# My laptop worth upgrading? Dell XPS M170



## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

I just bought a dell xps M170 laptop.

Its specs are as follows:

17" lcd
windows vista home premium which I upgraded to from xp media center
intel centrino mobile 2.0ghz
1gb ddr2 memory
160gb hard drive which I upgraded to from 80gb
dvd rw drive
nvidia geforce 6800 go

I am thinking about upgrading to 2gb ddr2 which is max, and a nvidia GeForce Go 7800 GTX

I just want to know if its worth it?

I want to play NFS shift, and it runs smoothly until I get to the test run then it runs all choppy and stuff. I just wish I knew if the cpu needed updated too. I will not update the cpu since its not worth upgrading, and can't upgrade to a Core 2 duo. 

Thanks in advance.


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## Techie19 (Feb 10, 2008)

I would upgrade the RAM to the max. CPU upgrades on laptops are not too common like on desktop PCs. You would have to find out the exact model number of your motherboard in order to be able to figure out which (if any) CPUs your motherboard can support. 

You have a pretty decent size hard drive so that shouldn't be a concern. Now, the graphics. Your Dell didn't come with the nvidia GeForce Go 7800 GTX? I ask this because I looked up the specs on your Dell and according to the info I got, that's standard on that model. Maybe the info I got is wrong because you mentioned in your post that you're looking to upgrade to this, so if you already had it, of course you wouldn't need to upgrade to it. Hope I'm making sense.


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

yeah. The 7800 was an option, but I have the 6800 go. Thanks for the info though.

I am trying to find out if I can upgrade to a core 2 duo, but if i contact dell its a $50.00 charge for them to answer my questions.

Can't upgrade to core 2 duo so I found out that the M1710 motherboard is the same shape and everything so I am bidding on a brand new one right now. 

I will part this laptop out, and keep the shell, graphics card, and upgrade the memory, cpu, ect. Later I will upgade the graphics card unless the 6800 go won't work with the m1710.

I can also use 4gb of ddr2 with the m1710 instead of crappy 2gb.

M1710 takes sata hard drive which I bought a 320gb for this current laptop not knowing it wasn't sata capatable. 

Everything will work out in the end.


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## Techie19 (Feb 10, 2008)

Great, good luck


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

yeah, thanks. I am thinking about making a video and putting it on youtube to help me get a computer related job. I hate working where I do now, and have been working in construction on the side, and trying to start my own business. Which my own business plans where better before the economy crashed, and I had to sell all my electronics for 50% off. I lost thousands of dollars, went in debt about $6,000, and 1-2 months later I was out when I sold almost everything I own. 

If I was good at tests I would have my A+ certification, and would probably go to college, but I am not good at taking tests. I almost passed my A+ certification, but didn't.

I have built 5 desktop computers from scratch, repaired them when they broke which wasn't often except when I overclocked the graphics card for about 1-2 years then it died. I have taken apart several laptops to the bare bone. Motherboard, and lcd screen taken apart, and off, and then put back together. 

I never ever needed a guide on how to take a laptop apart, and maybe thats why I can't pass A+ cause real technicians waste time to find guides on how to take **** apart, and put it back together.


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

I just bought a core 2 duo 2ghz T7200 cpu for it, geforce 7800 GTX 256mb, and am working on 4gb of ram in the future. I would have bought 4gb, but the price doubled since the last time I bought 4gb of ram for a laptop, even desktops memory increased in price.

4gb for a laptop with 800MHz was $30-$40.00, and now its $50-$60.00, and I don't feel like spending that kind of money right now. I didn't even want to spend the $400.00 for the graphics card, but I really want to play NFS Shift with no issues.


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

So much for that. The motherboard fits, but the usb ports, power thing don't allign up right in the back, and the sd card is on top of the audio ports instead of below. 

I know I could cut them out, but it wouldn't look nice so I bought a bottom of a M1710, and am waiting for it. I am thinking about replacing the base, and everything, but use the lcd, keyboard, ect.


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

Just wasted about $1,000, and decided to just buy everything instead of parting out my xps M170. I am keeping both laptops though, and selling my Dell Inspiron 9300.

The 9300's graphics card is bad. Sometimes I can boot to the desktop fine, but after a few seconds the screen has lines all over it. I tried another graphics card, and everything was fine. I am going to try new thermal paste cause I think mine is old since it dried up fast on the gpu.


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## SA Spurs1 (May 2, 2009)

With all the money you spent on upgrades you could have purchased a new computer. As you have found you just cant enterchange parts between laptops as you can a desktop computer.


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

SA Spurs1 said:


> With all the money you spent on upgrades you could have purchased a new computer. As you have found you just cant enterchange parts between laptops as you can a desktop computer.


I knew that, but the motherboard is the same shape and everything, but the a/c adaptor and stuff is just a few millimeters off. Except for the sd card reader being moved.

I know i could've bought a new laptop, but maybe I will play NFS SHIFT, and then sell it for $1,000. I only have about $700.00 into it.


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## speedster123 (Oct 18, 2006)

> 4gb for a laptop with 800MHz was $30-$40.00, and now its $50-$60.00, and I don't feel like spending that kind of money right now.


this doesnt make sense, so for a $15 increase you wont upgrade?


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

I know, but I don't have a lot of money coming in, and just want the cheapest possible. Price of ddr2 sodimm memory just went up to $70-$80.00. WHY???

This dell xps M170 did speed up with the 7800 GTX graphics card, but I am still putting it in the other computer once I get all the parts for it.


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## arghya1987 (Oct 22, 2009)

I have HP dv5 1203 AX laptop.can i upgrade my video card?right nw it is ATI Radeon HD 3450.is it good 4 playing latest games?
hw much should i pay to upgrade my laptop?


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## amdfanboy (Mar 12, 2008)

arghya1987 said:


> I have HP dv5 1203 AX laptop.can i upgrade my video card?right nw it is ATI Radeon HD 3450.is it good 4 playing latest games?
> hw much should i pay to upgrade my laptop?



Honestly I had an hp with that graphics, and it wouldn't even run wheelman smoothly.

Certain laptops have the graphics chip soldered on the board, and you can't upgrade them. Yours might be that one.


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## arghya1987 (Oct 22, 2009)

thanxx amdfanboy...


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