Upgraded Acer 3680 Celeron CPU to a T5300!

[krazyphire]

I successfully upgraded my 3680-2633 from a Celeron M 520 to a Core 2 Duo T5300 @1.73 Ghz. I might be the first to report a successful upgrade to this chip. The more popular one to use is the T5200@ 1.6Ghz. This thing is quiet and cool. When I first started it up I wondered if it was broken because the fan wasn’t as loud as usual . The computer idles at 45.7 degrees celesius which is better than the celeron's 53-60 degrees celsius.

Everything booted great and now it is bearable to have it on my lap. The T5300 only cost me $75 on ebay.

The battery still last 3+ hrs which is way better than the 1hr and 46min I had on the celeron. Now using the Power Saver mode in Vista keeps the computer in a useable state because 800Mhz on the RMclock far outclasses the Celeron in the same mode.

The performance is amazing and my friends/family are all intrigued by this sub $500 fully upgraded Acer 3680. Packing 1.5 gigs of ram and a Core 2 Duo processor. I can even play Halo with a stable FPS of 30. The GMA 950 is not so bad anymore for older games .

Ran a 32m Benchmark w/ wPrime and it finished in 42 seconds. Celeron M 520 ran the same benchmark in 125 seconds. I'll let you people be the judges of performance.

If anyone wants any tips, help, or comments on Performance/Upgrading I'm here.


Savings and Costs:
Total Cost for a Core 2 Duo system with a T5300 and 2 Gigabytes of Ram on average: $956 USD+ (HP dv6000t)
Total Cost of Acer Aspire 3680 ($399.99) upgraded with Core 2 Duo: $479.99 USD (Increased Performance)
Total Cost of Acer Aspire 3680 with T5300 and 2 Gigabytes of PC-5300 Ram: $545.91 USD (Optimal Performance)

Memory from: www.memory-up.com
Cost for 2x1Gig PC-5300 is $32.96 USD

Helpful Links for 3680 Users:
http://paulsiu.wordpress.com/2007/09...cer-3680-2833/ Blog that started it All
http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/dat...S3680_3505.zip v1.3505 bios needed
>>*UPDATE*: link for the newest Aspire 3680 bios ftp://ftp.support.acer-euro.com/note.../bios/3508.zip
Yes the 940GML can be upgraded past the Celerons! Info for those who have the 940GML
http://www.cpuid.com/download/pcw2008_v184.exe Link to PC Wizard for checking the chipset
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...icroprocessors Near the Bottom are the Mobile Core 2 CPUs
Beginners guide to thermal compound replacement on the 5672wlmi Guide for Adding Artic Silver 5 Thermal Compound
http://forum.notebookreview.com/show...76&postcount=1 Alternate Guide for adding AS5
Windows XP Multi Core config - Does your OEM do it for you? Windows Updates for Upgrades to C2D Processors
http://youtube.com/watch?v=pPdw-pkS88k Acer Notebok Disassembly Guide (Not of a 3680, but Basic Idea)

Helpful Links for 5315 Users provided by BigOzone:
Aspire 5315 CPU upgrades and other info Upgrade Guide for 5315 Users!

Working Chipsets for the Core 2 Duo Upgrade:
Intel 943GML Chipset/i943 Calistoga
Intel 945GML Chipset

Working Chipsets for the Core Solo Upgrade:
Intel 940GML Chipset

How To Identify Your Chipset:
If the Cover for the RAM bay is pulled off on the Ram Bay there is a sticker. The code on the stick identifies your laptop chipset.
Here they are:
MB.TEB06.003... If it starts with that it is a 940GML
MB.AZL06.... If it starts with that it is a 943GML
MB.TDX06.... If it starts with that it is a 945GML


Working Models for the Core 2 Duo upgrade:
Acer Aspire 3680-2633
Acer Aspire 3680-2682

Working Models the Core Solo Upgrade:
Acer Aspire 3680-2574


UPDATE
You can in fact upgrade to The Merom T7200 & T7600 that came out before the Santa Rosa Refresh.

