# What Mobility Video Card for Alienware Area-51 M5790(M5700i-R2)



## blaisexen (Feb 25, 2014)

Hello

Just a newbie here, I asked someone where I can post this problem,  they said it's the best here?

My problem is, I don't know what video card to buy for my upgrade of my current video card is Mobility Radeon X1800.

So, my laptop/mobile is Alienware Area-51 M5790(M5700i-R2)

I have some research about MXM or Mobile PCI Express Module,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_PCI_Express_Module

So I doubt that my laptop is a MXM II type video card, but I'm not really sure.

I ask help,
What is the highest mobility video card that can fit or compatible and usable for my laptop?
or any advice of a mobility video card that is higher than GF 9800GT or Equavalent as least.
or I hope some experts here can list the possible mobility video card that I can select.

Please Help,
thanks


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## blaisexen (Apr 18, 2014)

I can't believed, no laptop experts here.


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## pigulici (Apr 18, 2014)

From my past experience(I am not a "expert") it is not wise to change/upgrade hardware from laptop , except for ram and storage(hdd/ssd/shdd), it allways it have some problems(heat, etc). Most laptops have hardware design at limit, for commercial purpose(ex: cooler enough to cool the cpu who come in laptop, and so on).In addition are less people with laptop than desktop(in future will be reverse), so are less options/views/knowledge except that manufacturer offer(it is more money for them if you buy another laptop not just another vga/cpu...)...so in short you will find few people who can tell you something for sure(if you will find)...


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## THE_EGG (Apr 18, 2014)

I don't think it would economically viable to upgrade the video card in your particular laptop. I think putting money towards a whole new desktop/laptop would be better.


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## Frogger (Apr 18, 2014)

looking here  http://www.techpowerup.com/gpudb/1605/mobility-radeon-x1800.html you card id MXM lll. But without removing it from the lappy?
UNLESS you are very good@ dismantling lap tops AND put them back together IN working order .........
Save you $$$$ for a NEW one [Laptop]


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## blaisexen (Apr 28, 2014)

Thank you for all your replies.


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## joe12345 (May 12, 2014)

Hello, OP.

I own a Fujitsu Siemens Amilo Xi 1554 Laptop, which is physically same as M5790.
I know your problem - a BGA pin array that will disconnect from board circuit after some time due to heat and will require reballing. X1800, X1900 - all are affected. This is same as Nvidia cards of that era (8800, 9800).

You need:

1) An instrument such as Dremel, to modify your heatsink. Either this, or you get old X1800/1900 board, that will fry again. I advice you to get newer generation card!!

You also might need a good thermal paste, I recommend non-conductive, such as MX2
And a set of good sticking thermal pads, such as Phobya 5mW/K (beware that some 7mW/K versions are not sticking, they are white). Get one big square stripe.

2) A card
Physically: MXMI ,II or III card. I recommend using MXM II, even if your older was MXM III.
Yes, you can pick any of these 3 standards, but beware of details below. Not all pass.

NOT MXM HE, IV or later (A,B etc)!

Further:
DO NOT pick Asus cards - they are reversed/mirrored compared to standard-confirm cards. Open MXM card on wikipedia and compare.
DO NOT pick Toshiba cards - their VGA BIOS is moved to the motherboard, they will NOT start.
DO NOT pick so called "Slave cards" - those are cards also used by alienware, that are connected via SLI bridge. They will not boot standalone, because their VGA BIOS will wait for VGA BIOS signal of a card with Master BIOS (Master card) to come. Either you will need to reflash their VGA BIOS in Master version blindly, or they will not boot.

Thats it. Mine was from Acer and is reported as "widely compatible", because its MXM standard, physically in layout and in BIOS.

The best version is Mobility HD4670 or HD4650, it is MXM II.
You could also pick HD4570, 4550, 3870(although that will be hot), 3850, 3670, 3650, 2600 series etc.
I recommend only 4xxx generation as a power efficient.
Or you take any nvidia if you prefer it.

3) That said, pick now. When you pick, pay attention if VGA has plain holes around GPU or has soldered nuts. If it has holes, you will have to purchase four M2 or M3 (dont remember exactly) standard bolts with nuts of sufficient length. With them and four pieces of isolation band  or plastic shims (from some hard cables, rubber, whatever) you can make a very good fixation between GPU and heatsink. This is a non-brainer and should not be a requirement to card purchase.

After card arrives, take a transparent foil and a marker.
Put in on the card and draw a layout on the foil in blocks of all parts that stick out in height.

Then reverse the foil and put in on the heatsink correctly. This will help you mark the parts of heatsink that you will need to be cut away. Do not worry to remove them - the thermal pads that you get will transfer any heat to the sink. After you are finished, make sure that the sink contacts the card chip without any obstacles, but do not scratch the chip. After that, cut a piece of thermal pad and put it on the back side of your VGA similar to how it was in original, then apply paste and cut a r-formed piece out of thermal pad that covers memory AND any bigger chips on the board. Those chips are usually resistors that get very hot - and one such grey block is also covered on original heatsink.

I have successfully installed such one Mobility HD4650 in my laptop - it was originally from Acer notebook. Only physical heatsink modification is required, it booted without problems. Take you time, do not rush and after about 3-4 hours you will have a repaired notebook with a much faster, colder video card that does not have any BGA heating problems anymore.

Good luck.

PS
Regarding the "econonical part".
CPU is very fast. 17 inch full hd screen. Full keyboard and a fingerprint button. Tons of connectors on laptop including firewire, modem, RJ45, wireless, DVDrw burner, line out/mic/headphone, USB ports. Up to 4Gb of RAM, 2 SATA points for two hard drives or SSD.

I am sorry, but this notebook still beats ANY sub 800$ machine today.
The card upgrade is only 130$ (HD4650 top model)+20$ thermal paste/pads.


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## blaisexen (May 13, 2014)

Hello

That was a good reply,

it will be helpful,
thanks


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## OneMoar (May 15, 2014)

don't waste the effort on it mxm comparability is a nightmare alienware use there own custom cards you can't get replacements


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## blaisexen (May 16, 2014)

Uh, that's bad.
So how would we noticed that the card is really compatible with the Video Card Slot that we have?

I know if Video Card Slot System is MXM then I and II are compatible for it,  III is not.  III is only for Card Series that starts from ATI 4xxx generation, but there are also MXM II that are above 4xxx generation of ATI; for example the Mobility GF 9700GT.

I think this "own custom cards" can be unlocked using a reset of Video Bios and putting Alienware signature.


But I should remember what you said "mxm comparability" issue.
thanks


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## joe12345 (May 19, 2014)

Hello again, blaisexen.

1) I repeat, that unlike everyone in this thread, I own and run FS Xi 1554.
This machine is physical CLONE of M5790.
*I have same machine like you*. The only things that differ are BIOS and STICKERS.

They are both actually made by some OEM, I forgot which exactly.
They are physically SAME, even in parts. Batteries are same. Motherboard is same. GPU is same. CPU is same. Display is same. Should I continue?..

