Cpu upgrade

[evan green]

I have a 2003 presario s4100nx with a celeron 2.5ghz processor. Can the processor be upgraded without changing anything else? Thank you.

 

[joefriday]

You can put in a Pentium 4 CPU. I know not what all bus speeds are supported and I care not to do that research for you, so I'll stick to 400 fsb CPUs at this time. I recommend this one:
http://cgi.ebay.com/Intel-Pentium-4-2-4GHz-CPU-2-4-P4-478-512-400_W0QQitemZ260343759791QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item260343759791&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

You may be able to find this same CPU cheaper, but I just don't care to do your bargain hunting either.

You could put another Celeron in it. 2.8GHz/400 fsb Celeron would be the fastest that I know would for sure be supported, but it's probably better to put in a Pentium 4, even if that means slower MHz.

 

[amdfangirl]

I dunno, I don't think its worth the money.

 

[mildiner86]

yeah tbh the system is quite old id just run it into the ground and then get a new one

or do a system restall to speed it up and sell it then get a new one

i dont think ud notice much of a difference for a p4 and today a p4 is slow anyway

plus ur gonna be using DDR ram which is more expensive than DDR2 anything u upgrade will cost more than its modern couterpart as the old pasts are less common.

just save up for a new system

if cash is an issure buy a ready made on with bare minimum of a dual core CPU, 2gig ram

for a standard family PC id go for a quad core either intel core 2 quad or the phenoms 2 withc 4gb ram

 

[joefriday]

for a standard family PC id go for a quad core either intel core 2 quad or the phenoms 2 withc 4gb ram

Once again with these over-the-top recommendations! Seriously, a quadcore for family computing? Chances are, if this person was using computer from 2002 up until recently, any computer today, be it single, dual, or quadcore, will be a very big upgrade. The hardest thing about being an enthusiast is to look past your own wants and place the person's own needs first before making recommendations. I would hate to see this person blow $800+ on a new quadcore computer only to see it idle all the time.

 

[jitpublisher]

Once again with these over-the-top recommendations! Seriously, a quadcore for family computing? Chances are, if this person was using computer from 2002 up until recently, any computer today, be it single, dual, or quadcore, will be a very big upgrade. The hardest thing about being an enthusiast is to look past your own wants and place the person's own needs first before making recommendations. I would hate to see this person blow $800+ on a new quadcore computer only to see it idle all the time.

Well, to be fair Joe, this is an "enthusiast" forum. (though I am beginning to wonder of late)

And to the OP, it's not really worth spending money on....very little return on an old system for the cash spent, very little.
If you are feeling the need for an upgrade, as I just mentioned, for not a lot of money you can really go a long ways.

 

[joefriday]

Well, to be fair Joe, this is an "enthusiast" forum.

Enthusiast forum or not, it doesn't justify poor advice. If this were an automotive enthusiast forum, and someone asked about a new car for the family, should be all be recommending Corvettes and Ferraris? This is not only an ethusiast forum, but also a forum of highly educated computer users, and people like the OP who come here to post a single question look to us to give them sound advice for their needs.

 

[Helloworld_98]

well since quad's are becoming mainstream now then I don't think it's an over the top recommendation.

 

[amdfangirl]

^ Mainstream enthusiast do you mean?

Lowest prices on Newegg for a (boxed retail):

Single Core ~ $30
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103189

Dual Core ~ $50
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116064

Tri-Core ~ $80
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103254

Quad Core ~ $100
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103244

Now $100 is alot to pay for a processor if all you do is type with Word and listen to music. If that is all the person does, I'm inclined to recommend the single core, just for the heck of the power savings. When you start talking Core 2 Quad or Phenom II things get alot more expensive:

Lowest Prices of Newegg for a (Boxed Retail):

Phenom II X4 ~ $180
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103650

Core 2 Quad ~ $170
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115055

I'm sooo not paying $170 for a processor when I can pay $50 or $30 on a processor I actually need.

Once again with these over-the-top recommendations! Seriously, a quadcore for family computing? Chances are, if this person was using computer from 2002 up until recently, any computer today, be it single, dual, or quadcore, will be a very big upgrade. The hardest thing about being an enthusiast is to look past your own wants and place the person's own needs first before making recommendations. I would hate to see this person blow $800+ on a new quadcore computer only to see it idle all the time.

There's not much of a price difference between single and dual-core these dayz. Perhaps its best to get dual core, like an Athlon X2 or perhaps a Pentium Dual Core.

 

[jitpublisher]

Enthusiast forum or not, it doesn't justify poor advice. If this were an automotive enthusiast forum, and someone asked about a new car for the family, should be all be recommending Corvettes and Ferraris? This is not only an ethusiast forum, but also a forum of highly educated computer users, and people like the OP who come here to post a single question look to us to give them sound advice for their needs.

He didn't give bad advice Joe
There is nothing wrong with suggesting an inexpensive Quad. If you buy a new system today, and you don't buy a Quad core of some kind, you are living in ancient history as far as the CPU world goes. Well this isn't a car forum, and if I could buy a Corvette for ~$150 you are damn straight right I would buy 1 for me, 1 for my wife, and 2 or 3 for the kids in case they wrecked one of them. That analagy doesn't work Joe, the Quads are here cheap. No need NOT to buy one.

 

[joefriday]

Jit, you missed the analogy entirely. It's about what's best for the OP's needs. a quadcore has trade offs. It costs more, takes more energy, and the applications running on the OP's computer obviously need to be multithreaded to received a tangible benefit from a quad. Tell me, how much faster do you think a quadcore will be over a dualcore when surfing the net or performing office productivity apps? Even if a quad cost $150, a dual cost $50. See, you seem to think that a quadcore will be faster than a dualcore for the applications this person is likely to do. I don't agree with that assumption.

 

[eagles453809]

i agree with joe...if they arent gaming or doing video editing get a low power athlon x2. take that extra 100 dollars and spend it on a 1tb hard drive. that is something that the whole family can use rather than having 2-3 cores sitting there doing nothing.

and as for quad cores being mainstream...i can agree with that but...just because its common and cheap does not mean that it is practical in every situation. i for example decided to go with an e8500 over a q9650 not because of money...because the quad just isnt practical for what i do.

 

[jitpublisher]

Okay guys, I guess we aggree to disagree on this one.
I actually used to say pretty much the same thing, until I bought a Quad.
I may not need it 90% of the time, but they sure do make for a fast, smooth running system.