PC hardware forum: Need Help/advice I would like to upgrade my CPU.

the cpu in most laptops can't be upgraded. this is because most laptops have very limited BIOSes that only support the factory installed cpu.

i doubt your laptop will support an upgrade because your cpu is from a family of only 2 chips: the 2650e and the 3250e. the 2650e is a single core cpu, but the 3250e is a dual core and i doubt your laptop BIOS/chipset supports a dual-core. i also doubt it could handle the extra heat. and neither the 2650e nor 3250e are offered for retail sale... they go straight to OEMs.

Someone needs to write a much longer dissertation what TDP is and more.

my bad

most laptop manufacturers create a bios that only support the cpu they intend to install. this is why most laptops can't be upgraded from a pentium dual core to a core 2 duo. the c2d uses the same socket and is supported by the chipset, but the bios is only coded to recognize a pentium dual core.

I also have an eMachines E620 and would like to upgrade the CPU. I will also switch out the chipset if it means I can get more speed AND better graphics performance. I've already maxed out to 4G of RAM. I had to enable SAE in order for the OS to utilize all 4 gigs. Short of buying an entire new machine, I'd rather upgrade this one. I don't like to throw things away because technology advances. I still operate my very 1st computer, an eMachines eTower w/ intel celeron 600 and a 10 GB HDD. It runs XP pro SP3 and basically powers MagicJack. It's still usuable for email, browsing, chatting/IMing, even streaming music, (not so for video w/out a LOT of buffering). Point is, I would like to max this laptop machine out, not replace it. So, what MoBo and CPU combo would you suggest? If I keep my current chipset, can I improve my graphics performance? ATI Radeon 1200 rates very poorly, and is integrated to MoBo. I'd invest up to $200 in switching out the chipset and cpu with fans, etc. It's justifiable cost, as I only paid $300 for this laptop about a year or so ago. This isn't a bad little machine really. The lowest rated performing component is always the graphics. I've really tweaked this installation of Vista Basic and I could switch to 64bit Vista with my current hardware, but performance issues need to be addressed 1st.
Thanks for your time and answers. Here are current specs:

AMD Athlon Neo MV-26 (Huron) Brand ID 8
Package: Socket AM2 (940)
Technology: 65nm Core VID 1.000 V
AMD Athlon Processor 2650e Rev. DH-G2

Mainboard chipset: eMachines Nile
Chipset: ATI RS690/RS690M Rev. 0
Southbridge: ATI SB600

BIOS: eMachines V 1.03 Date: 09/30/2008

Graphics: ATI Radeon X1200 series