In fact two days ago I reflashed Fujitsu Siemens own BIOS (not VGA BIOS, mainboard normal BIOS) with that of Alienware M5790.
Version 1.19 to be exactly. The reason being - to get better ACPI microcode for fan spinning sooner than 65 degree celcius and to get over 2GiB RAM limitation block, that is ariticially introduced in Fujitsu BIOS. Google "Xi 1554 M5790 BIOS" to get more information.

Now it boots with Alienware logo. 
And it has HD4650 MXM II from Acer. Everything is fine.

2) This is why I want to tell you - what I typed is result of MY OWN RESEARCH on exactly THIS laptop.
I bought it and after two weeks I got green dots pattern on the screen. This is where it started.
I am not posting "random thoughts", my post is highly specific about your laptop, because I was exactly in same situation.

*Please ignore posts from people who tell random things above that are not connected with exactly your laptop.
Either they KNOW 100% about our model AND dealt with it, or what they say is USELESS FUD.*
This is what "onemoar" posted. Maybe some Alienware have protection somewhere etc whatever.
M5790 and Xi 1554 DONT.



blaisexen said:


> Uh, that's bad.
> So how would we noticed that the card is really compatible with the Video Card Slot that we have?


I posted you the exact way.
MXM I or II or III, not MXM HE, not MXM IV, not MXM A, not MXM B.
Brand - Not reversed ASUS, not Toshiba, not "slave" version.
A usual, normal MXM I, II or III VGA card.

For example, this one is WRONG 
This one is RIGHT for you. When I say right, I mean it will 100% work.

GF 9700 will do fine if it is within specs I typed. I am not into nvidia, but make sure you get newer generation chip that does not have this BGA un-balling issue. I think Nvidia solved it in G98b, newer generation 9800 and up. This is Nvidia/AMD specific only. AMD had problem only in x1600-x1900 generation. The VGA chips that were weaker like mobility x300/x1300, didn't have this problem, because they *never reached critical temperatures* because they were much simpler and their BGA surface was *small*.

Buy card, remove old card, mark and adapt the heatsink, correctly insert card by puting thermal pads on the back side and thermal greese on the chip and pads on memory/resistors - exactly the same logical way it was on old GPU, then boot up the machine and enjoy.

There are only 3 things that can go wrong:
- you didn't ground yourself. ..
- you acted violently and damaged electronics. Dont.
- you picked wrong VGA or VGA was already damaged. It won't boot. Send it back.



blaisexen said:


> I know if Video Card Slot System is MXM then I and II are compatible for it,  III is not.  III is only for Card Series that starts from ATI 4xxx generation, but there are also MXM II that are above 4xxx generation of ATI; for example the Mobility GF 9700GT.


Check my post above, look at card, compare it against it and purchase.
MXM II better because - it will guaranteed have *lesser* TDP.
That means - the card will produce *less* heat under same conditions. Its even true for more modern generation with 4-5 different speed profiles.
If you pick modern GPU of next generation, it might be wiser to get a cooler card, because it will perform faster than original x1900 anyway.
But if you want to game heavily on your notebook and every fps counts, then you can get MXM III. Just remember that original M5790 heatsink was already struggling with x1900, so if you are okay with heat under your palmwrists, then nothing holds you off.
The chance that you will have to cut your heatsink, to make it pass -  is very high, unless its old x1900/1800. It does not play any role if its MXM II or III.

If you dont have dremel, then improvise - buy one (1) dremel or proxxon accessory such as this and fit it on your 12, 14 or 18 volt cordless drill, set the rotation speed to low and you are all set. Just make sure no aluminium dust gets on your VGA card or inside your notebook, and that you mark the heatsink correctly and only drill out aluminium! Nothing else! And that edges are not sharp. Pretty logical things here.



blaisexen said:


> I think this "own custom cards" can be unlocked using a reset of Video Bios and putting Alienware signature.
> 
> But I should remember what you said "mxm comparability" issue.
> thanks


No, you don't have to remember what he said. Because this does not apply to your M5790 laptop. At all.
You wanted a professional response, you got it. I googled for Xi 1554 and M5790 differences, since they are virtually same. I found your post in google, and you are facing exactly same problem that I faced. I looked at the date and decided to respond to you - as a payback to the community posts that helped me in turn to upgrade my Xi 1554 VGA and now even reflesh Alienware 1.19 on it to work around the 4GB limit - safely. I created a bootable FreeDOS usb image, extracted the 1.19 BIOS ROM from original alienware ISO, booted, flashed and it worked. And before that, I correctly disabled BIOS password (which is hideously turned on by default, read the post in the link I provided). You don't have to flash anything, this is only for Fujitsu branded clones. Alienware branded versions of this model series have best BIOS already.


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## blaisexen (May 19, 2014)

Hi joe12345,
thanks for the tough comment 

Here is nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, as you see the image it has only few slot in the right side.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/nVIDIA-Gefo...462?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item35cce5462e

Here is ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD4650, as you see the image it has a different slot than nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, because ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD4650 is a MXM III(3) not MXM II(2)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATI-Mobilit...485?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item27db49196d

Here is ATI-HD3870, as you see the image it is same like nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, because it's MXM II also 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Alienw...184?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item3f33425e50


So, when I look at my Alienware Area-51 M5700i-R2, not sure if its M5790 or M5750, but they are the same, few or only 1 components missing from M5750(not sure)

The slot looks like for a MXM II(2) image, not MXM III(3) image.

But I'm not really sure whats the real image of MXM II(2) and MXM III(3), since my old card here has no label what type of card.
So, please correct me if I'm wrong.


But I think you said WRONG was right, and you said RIGHT was also right because they are both MXM II(2) not MXM III(3), the image tell?

And about the Generation of Video Cards?
I think you should know this, and the other Listeners too 
You will know it, like this:
9700GT = 9(Generation) 700(ranking) GT(purpose) so, GT is slower than GTS, and GS is slower than GT

3870 - 3(Generation) 870(ranking) Higher means much better, even with Letters 

Just the image of this 2 versions of Card MXM II(2) and MXM III(3), I'm not really sure which one of them

I know your also hunting for good solution or answer, I hope to catch that soon,
thanks


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## joe12345 (May 20, 2014)

blaisexen said:


> Here is nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, as you see the image it has only few slot in the right side.
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/nVIDIA-Gefo...462?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item35cce5462e


I, personally dislike two things about this item:
1) its MXM HE. Thus incompatible.
2) manufacturer refurbished, but must be either new or used. Refurbished often means "BGA reballed". Do you want balling problem after few years again?



blaisexen said:


> Here is ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD4650, as you see the image it has a different slot than nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, because ATI-Mobility-Radeon-HD4650 is a MXM III(3) not MXM II(2)
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATI-Mobilit...485?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item27db49196d


This is MXM A. Also known as MXM 3-A. Incompatible.



blaisexen said:


> Here is ATI-HD3870, as you see the image it is same like nVIDIA-Geforce-9700M-GT, because it's MXM II also
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Dell-Alienw...184?pt=PCC_Video_TV_Cards&hash=item3f33425e50


This would be okay, if it woudn't be exlicitly marked as "slave". Incompatible. 
Well, like I wrote in 1st post, its physically compatible, but logic will wait for "master" card signal, connected via Alienware SLI bus.
This card does not function in standalone mode and needs to be blindly reflashed into master for any use in M5790.
So, please, its really better to let this one pass.


