Can i upgrade the processor in this laptop?

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simon14

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#177419 1-Aug-2015 22:57

If all,

My wife purchased an HP laptop about a year ago.

It has Windows 8.1 and 8gb of RAM - the lady at Harvey Norman told my wife it was good and would be fast enough for every day tasks.

Problem is, it's extremely slow due to it's processor: AMD A6-1450 APUwith Radeon HD graphics 1.0 GHz

Is it even possible to upgrade the processor on these laptops or are we out of luck?

mattwnz

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#1356912 2-Aug-2015 00:45

Possibly quite costly to upgrade, even if possible. Google should be your friend in answering this. If instore they told you it would be fast enough, you should possible contact the store to say that it isn't, and see what they can do. You may want o google the model and see if anyone else is having trouble with the speed of it. You should also check to see if you have crapware or anything else that maybe slowing it down. Are you upgrading to windows 10, as that may help. Maybe a clean install after you have updated and activated windows 10 from windows 8.

grant_k

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#1356917 2-Aug-2015 01:40

Laptop CPUs are soldered in, so they can't be upgraded, unlike CPUs installed on motherboards, which are usually in sockets.

Anything with an AMD CPU is usually at the bottom end performance-wise, so you get what you pay for. Look for a laptop with an Intel i5 CPU which will be plenty for most applications. If you're a hard-core gamer, or heavily into video editing, an i7 would be better.

khull

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#1356919 2-Aug-2015 05:54

I assume slow as in to load tasks rather than to do any computational work. If so don't bother with the CPU. Put a SSD of a decent size into it and she will love you to bits.

Once you do that go tell 5 other people :)

hyperman

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#1356926 2-Aug-2015 07:28

grant_k: Laptop CPUs are soldered in, so they can't be upgraded, unlike CPUs installed on motherboards, which are usually in sockets.

Anything with an AMD CPU is usually at the bottom end performance-wise, so you get what you pay for. Look for a laptop with an Intel i5 CPU which will be plenty for most applications. If you're a hard-core gamer, or heavily into video editing, an i7 would be better.

A little bit ot

But sorry to tell you not all laptop CPU's are soldered on
and Intel also have some very bottom end CPU's "Celeron, Pentium" in my opinion lower spec than AMD!

The views expressed by me are not necessarily those of my employer

andrewNZ

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#1356929 2-Aug-2015 07:45

That does appear to be a rubbish CPU, but I think it should still be quick enough.

What are you trying to do, that it isn't up to?

As has been said, uninstall any crape, check for viruses, and put a SSD in it. Everything will help, but the SSD will make a world of difference.

timmmay

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#1356973 2-Aug-2015 09:30

Like everyone's said an SSD will help, probably a lot.

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networkn

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#1356975 2-Aug-2015 09:34

SSD == The end of the issue she is currently facing. Also MUCH easier than replacing the processor of any laptop.

My golden rules when purchasing notebooks (or PC's)

Don't buy from Harvey Normans, DSE, or other retail outlets that offer interest free terms. You will get a consumer grade device with a consumer grade warranty, albeit usually with lots of bells and whistles (that you likely won't use) at a great price.
Only buy devices which come with PRO versions of Windows as standard, as this will usually mean they are intended for business use. As such they will likely come with less bundled software, and have a better warranty and USUALLY better grade hardware.
Don't buy AMD, they are toys these days. Intel i5 for above.
SSD should be considered mandatory.
1900x1080 should be minimum resolution.

There are others but sticking to these rules will almost always get you a good device. (and I have been buying and selling hardware for more than 20 years gulp!)

robjg63

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#1356977 2-Aug-2015 09:38

Usually those crapware programs that come preinstalled drag the performance down the toilet.
Some of it can be quite difficult to remove as well.

If there is some way you can do a clean windows 'vanilla' install you would probably be surprised how well it would run. But you most likely need standard windows install media (and key) and that is not cheap.

You could try something like this though http://www.decrap.org - haven't tried it myself but some review it OK.

Nothing is impossible for the man who doesn't have to do it himself - A. H. Weiler

solival

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#1357164 2-Aug-2015 15:53

Another good way to remove bloatware is to install windows 10 without storing user programs and data :) Works for me.

Geek originally from Ukraine :)

Sideface

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#1357169 2-Aug-2015 16:09

simon14: ... Problem is, it's extremely slow due to it's processor: AMD A6-1450 APU with Radeon HD graphics 1.0 GHz

Is it even possible to upgrade the processor on these laptops or are we out of luck?

Those processors are truly horrible.

As you will know by now, upgrading the CPU is not an option.

As others have advised:

1. clean out the crapware
2. install Windows 10 (free upgrade)
3. consider installing a SSD - expensive but will make a big difference to performance

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