Change a laptops GPU?

[Pokimez]

Can you change a laptops GPU if it has desktop graphics? Ive heard of companies that help you but im ok a budget and want to do it myself, ir possible.

[VVoltor]

Usually, no. Very few laptops have a dedicated GPU that can be removed and swapped out for a better one.

[Kickflapper]

Welcome to the forum. The general answer is no. The best you can do with laptop upgrades in general is ram expansion, hard drive or SSD upgrade. unless you have thunder bolt connection and then it gets spendy

[LogicalDrm]

In some you can and others you can't. Some manufacturers even sell upgrade kits.

[Galm]

9 hours ago, Pokimez said:

Can you change a laptops GPU if it has desktop graphics? Ive heard of companies that help you but im ok a budget and want to do it myself, ir possible.

I believe the list is as follows:

MSI GT series laptops (62, 72, 73, 83, and the 16L13 barebones)

Clevo P775, P750, P870 laptops

Asus G752 and G701 machines (though I don't know much about upgrading those it's less common)

[sicily428]

If you have a laptop with a gpu mxm 3.0b, you could buy a kit of upgrade. Eurocom sell that kits!

[ramo55]

14 hours ago, VVoltor said:

Usually, no. Very few laptops have a dedicated GPU that can be removed and swapped out for a better one.

 

5 hours ago, Galm said:

I believe the list is as follows:

MSI GT series laptops (62, 72, 73, 83, and the 16L13 barebones)

Clevo P775, P750, P870 laptops

Asus G752 and G701 machines (though I don't know much about upgrading those it's less common)

 

 

14 hours ago, Kickflapper said:

Welcome to the forum. The general answer is no. The best you can do with laptop upgrades in general is ram expansion, hard drive or SSD upgrade. unless you have thunder bolt connection and then it gets spendy

 

What about cpu? Can you upgrade a laptop cpu provided the socket is the same? So for example going from an i3 to an i5 or i7?

[Pendragon]

4 minutes ago, ramo55 said:

What about cpu? Can you upgrade a laptop cpu provided the socket is the same? So for example going from an i3 to an i5 or i7?

yes but very few laptops have a socket. most of it is soldered. 

[Galm]

4 minutes ago, ramo55 said:

 

 

What about cpu? Can you upgrade a laptop cpu provided the socket is the same? So for example going from an i3 to an i5 or i7?

Intel discontinued their mobile socketed (removable) chips.  They ended in MQ.  

 

The only laptops with change-able gpus and cpus use desktop cpus.

 

MSI 16L13 barebones, Clevo P750, P775m and P870 are it.

[sicily428]

there are laptops with a lga cpu like clevo p751dm2-g, p775dm3-g, p870dm3-g, msi 16L13/eurocom tornado f5.

99% of laptops have a bga cpu (soldered)

[ramo55]

Just now, Galm said:

Intel discontinued their mobile socketed (removable) chips.  They ended in MQ.  

 

The only laptops with change-able gpus and cpus use desktop cpus.

 

MSI 16L13 barebones, Clevo P750, P775m and P870 are it.

 

Sorry but what's MQ? The processors ending with MQ in their name you mean? Only reason I'm asking is because I have a few old laptops lying around that I could upgrade. Also how does the power situation work? I know cpu's have different power ratings so what happens if I put say a 50w i5 in a laptop that originaly had a 25w i3?

[ramo55]

2 minutes ago, Pendragon said:

yes but very few laptops have a socket. most of it is soldered. 

These are all the new stuff, I was just asking in general for some older laptops.

[Pendragon]

3 minutes ago, ramo55 said:

These are all the new stuff, I was just asking in general for some older laptops.

Yes. Everything Haswell and back has the option of LGA sockets. Only in Skylake and Kabylake are all the mobile CPUs completely soldered and locked. You'll have to look yourself. Literally look for Haswell LGA laptops, those are capable of upgrading to whatever CPU fits the socket. You'll often hear me talking about upgrading a T430 which has a duo-core ivy bridge but shares the same socket with the quad-core ivy bridges, hences you can slot the quad core in it no problem. You'll have to manage the thermals yourself with liquid metal and fujipoly pads and stuff though. 

[Galm]

4 minutes ago, ramo55 said:

Sorry but what's MQ? The processors ending with MQ in their name you mean? Only reason I'm asking is because I have a few old laptops lying around that I could upgrade. Also how does the power situation work? I know cpu's have different power ratings so what happens if I put say a 50w i5 in a laptop that originaly had a 25w i3?

Yes the last gen of removable cpus ended in MQ like 4700MQ (and the 4940XM technically).  There were older ones that ended in other things like QM etc...  But it's all HQ not for high end mobile.

 

Putting in a cpu that is higher than it originally supported will make it run too hot.

[ramo55]

1 minute ago, Pendragon said:

Yes. Everything Haswell and back has the option of LGA sockets. Only in Skylake and Kabylake are all the mobile CPUs completely soldered and locked. You'll have to look yourself. Literally look for Haswell LGA laptops, those are capable of upgrading to whatever CPU fits the socket. You'll often hear me talking about upgrading a T430 which has a duo-core ivy bridge but shares the same socket with the quad-core ivy bridges, hences you can slot the quad core in it no problem. You'll have to manage the thermals yourself with liquid metal and fujipoly pads and stuff though. 

 

Ahh okay, that sounds good! Ironically I am also upgrading a lenovo lol

 

1 minute ago, Galm said:

Yes the last gen of removable cpus ended in MQ like 4700MQ (and the 4940XM technically).  There were older ones that ended in other things like QM etc...  But it's all HQ not for high end mobile.

 

Putting in a cpu that is higher than it originally supported will make it run too hot.

 

Sounds good, thermals should be manageable considering the laptop that I am upgrading comes in 3 versions, i3,i5 and i7 with the same fan setup and so on. Thanks.

[Pendragon]

7 minutes ago, Galm said:

Putting in a cpu that is higher than it originally supported will make it run too hot.

I guess for some, like Acers. But there's plenty of laptops that can support near 20w additional temps given you min max and manage it yourself. The X230 is known to be able to handle the 55w 3940XM. Given sanding the heatsink, perfect LM application, FJ or Artic repad etc. 

[ramo55]

3 minutes ago, Pendragon said:

I guess for some, like Acers. But there's plenty of laptops that can support near 20w additional temps given you min max and manage it yourself. The X230 is known to be able to handle the 55w 3940XM. Given sanding the heatsink, perfect LM application, FJ or Artic repad etc. 

 

What if you're upgrading the cpu on a laptop that's available in 3 different versions? As in an i3,i5,i7 version? Considering there's no difference between all of them except the cpu, it shouldn't matter in thermals does it if the manufacturer is selling them with different cpu's like that already?

[Pendragon]

Just now, ramo55 said:

What if you're upgrading the cpu on a laptop that's available in 3 different versions? As in an i3,i5,i7 version? Considering there's no difference between all of them except the cpu, it shouldn't matter in thermals does it if the manufacturer is selling them with different cpu's like that already?

 

thermals should be fine then. but what laptop are you looking at. 

[ramo55]

1 minute ago, Pendragon said:

thermals should be fine then. but what laptop are you looking at. 

I have 3 old laptops. Dell , Acer, and Lenovo. Can't remember the models of them exactly but they all were sold at one point in different cpu variations. I'll check the models when I get home.