So, when I look at my Alienware Area-51 M5700i-R2, not sure if its M5790 or M5750, but they are the same, few or only 1 components missing from M5750(not sure)

Watch this video, its of interest to you.









Well, compared to M5790/my Amilo Xi 1554, your notebook (M5700i-R2) has a better heatsink. That is still pretty same to mine.
Compare to mine.
The rest of layout is same, from what I see in video. Even individual screws are same. Looks like a better revision.



blaisexen said:


> The slot looks like for a MXM II(2) image, not MXM III(3) image.
> 
> But I'm not really sure whats the real image of MXM II(2) and MXM III(3), since my old card here has no label what type of card.
> So, please correct me if I'm wrong.
> ...


You already have provided a good image.
From Left to Right: MXM I, MXM II, MXM III.
The rest does not interest us. MXM HE has an extra pin for extra voltage. And MXM IV both requires HE slot and is just physically incompatible due to bigger size.



blaisexen said:


> And about the Generation of Video Cards?
> I think you should know this, and the other Listeners too
> You will know it, like this:
> 9700GT = 9(Generation) 700(ranking) GT(purpose) so, GT is slower than GTS, and GS is slower than GT
> ...



This is complex question. Generally speaking - the newer generation - better. Within same performance class that is.
We have an articles on wikipedia to each generation. Suffixes usually play little role outside of same generation.

Passmark GPU list is a good _average_ approximate performance comparison list.
The score is - higher - better. 2x score advantage means the card is at least 2x faster.
Original X1900 has index of 134. This is about a performance of ancient Geforce 6800GT from era of AGP and Athlons XP/Pentium 4...
So, if you are not targeting 3d gaming, and by that I hardly mean "Crisis". See, even HD4670/GT9800 will only allow you to play Quake 3/Doom 3 on acceptable fps at full HD...,
so if you are not targeting 3d gaming, you can pick lower performance models and save money+battery+have less heat.


But we are also limited by interface. We can maximum use MXM I - III.

Given this range, on AMD front - its up to HD46xx. 
HD4xxx is better than HD3xxx, because it has better video decoding (UVD2 vs UVD1) and chip is better optimized - 4650 is equal in performance to 3870!
HD3xxx is better than previous HD2xxx, because it has better graphics engine and better thermal control.
I wouldn't buy anything less than HD3xxx. In fact, I recommend only HD4xxx.
Within HD4xxx - 4670 is hottest, fastest model. 4650 is fast hot model. 4570 and less  - is office 2D/"3D for desktop" model.
Already AMD Mobility HD4330 beats X1900... check passmark.


On Nvidia front, I found out its up to GT240M.
I wouldn't buy anything below 9xxx. 8xxx is older version of 9xxx.
I am not sure - please contact seller of the card, I but odds are high, that your notebook is actually capable to support even GT240 or GT220.
The GT1xx or 2xx are best, because they have newest, optimized chip that will decode video better (PureVideo is generation 4, 9xxx are generation 3).
Already Nvidia 9400M beats X1900... check passmark.


Also, decide what behavior you want.  Like I stated, its by no means possible to make this notebook run modern 3d games at good framerates.
If you want to play some basic 3D, then get 3D-capable models. If you don't need it - you can save the trouble and money.
A few deals I found out on ebay.com that may appeal to you. I assume you are in USA, so these are only with standpoint USA and shipment to California, and buy-now option only:

nvidia:
- !! a fast card, not cheap, should work,but contact the seller to make sure the card is actually fully mxm II conform and name your laptop exact model:  http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-Aspire...A-GT-240M-1GB-MXM-II-Video-card-/231101898845

- a relatively fast 9600M with 512 MB:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Genuine-Ace...Vidia-9600M-GT-512MB-Video-Card-/370920743594

- another 9600M:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/nVIDIA-GeFo...-630-C1-MXM-II-VGA-Graphic-Card-/331070310353

- an office-only 9300M GS. But has enough VRAM for work:  http://www.ebay.com/itm/Alienware-N...GS-512MB-DDR2-MXM-II-Video-Card-/360767686395


amd:
- a HD3670-based firegl, comes with a heatsink (needs to be removed) and a backplate with screws(which is very handy)   http://www.ebay.com/itm/ATi-FireGL-...HP-8730W-With-Heat-Sink-and-Fan-/261414681172

- HD3670 from acer. Will work, but only 256MB of ram. Actually, you can even compare this item and that above. Look at backside pictures of both - they are pretty same cards.   http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-ATI-Mo...I-256MB-GPU-Video-Graphics-Card-/181391878170

- HD3870 master card. Should work standalone, but its a hot card.   http://www.ebay.com/itm/Alienware-A...B-ATI-Video-Card-40GAB0439-C30M-/180874296623


Currently, for US-based traders, 4xxx generation in MXM II seem to be absent completely. They tend to appear/disappear from time to time.
For every item, I advise to talk to seller, mention your exact model, exact slot (MXM III) and ask if it will work. If they are not sure - offer to buy and try. Usually they will not hesitate, and if you follow the list in my 1st post then the card will usually work.


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## brandonwh64 (May 20, 2014)

Its not worth it. Better off buying a new i7 laptop

/end thread


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

@brandonwh64
I'm not going to buy an i7 laptop, it's so expensive for my coming gaming habit playing TERA Online.

@joe12345,
thank you for all the wonderful comments.

Since I know you have more information than I do, and your now the expert here,
Would you mine helping me this to find out really what card should I buy, I'm not really sure about the image(even I look at the video)





Should I pick 1? 2? definitely not 3?

1 and 2 are same but 2 has another slot, so that is MXM II(b)?
Can this number 2 hold good to my laptop?

But 3 is the MXM III(3)? isn't it?

This is the video you send, and I think it's same as I have now.


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## joe12345 (May 20, 2014)

Hello! Okay I see what problem you exactly have. Let me explain in detail then:





This is *the only* connection type your notebook will accept.
Its also called MXM 1.0/2.1: MXM I, MXM II, MXM III
Documented here extensively.


Not only they differ in size,  they also have different maximum thermal waste ratio and maximum power drain/requirement.
This is why it is advisable to use MXM II instead of MXM III when possible.


With each size increase, those also increase. From Wikipedia
MXM Type Width Length Pins Module Compatibility Thermal Compatibility Max. Power
MXM-I 70mm 68mm 230 I I 18W
MXM-II 73mm 78mm 230 I, II II 35W
MXM-III (HE) 82mm 100mm 230(232) I, II, III, HE II, III, HE 75W
MXM-IV (Deprecated) 82mm 117mm 230 I, II, III, IV I, II, III, IV  

_*But please note, that the table above is also slightly incorrect for HE. *_
Your laptop *does NOT support HE*! The difference between III and HE is an extra pin on the right, explicitly to deliver more power. This is similar to PCI-Express 12volt 6/8 cables.