Current Facts known:

• Motherboard Model can be found on the Sticker above the RAM bay. (Find Courtesy of Hoggie)
• Core 2 Duos out perform most Core Duos in performance. They also have newer Speedstepping technology to optimize battery life.
• Dual-Core is Supported only by the 943GML Chipset and Above
• Only works with v1.3505 bios and Above
• The T5200, T5300, T5600, T7200 Are Known to Work
• Socket M Celerons can switch to the above C2Ds
• PC Wizard can be used for identifying your chipset
• The C2Ds are easily purchased through ebay, but I recommend staying away from bids and using "Buy it now function" as long as it is under $80 USD.
• Of Course if your looking to save money you can go with n4r4k's idea and get a T2080 Core Duo, which is reported to work on the Aspire 3690

PS: We are always here to help!

Thank You to:
Dedicated to the Acer Team: Hoggie, Andy, BigOzone, TeeJay44, Krazyphire

Featured News Bit: http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4242 Credit to Chaz (NBR MOD) and Theo (TeeJay 44)

[BLACKMAMBA123]

amazing man .....wat a luck u hve........congratz.......

[krazyphire]

Thank You. It was a tense moment when I started it up because the bios took a longer amount of time to load than usual. I knew it would work because the FSB were compatible. The only worry was the mulitplier which increased to 13x and the CPU speed.

[michacerboy]

Originally Posted by krazyphire

Woohoo. I sucessfully upgrade my 3680-2633 from a Celeron M 520 to a Core 2 Duo T5300 @1.73 GHZ. I might be the first to report a successful upgrade to this chip. The more popular one to use is the T5200@ 1.6Ghz. This thing is quiet and cool. When I first started it up I wondered if it was broken because the fan wasn’t as loud as usual . The computer idles at 45.7 degrees celesius which is better than the celeron's 53-60 degrees celsius.

Everything booted great and now it is bearable to have it on my lap. The T5300 only cost me $75 on ebay. Only problem is that the acer bios is not recognizing it so there are no new options like with the upgrade to the T5200. The options missing are Power Management and the Dual-Core option. This causes the battery management to jump around rather than settle on a specific duration of life.

Despite this the battery still last 3+ hrs which is way better than the 1hr and 46min I had on the celeron. Now using the Power Saver mode in Vista keeps the computer in a useable state because 800Mhz on the RMclock far outclasses the Celeron in the same mode.

The performance is amazing and my friends/family are all amazed at this sub $500 fully upgraded Acer 3680. Packing 2gigs of ram and a Core 2 Duo processor. I can even play Halo with a stable FPS of 30. The GMA 950 is not so bad anymore for older games .

Ran a 32m Benchmark w/ wPrime and it finished in 42 seconds. Celeron M 520 ran the same benchmark in 125 seconds. I'll let you people be the judges of performance.

If anyone wants any tips, help, or comments on Performance/Upgrading I'm here.

Is this what you installed?
http://item.express.ebay.com/__CPUs_...mdZExpressItem

Boy do I feel dumb though!! I just bought a Celeron 1.73ghz off ebay for $20 and was excited about that

Im going to buy the 1.73ghz duo-core tonite!!!! THIS IS AWESOME! I am so sick of this $*$^@ing crappy 1.6ghz Celeron in my 3680-2633. It sucks.

[krazyphire]

No I used the Core 2 Duo processors, which far outclasses that Pentium M in your link.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...X:NEWLIST#LIST

I ordered a T5200@1.6Ghz for $75 on ebay and ended up recieving a T5300@1.73GHz. Pretty good luck if I do say so myself. Either processor would offer unmatched performance when compared to that Celeron we were given.

[michacerboy]

Krazyphire how long did it take to receive the processor after you paid for it?

[skywalker]

Nice job....congrats....

[krazyphire]

Originally Posted by michacerboy

Krazyphire how long did it take to receive the processor after you paid for it?

The ebay store I purchased mine from took a few days because I bought it before christmas on the 20 or 21st. I recieved it on the 26th of December. You however should recieve by the end of the week or on monday next week.

Originally Posted by skywalker

Nice job....congrats....

Thank You very much.

[krazyphire]

Here is a link to where I got information on this type of upgrade. Read the comments, and not the actual blog.

http://paulsiu.wordpress.com/2007/09...cer-3680-2833/

[michacerboy]

Thanks for the article - lots of good reading. I bookmarked it.