You will need to dismantle the Q35 to get to the CPU. I don't know how to do that. On the other hand, the RAM and HDD are under covers to they are easy to access.
Hi John , I have a Q35 and wish to upgrade the CPU, in Vista when i look at computer properties it shows mine as having the T5200 1.60ghz clock speed with 533mhz bus. Also the Intel sticker says it is an Intel Core 2 Duo. The spec in the link you gave doesn't show the Q35 as having this processor? Is this still possible to upgrade, and to which processor? the link below here shows the Intel family, I would ideally like to upgrade to the max possible but I don't have a clue on this, ie can i go up to an E6850 with VT (whatever that is?) or do i have to stay in the Txxx range and if so what is the max I can go to then? , any help appreciated as i am totally confused.
Your upgrade options will be limited by the BIOS support.
The Q35 I reviewed had the T5600 and the review commented that a version with the T7200 was available. I suspect that the BIOS would support the pre-Santa Rosa Core 2 mobile CPUs (ie
those released in 2006). Definitely the T7200, probably the T7400 and maybe the T7600. So you might manage up to a 50% boost in CPU speed.
Have you already given the RAM and the HDD a boost?
Hi John, thanks for the reply, I have just bought 2gb ram which has made a great difference running apps, just thought I would upgrade the processor now whilst I have some money left before my wife spends it all!.
Re disk drive, it has the HM100JC ATA, but I have no idea what that means in terms of speed, what is the option for the HDD ?
thanks again, fantastic forum, great wealth of knowledge, many thanks to you for sharing it.
The biggest available capacity parallel ATA 2.5" HDD is the
250GB WD2500BEVE or
here. It has more space than you probably need but the high data density means high data transfer rates. However, WD HDDs use a a bit more power. Probably faster, but less capacity is the
160GB Samsung HM160HC. I think this has 160GB squeezed onto one platter.
I see it has the Intel 915GMS chipset and only one RAM slot. I think it has a further 256MB fixed on the motherboard. The chipset will support up to 2GB of RAM but the datasheet only mentions 1GB modules. Putting 1GB in the memory slot will definitely work. 2GB might work but I can't guarantee. It worked in my Sony G11 which the datasheet said would only take 1GB modules but when I put a 2GB module in the memory slot then it recognised 2GB (and ignored the extra memory). Do you know anyone with a 2GB module that you could try?
The memory type is PC4200 DDR2 SODIMM. PC5300 will also work. Play.com is cheap because the prices include delivery. 1GB is
here (PC4300 ~ PC4200). Or, if you want to try your luck with 2GB, try
7dayshop.
The CPU may not be upgradable. The Q30plus says ULV and these are usually soldered onto the motherboard. You can use
CPU-z to check the CPU type. What is the processor number and package type on the CPU page?
You might also want to consider a faster hard disk. These have become bigger and faster. There is a selection at
span.com. However, there are several different connector types so we would need to know the model number of your present HDD (see Device Manager) in order to identify compatible alternatives.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.