As stated on FTF&R site:

"The differences are minimal: *the HE connector has additional pins with the only purpose to carry more power.* There are no functional differences besides the power capacity. If correctly implemented, there is no reason why a Type HE card would not _work_ in a Type III slot. The real question is, off course, whether it will hold under gaming conditions. Let's assume that all the juice is coming direcly from either the battery or power brick. According to the MXM specification, you can run the PWR_SRC connection at up to 4 amps. If we assume the power brick to deliver 18V to the motherboard (even if the brick yields a higher value, it is likely to drop a bit along the way due to power losses) this gives us a budget of 72W. Plenty for most cards. However, if you plan to use your machine for full throttle gaming on battery, this story quickly becomes nasty. *With a 14.8V battery pack (and without even taking losses into account!) this figure drops to 60W*. (*And HE allows up to 75W drain*) With a 11V pack, the connector is only rated for 44W which already puts most high end cards in the danger zone.

In summary, many high end Type HE cards can be run in Type III slots* if* it is opperated exclusively on wall power.

As always, we take no liability for any action you may undertake based on the above. If your data gets lost, your machine dies or your house burns down (or anything else), that is exclusively your problem."

_*In short - do not use HE. Limit yourself to MXM I, II or III.*_




blaisexen said:


> Should I pick 1? 2? definitely not 3?
> 
> 1 and 2 are same but 2 has another slot, so that is MXM II(b)?
> Can this number 2 hold good to my laptop?
> ...



1 is MXM III. Yes. If its not Toshiba and not Slave. See my 1st post in thread why.
2 is MXM HE. No, not compatible.
3 is MXM version 3. No, not compatible. Do not confuse with MXM III. Also known as MXM 3.0. 
    These are newer, current generation of connectors.
    There are two variations of it, called MXM 3(a) or MXM A for short, and MXM 3(b) or MXM B for short. The difference between them is the allowed card size and allowed energy drain. You can read more here.


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

Very good comment, quick response,

But I'm confused here >
MXM-III (HE) 82mm 100mm 230(232) I, II, III, HE II, III, HE 75W


1 is MXM III. Yes. If its not Toshiba and not Slave. See my 1st post in thread why.  > But MXM III is HE?
2 is MXM HE. No, not compatible.  > This is MXM III?
3 is MXM version 3. No, not compatible. Do not confuse with MXM III. Also known as MXM 3.0. > Now, I'm very confused.

*Ok, for quick, you want me to have number 1? with MXM type III (largest)*

thank you for the expert response,

Glad you posted


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

@joe12345

This is what I've been telling you, that I can't buy a 4xxx Video Card, Only 3xxx, sample: HD3870 as MXM III(largest, number 1)

But what is your recommendation a side from Mobility Ati Radeon HD3870?
http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=Mobility Radeon HD 3870 X2&id=491

So, What Geforce MXM I(type III) can overpass the passmark of Radeon HD3870?


I think NO ONE CAN OVERPASS the passmark of Mobility Ati Radeon HD3870 MXM III(not HE)


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## brandonwh64 (May 20, 2014)

blaisexen said:


> @brandonwh64
> I'm not going to buy an i7 laptop, it's so expensive for my coming gaming habit playing TERA Online.



I don't think you will be able to find a better card that will be supported by the acer and its power supply. You do not have to get an I7 but think about getting a newer decent laptop.


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

@brandonwh64

Alright, Actually I had buy HP 17inches Core i3 with Intel HD4600
But I have to update my other Old Alieanware.


thanks


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## brandonwh64 (May 20, 2014)

I would go for something like this. Not a bad price really

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834313742


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834258252

I had purchased that last December, So I will not purchase anymore, I just want my Old Alienware upgraded.


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## blaisexen (May 20, 2014)

@joe12345

I should use MXM II for 35watts minimum, but for HD3870 is 55watts I think.

thanks


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## joe12345 (May 21, 2014)

blaisexen said:


> @joe12345
> 
> This is what I've been telling you, that I can't buy a 4xxx Video Card, Only 3xxx, sample: HD3870 as MXM III(largest, number 1)
> 
> ...



Wrong, 4650 can. 
Thing is - the score you linked to is 3870 *X2* version. These are actually two 3870 in Crossfire. Remember 3870 Slave/Master cards? Those are they. 
You can't run them two at same time in your notebook.
_Tops 3870 master version will run as single card in your notebook, but it will work as normal 3870._

Also, SLI/Crossfire card were and are always problematic. They require precise per-application/per-game profiling from the manufacturer.
Otherwise they will work very suboptimal. In short - they will have factor x1.0 performance of single card, but will burn electricity and produce heat like x 2.
And 3870 series is long suspended from AMD (4xxx series two), so the chances AMD makes profiles in their drivers for those cards is very very tiny.
And never forget frame lags, which always stalked SLI/Crossfire and are a part of very complex hardware/software Vsync issue. IMHO this problem only started getting attention recently and requires complex hardware and operating system stack changes.

Additionally, 3870 is a hot card. If you go for high-performance, please wait for 4650/4670 to appear. 
Those cards are cooler and deliver more performance than 3870. 
Buy 3670 or mid-range for the time being. At 50$, you can't go wrong. 
Poll ebay from time to time till one appears, but be aware 46xx never cost lower than 100$. Sell older version after you upgrade.

Intels HD4000 APU is about of same performance as AMDs dGPU HD4650. But the CPU in HD4000 is ofc faster, but I wonder what about RAW GPU performance since some benchmarks are actually CPU-limited. Like comparing i7 4770 with Geforce 275 vs Pentium Gxx with Geforce 560...



blaisexen said:


> So, What Geforce MXM I(type III) can overpass the passmark of Radeon HD3870?


Overpass - probably not.
Something of Geforce 100 or 200 generation. Like GT240 or similar. I haven't researched what top Geforce was produced for MXM II/III.

Thing is, Geforce 8xxx/9xxx (and desktop GTX 260-290) chip design was scalar, whilst AMD used VLIW grouping in HD2xxx and up.
Similar grouping appeared on Nvidia side only in Fermi. This is why in performance per watt, in Nvidia field, pre-Fermi GPUs are bad players.
GT220-240 series however, were very good optimized (GT21x chips) and are far better pick than G98x or GT20x chip based cards.


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## joe12345 (May 21, 2014)

Just looked a bit on ebay.com right now and there are several MXM III-class 4850/4870 cards.
Some from Asus, but with correct MXM layout; some are Alienware Master cards. All those should work.

But the biggest problem beside being heat monsters, is that they are all MXM *HE*. Which means, you will be operating not only on thermal maximum of notebook, but also on voltage maximum. That gives good chances to destroy your machine for a few extra fps...


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## blaisexen (May 21, 2014)

@joe12345, I believed you, thank you so much. 5 out of 5 for you 


BUT I can't find your 4650 on ebay, can you show the link?


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## blaisexen (May 22, 2014)

>Just looked a bit on ebay.com right now and there are several MXM III-class 4850/4870 cards.

Yes but they are HE, but it's OK if will be run on Power Wall?, but on Battery I ques it would drain fast, is that right?


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## OneMoar (May 26, 2014)

1*.alienware/dell are known for locking there bios's down to prevent any-kind of upgrading there is a very good chance that even if you source the correct type of card it won't work*
2. the cpu/ram in your laptop is too slow to leverage upgrading to a 4650 you would be wasting it in fact I would say most of your issue is cpu related as tera doesn't need shit for gpu power as its a old dx9 based engine 
3. there is a good chance that any card you install especially the HP ones will burn the motherboard outdue to current-overdraw early


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## joe12345 (May 27, 2014)

OneMoar said:


> 1*.alienware/dell are known for locking there bios's down to prevent any-kind of upgrading there is a very good chance that even if you source the correct type of card it won't work*
> 2. the cpu/ram in your laptop is too slow to leverage upgrading to a 4650 you would be wasting it in fact I would say most of your issue is cpu related as tera doesn't need shit for gpu power as its a old dx9 based engine
> 3. there is a good chance that any card you install especially the HP ones will burn the motherboard outdue to current-overdraw early



Tell me, how many Alienware M5790/Fujitsu Amilo Xi 15xx have you personally repaired?
Or is posting FUD your main hobby here?


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## joe12345 (May 27, 2014)

blaisexen said:


> >Just looked a bit on ebay.com right now and there are several MXM III-class 4850/4870 cards.
> 
> Yes but they are HE, but it's OK if will be run on Power Wall?, but on Battery I ques it would drain fast, is that right?



Well, I just found 4850/70 cards, not 4650/70 cards when I posted.
Be aware, that I have just limited myself to ebay.com with resellers physically residing within US. 
You can easily find 4650/70 cards outside of the US. They all cost 90$+ though.

About HE, yes 4850/70 are HE. Unfortunately. I would strongly advise not to use HE, I have already written and linked to articles, explaining why so. Your system is not designed to power/cool-down such cards.


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## OneMoar (May 27, 2014)

joe12345 said:


> Tell me, how many Alienware M5790/Fujitsu Amilo Xi 15xx have you personally repaired?
> Or is posting FUD your main hobby here?


its not fud its reality very rarely does swapping a mxm card work ESPECIALLY WITH DELL the only exception are custom ordered machines 
secondly its not gonna do him any real good hes got 1600mhz early core 2 duo
it is very common for laptop vendors to lockout the bios 15h callback to prevent 3d party modification to either the vbios rom or the video mxm its self the only way around it is a modified bios
I realize its not what he wants to hear but he is wasting his time multiple people have told him the same thing on multipl forums
http://wwww.tipidpc.com/viewtopic.php?tid=289302
the guy has been asking about this for MONTHS he keeps coming back after being told NO
he either doesn't understand or doesn't speak enough English to know that there is a 75% chance t hat it won't work even if he gets the right type of card very few vendors support the 15h int video callback and instead relies on the system bios to support the vbios payload


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## joe12345 (May 27, 2014)

OneMoar said:


> its not fud its reality very rarely does swapping a mxm card work ESPECIALLY WITH DELL the only exception t
> secondly its not gonna do him any real good hes got 1600mhz early core 2 duo
> it is very common for laptop vendors to lockout the bios 15h callback to prevent 3d party modification to either the vbios rom or the video mxm its self the only way around it is a modified bios
> I realize its not what he wants to hear but he is wasting his time multiple people have told him the same thing on multipl forums
> ...



1) You post FUD. Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. Sure, *some* Dell/Alienware *might* do a CRC on VBIOS from own BIOS. But, this precise model doesn't.
2) T7200 is pretty good dual-core CPU. Thats not i7 or i5 of Sandybridge and up, but the performance is still very sufficient.
3) I don't understand what do you mean with "15h callback". Most of modern OS skip BIOS altogether. So, why not flash/crack the "DRM" out of the original BIOS? So that BIOS just inits VGA and gives control to the OS alright. Still, this is not related to this thread, at all.
4) I am okay that he asks questions. People are.. different. At least he has opened a dedicated topic and posts in-line with it.
5) In the thread you linked to, he wasn't given exact compatible cards and no one there had his notebook model. Now, just look at post number #7 in this thread.


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## OneMoar (May 27, 2014)

joe12345 said:


> 1) You post FUD. Fear, Uncertainty, Doubt. Sure, *some* Dell/Alienware *might* do a CRC on VBIOS from own BIOS. But, this precise model doesn't.
> 2) T7200 is pretty good dual-core CPU. Thats not i7 or i5 of Sandybridge and up, but the performance is still very sufficient.
> 3) I don't understand what do you mean with "15h callback". Most of modern OS skip BIOS altogether. So, why not flash/crack the "DRM" out of the original BIOS? So that BIOS just inits VGA and gives control to the OS alright. Still, this is not related to this thread, at all.
> 4) I am okay that he asks questions. People are.. different. At least he has opened a dedicated topic and posts in-line with it.
> 5) In the thread you linked to, he wasn't given exact compatible cards and no one there had his notebook model. Now, just look at post number #7 in this thread.


number 3>  tells me you aren't qualified to give advice or question anybody elses now away with ye modern os's skip bios's that made me lol somebody doesn't understand how/what UEFI fastboot is and that fact that his laptop doesn't even have UEFI and while flashing a patched bios for that laptop is possible as far as I can tell there is no prepatched bios in existence
and frankly I don't give a crap you wanna try and talk this guy though installing a mxm card and flashing a untested patched bios you are free todo so I don't wanna see a thread about how his system will no longer boot afterward


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## joe12345 (May 27, 2014)

OneMoar said:


> number 3>  tells me you aren't qualified to give advice or question anybody elses now away with ye modern os's skip bios's that made me lol somebody doesn't understand how/what UEFI fastboot is and that fact that his laptop doesn't even have UEFI and while flashing a patched bios for that laptop is possible as far as I can tell there is no prepatched bios in existence
> and frankly I don't give a crap you wanna try and talk this guy though installing a mxm card and flashing a untested patched bios you are free todo so I don't wanna see a thread about how his system will no longer boot afterward



How is UEFI related at all? UEFI doesn't use any BIOS/DOS interrupts, its purpose is solely to init basic things and chainload the payload. Yes, this laptop does not have UEFI, but frankly UEFI is Intel's piece of shi-. Instead finishing LinuxBIOS, that is currenly empowering ChromeOS and was relabeled as CoreBoot, Intel decided to slide in bed with M$ and create another poorly documented proprietary abomination that is hardly usable for anything except secureboot aka M$ WGA v2, that does nothing except locking out user from his machine.

Yes modern OS skip BIOS routines altogether. Kernel loads a portion of code, that checks CPU, hardware memory mapping capabilities, configures memory, then loads full kernel, that starts hardware enumeration and loads drivers (FS, disk access), that access files to load further drivers for detected hardware. This is the reason for LinuxBIOS to appear in first place - BIOS basically does the same thing that modern kernels do, so why not skip it altogether - get basic local hardware up, just enough to access the payload (the kernel) and then proceed loading it. Its much more flexible and faster this way.

I repeat, this model has zero hardware DRM, that you try to FUD and derail the thread. He has nothing to reflash and there is no DRM in BIOS.

The fact is - my Fujitsu Amilo Xi 1554, that is physically same with M5790, was reflashed with Alienware BIOS 1.19, has an mxm 4650 card from Acer  - runs FINE. Where did your DRM suddenly go? With burnt x1900 the laptop is worth 150$, with replaced card this laptop is worth 500$, card price is 100$. Even if the CPU proves to be not fit for his task, its worth more when repaired - and repair is very easy.


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## blaisexen (May 28, 2014)

OK, I have read many and learn much from both of your quarreling words.

Keep up, and well learn more and more because of the two of you.

thank you so much.
indeed both of you are experts.


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## OneMoar (May 28, 2014)

joe12345 said:


> How is UEFI related at all? UEFI doesn't use any BIOS/DOS interrupts, its purpose is solely to init basic things and chainload the payload. Yes, this laptop does not have UEFI, but frankly UEFI is Intel's piece of shi-. Instead finishing LinuxBIOS, that is currenly empowering ChromeOS and was relabeled as CoreBoot, Intel decided to slide in bed with M$ and create another poorly documented proprietary abomination that is hardly usable for anything except secureboot aka M$ WGA v2, that does nothing except locking out user from his machine.
> 
> Yes modern OS skip BIOS routines altogether. Kernel loads a portion of code, that checks CPU, hardware memory mapping capabilities, configures memory, then loads full kernel, that starts hardware enumeration and loads drivers (FS, disk access), that access files to load further drivers for detected hardware. This is the reason for LinuxBIOS to appear in first place - BIOS basically does the same thing that modern kernels do, so why not skip it altogether - get basic local hardware up, just enough to access the payload (the kernel) and then proceed loading it. Its much more flexible and faster this way.
> 
> ...


you don't know what you are talking about I am done with this thread good luck you are gonna need it


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## OneMoar (May 28, 2014)

joe12345 said:


> How is UEFI related at all? UEFI doesn't use any BIOS/DOS interrupts, its purpose is solely to init basic things and chainload the payload. Yes, this laptop does not have UEFI, but frankly UEFI is Intel's piece of shi-. Instead finishing LinuxBIOS, that is currenly empowering ChromeOS and was relabeled as CoreBoot, Intel decided to slide in bed with M$ and create another poorly documented proprietary abomination that is hardly usable for anything except secureboot aka M$ WGA v2, that does nothing except locking out user from his machine.
> 
> Yes modern OS skip BIOS routines altogether. Kernel loads a portion of code, that checks CPU, hardware memory mapping capabilities, configures memory, then loads full kernel, that starts hardware enumeration and loads drivers (FS, disk access), that access files to load further drivers for detected hardware. This is the reason for LinuxBIOS to appear in first place - BIOS basically does the same thing that modern kernels do, so why not skip it altogether - get basic local hardware up, just enough to access the payload (the kernel) and then proceed loading it. Its much more flexible and faster this way.
> 
> ...


I am not sure how to explain this to you without being a ass so I won't go though the effort of being nice

CoreBoot/linuxbios/UEFI are ALL EXTENSIONS to the BIOS
the bios's core role outside of bootstrapping the MBR/bootloader kernel,providing a configuration interface or whatever is to initialize the CORE hardware(cpu clock base memory addresses ,chipset timing ect ect ala ect

you can Not skip it how are you gonna execute any code or load any kernel or do any kind of hardware probing if the cpu isn't even turned "on"(thats a single 16bit register) or if the first 640K or 1024mb of base memory+ aren't even initialized yet  its not a entirely different matter if you are indeed running coreboot but the process is still the same the "linux" payload of coreboot/linuxbios is executed AFTER the core bios routine completes essentially its just a embedded option-rom containing a Linux kernel or some bootstrap layer and the "linux-kernel" its self has no part in actually booting the system to a state where you can do useful stuff such as executing a boot-loader or even loading aforementioned kernel all that is handled WAYYY earlier by chip-set/main-board specific custom code booting any-kind of kernel even a limited one comes WAYyy later  in the process long after the very very basics are up and running there is absolutely no way to skip that from a cold boot (warm boot is another matter)

UEFI is a bit different in the way it handles the switch between bootservices and runtime services and then to the OS
but before all of that you still need to initialize the very basics ACPI, SMBIOS ect ect
https://software.intel.com/en-us/articles/uefi-architecture-and-technical-overview#What_is_UEFI.3F

it how ever is NOT a linux kernel nor anything CLOSE to a kernel as you know it all that bit of code does is get things rolling for the RUNTIME services witch would be what you called a "linux kernel" to get loaded witch then in-turned is handed off to a full kernel such as windows or linux or bsd or what have you 
 but before all  that you still need todo a BIOS(firmware) init (uefi shell isn't really a shell but a really crude environment for executing EFL's witch contain the bootloader and runtime services before things get handed off to the kernel (fastboot basicly saves and restores from RUNTIME you still need todo a firmware init(bios) when cold 

witch contain the real kernel/HAL you speak of as well as all the needed bits to get everything fully setup in preparation as for the vga callback the quickest way to explain it so to show you the code
http://code.coreboot.org/p/seabios/source/tree/master/src/vgahooks.c
http://review.coreboot.org/#/c/5344/1/src/mainboard/lenovo/t60/mainboard.c
and incase you are lazy basically it amounts to this some laptop vendors like to cut corners instead of properly supporting hooks and entries for calling back the vga option rom on card they just pack there own and hardcode everything and slam it all in the main bios
you can throw all the goggled-up terminology you can find at me I just happen to actually know what I am talking about.. most of the time, you however don't seem to have that advantage. 

I am nether impressed nor amused I will concede this point I didn't see that you own the same model as the op that aside you still don't have a frigging clue


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## Jetster (May 28, 2014)

Even if sucessful you would still have a low end gaming PC. Save your money for a new system


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## OneMoar (May 28, 2014)

that and another note I am not sure why you think the machine would be worth 500.00 it be more like 200 you can buy laptops with 8600GT's or 9800M' for that s and 2.66 core i5  and whatever dedicate graphics for 300.00
good luck to the both of you have fun fumbling in the dark


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## joe12345 (Jun 1, 2014)

OneMoar said:


> I am not sure how to explain this to you without being a ass so I won't go though the effort of being nice


I am not even sure, why you try to explain something I never asked, but never mind...

Could you at least learn to use commas, or READ questions before posting answers to never asked questions?

Or am I asking too much?




OneMoar said:


> CoreBoot/linuxbios/UEFI are ALL EXTENSIONS to the BIOS


They are NOT. They are completely different thing!

Unless you load BIOS payload within UEFI/CoreBoot (aka SeaBIOS) designed for older operating systems, still relying on DOS interrupt vectors, UEFI/CoreBoot contain no BIOS code.



OneMoar said:


> the bios's core role outside of bootstrapping the MBR/bootloader kernel,providing a configuration interface or whatever is to initialize the CORE hardware(cpu clock base memory addresses ,chipset timing ect ect ala ect


BIOS core role is to wake up CPU by writing magic numbers, read firmware to access disks/network, load a few bytes from them linearly into RAM, set CPU IP register there and die.



OneMoar said:


> you can Not skip it how are you gonna execute any code or load any kernel or do any kind of hardware probing if the cpu isn't even turned "on"(thats a single 16bit register)


Linux kernel (or any more-less concious kernel) is capable of shutting down CPUs/Cores on demand, or even operate on partially damaged CPU by shutting down its individual cores.

While something indeed needs to powerup CPU and read a few Kbytes of data into memory and give it control, BIOS is particularly not doing "only that". Why, its the reason why LinuxBIOS/UEFI happened!




OneMoar said:


> or if the first 640K or 1024mb of base memory+ aren't even initialized yet


Whats the purpose to init them? Why 640k or 1024k, whats the difference? Do you still have 386 with XMS?



OneMoar said:


> its not a entirely different matter if you are indeed running coreboot but the process is still the same the "linux" payload of coreboot/linuxbios is executed AFTER the core bios routine completes essentially its just a embedded option-rom containing a Linux kernel or some bootstrap layer and the "linux-kernel" its self has no part in actually booting the system to a state where you can do useful stuff such as executing a boot-loader


I object your "useful stuff".
Why boot to boot-loader, if you are already starting kernel?



OneMoar said:


> or even loading aforementioned kernel all that is handled WAYYY earlier by chip-set/main-board specific custom code booting any-kind of kernel even a limited one comes WAYyy later in the process long after the very very basics are up and running there is absolutely no way to skip that from a cold boot (warm boot is another matter)


Which exact "chipset/mainboard" specific custom code do you mean?



OneMoar said:


> UEFI is a bit different in the way it handles the switch between bootservices and runtime services and then to the OS
> but before all of that you still need to initialize the very basics ACPI, SMBIOS ect ect


ACPI and SMBIOS are data. You don't need to initialize them. Kernel parses them and they can also be omitted entirely, they are not vital ("very basics"), because modern kernels poll the buses for IDs and load the corresponding drivers anyway.



OneMoar said:


> it how ever is NOT a linux kernel nor anything CLOSE to a kernel as you know it all that bit of code does is get things rolling for the RUNTIME services witch would be what you called a "linux kernel" to get loaded witch then in-turned is handed off to a full kernel such as windows or linux or bsd or what have you
> but before all that you still need todo a BIOS(firmware) init (uefi shell isn't really a shell but a really crude environment for executing EFL's witch contain the bootloader and runtime services before things get handed off to the kernel (fastboot basicly saves and restores from RUNTIME you still need todo a firmware init(bios) when cold


Point me exactly - where I wrote that (UEFI//Coreboot/LinuxBIOS) are "linux kernel nor anything CLOSE to a kernel as you know it". UEFI shell is one of the payloads. Didn't I wrote that UEFI/LinuxBIOS motivation over BIOS was to skip all the routines, which are not necessary anymore for modern kernels, and instead init basic hardware and start the payload directly?



OneMoar said:


> witch contain the real kernel/HAL you speak of as well as all the needed bits to get everything fully setup in preparation as for the vga callback the quickest way to explain it so to show you the code
> http://code.coreboot.org/p/seabios/source/tree/master/src/vgahooks.c


For what reason did you link the seabios source?
The VGA hooks are only needed when using legacy BIOS (SeaBIOS is CoreBoot legacy BIOS, implemented as a payload), in order for VGA option rom to be able to read SMI values, containing things like resolution or default output display port. This is completely unrelated to UEFI/CoreBoot or fastboot.



OneMoar said:


> that and another note I am not sure why you think the machine would be worth 500.00 it be more like 200 you can buy laptops with 8600GT's or 9800M' for that s and 2.66 core i5  and whatever dedicate graphics for 300.00
> good luck to the both of you have fun fumbling in the dark


Go ahead, find me a machine with 9800M (or similar performance), 17 inch fullhd display, hardware raid (or at least 2 sata jbod), similar connectivity - under 500.


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## joe12345 (Jun 1, 2014)

joe12345 said:


> Go ahead, find me a machine with 9800M (or similar performance), 17 inch fullhd display, hardware raid (or at least 2 sata jbod), similar connectivity - under 500.



Okay, I stand corrected - a refurbished m6400 (although using gf9600m, no fingerprint, no rj45, no second sata, no bluetooth) costs 325$.
Still, a broken m5790 costs around 70$. Purchase of 50$ 9600m/quadro2700m is worth it.


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## OneMoar (Jun 5, 2014)

HP EliteBook 8540w
HP EliteBook 8540w Model#: VQ404EP
*15.6" HD+ High-Resolution LED* Screen(1600x900 pixels)
*No WEBCAM
Intel Core i5-M540 2.53Ghz up to 3.06Ghz TurboBoost
4GB DDR3* RAM
160GB S-ATA Hard Drive(*upgrade to brand new 500GB hard drive with 1 year manufacturer for $30*)
*Nvidia Quadro FX 1800M 1GB(dedicated)+1.7GB(shared) Video Card
DVD-RW Drive(DVD/CD burner)*
1Gbps Ethernet Port
*Wi-Fi Internal Wireless Intel 6300 Ultimate(A/G/N)*
Internal Bluetooth Module
Fingerprint Reader
DP DisplayPort
5 USB Ports
eSATA Port
FireWire Port
VGA Video-out
SD Card Reader
_________________________
http://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-EliteBoo...73964951?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item258cad6997
blows that shitty alien-ware out of the water
refurb elitebooks are every-ware newegg,amazon,carardpc,
we where talking about VGA hooks in regards to the blacklist a lot of vendors put on there bios's to prevent upgrading/tampering with the vbios 

you keep saying MODERN kernel I have yet to see a SINGLE linux distro outside of Ubuntu support UEFI boot by default-out of the box because nobody wants to screw with it and frankly its not worth the 3 seconds it takes to get though post I get the whole fosstard vibe you putting out I can dig it really I can but this discussion relates to the op and he is neither running UEFI nor coreboot nor is either a possiablity ever because coreboot is poop 

speaking of coreboot/linuxbios I am not sure why you bring it up at all it runs on exactly jackshit and is as useful as the aforementioned shit 

also we can split hairs all god dam month the bottom line is that a system bios (that is the bit of code responsible for the first registers and memory addresses setup is critical) you can't ":skip it:"  as you incorrectly stated earlier regardless of what does the "actual turning on" it still needs to be ON before you can do anything 

frankly I don't care if the machine takes 5 or 0.50 seconds to boot to the OS-kernel stage the majority of the bottle neck is gonna be elseware on low end to midrange systems


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## rob80 (Oct 4, 2014)

Thanks joe12345! 
Following your description, I successfully upgraded the graphics of my Xi1554 (Alienware 1.19 Bios) with a Acer HD4570. With the old X1900 1080 youtube videos and stuttered and CPU load was at 100%.  Now with Catalyst 13.9 legacy, CPU is at 20-40%, GPU is at 30-50% and Youtube runs smoothly with 30fps on 1080. 
I just had to Dremel 1mm of the cooler and handimake thread nuts to fix the cooler to the holes of the new card.
So I invested 75EUR and3 hrs. in my 7 years old machine I already thought about to replace, and now I have a good and now silent Couch-Laptop for the next years.
You saved me some hundred Euros, Thanks!

Successful mods: 
AW-Bios1.19, 4GB RAM(3,6GB useable), WLan card with standard.n and external, directable antennas fixed to the Express-Card slot (now 150Mbit), HD4570.


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## thanos1071 (Nov 5, 2014)

Hello to all from Greece.
I found this forum as i was searching infos for my laptop.
I own a Fujitsu Siemens Xi 1526 and as i read, is the same as Alienware M5790.
My problem is, that my GPU has a problem (Nvidia Go7600M), so i have to replace it.
The thing is, that i don't know what to choose.
As a cheap solution, i decide to buy the below GeForce 9650M.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Wholesale-A...e_Composants_Cartes_Vidéo&hash=item2ecbf23f9e
Is it a compatible VGA or should i choose something else?
If you have any other suggestions, i would like you to know that i prefer a not used card and not very expensive.
Waiting for your replys...


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## rob80 (Nov 5, 2014)

thanos1071 said:


> Hello to all from Greece.
> I found this forum as i was searching infos for my laptop.
> I own a Fujitsu Siemens Xi 1526 and as i read, is the same as Alienware M5790.
> My problem is, that my GPU has a problem (Nvidia Go7600M), so i have to replace it.
> ...



Read reply#7 of joe12345 in this thread - Citation: 
"DO NOT pick Asus cards - they are reversed/mirrored compared (pinwise) to standard-confirm cards. Open MXM card on wikipedia and compare.
DO NOT pick Toshiba cards - their VGA BIOS is moved to the motherboard, they will NOT start.
DO NOT pick so called "Slave cards" - those are cards also used by alienware, that are connected via SLI bridge. They will not boot standalone, because their VGA BIOS will wait for VGA BIOS signal of a card with Master BIOS (Master card) to come. Either you will need to reflash their VGA BIOS in Master version blindly, or they will not boot.

Thats it. Mine was from Acer and is reported as "widely compatible", because its MXM standard, physically in layout and in BIOS."

So better look for Acer, there is a reason why they are more expensive...


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## thanos1071 (Nov 5, 2014)

rob80 said:


> Thats it. Mine was from Acer and is reported as "widely compatible", because its MXM standard, physically in layout and in BIOS."
> 
> So better look for Acer, there is a reason why they are more expensive...



Thank you for your answer.
What about this one? Will i have problems with this?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-HD-457...41098720?pt=AU_Components&hash=item27bb0087e0


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## rob80 (Nov 5, 2014)

thanos1071 said:


> Thank you for your answer.
> What about this one? Will i have problems with this?
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-HD-457...41098720?pt=AU_Components&hash=item27bb0087e0



That is the one I also bought. So you have good chances. But no one can guarantee there will be no problems. I had to Dremel some millimeters of the heat sink to fit it to the large resistor in the upper corner. I used toothpaste to check how well the parts that need cooling fit to the heatsink. I used "M2 T-Buchse"(I m German and I found no proper translation, so please paste it to German Google to see a picture of what I mean), to fit the heatsink to the mounting holes of the card, as the old card had threads. The ones I bought were 3mm wide, but they did not completely fit to the mounting holes, so I had to grind off a few microns to make them fit. Maybe you have access to a proper turning machine. Finally, I used a 0,4mm copper foil with 14x14mm on the GPU as heatspreader. Maybe you need another thickness. Also get 0,5 and 1mm thick heat conductive foil, as you will have to replace some of the original foil, which tears easily . In my case, temperatures of CPU and GPU are well below 50°C, even at near 100% load, e.g. 60fps Youtube.

Good Luck!


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## thanos1071 (Nov 5, 2014)

One last question, is it better to buy this one
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-HD-457...41099348?pt=AU_Components&hash=item27bb008a54
because of the DDR3 memory and the holes that are ready for screws?
Sorry for to many questions...


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## rob80 (Nov 5, 2014)

thanos1071 said:


> One last question, is it better to buy this one
> http://www.ebay.com/itm/Acer-HD-457...41099348?pt=AU_Components&hash=item27bb008a54
> because of the DDR3 memory and the holes that are ready for screws?
> Sorry for to many questions...



You are welcome. This one also seems to fit. I dont think DDR3 will make much difference. The mounting threads could make things easier, but be sure to check for proper contact with the heat sink. As the price is identical, this would be better.


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## thanos1071 (Dec 7, 2014)

Hello again,
unfortunately the card didn't work with my laptop.
If someone has any suggestion, please write it in order to fix the problem...


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## flmatter (Dec 7, 2014)

ummm.... buy a new laptop and put this old one in the grave.


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## MustSeeMelons (Dec 9, 2014)

flmatter said:


> ummm.... buy a new laptop and put this old one in the grave.



Why? If it's possible to change the GPU, that's the way to go. Price/Performance is for suckers.


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## zita212 (Dec 27, 2014)

thanos1071 said:


> Hello again,
> unfortunately the card didn't work with my laptop.
> If someone has any suggestion, please write it in order to fix the problem...


Hi Thanos1071,
I am in a similar situation with my FSC Amilo Xi 1526 with Nvidia Go7600 not working anymore.
Which card did you try, the one with ATI HD 4570 or the one with Nvidia 9650 you mentioned in your first post ?
Julia


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## thanos1071 (Dec 27, 2014)

zita212 said:


> Hi Thanos1071,
> I am in a similar situation with my FSC Amilo Xi 1526 with Nvidia Go7600 not working anymore.
> Which card did you try, the one with ATI HD 4570 or the one with Nvidia 9650 you mentioned in your first post ?
> Julia


Hello,
I tried the ATI 4570 but it didn't work. I don't know what it went wrong. Maybe it wasn't with Acer vbios. Now I am waiting a 3650. I will let you know if it works.


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## thanos1071 (Jan 13, 2015)

zita212 said:


> Hi Thanos1071,
> I am in a similar situation with my FSC Amilo Xi 1526 with Nvidia Go7600 not working anymore.
> Which card did you try, the one with ATI HD 4570 or the one with Nvidia 9650 you mentioned in your first post ?
> Julia



It worked fine with the HD3650.
If you want to repair it, i bought it from here.


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