from the manufacturer or a third party; you may be able to buy a used
motherboard from a repair shop. (Desktop computers generally use one
of several common form factors, allowing you to put a Brand X mother-
board into a name-brand case or the other way around.)
Because laptop motherboards are almost all custom made or customized,
it may not be feasible (or smart) to install a faster microprocessor. Some
processors are soldered into place, which ends the discussion. In other
situations the laptop’s design may not accept a plug-in replacement that
draws more voltage, generates more heat, or is otherwise different from
the original CPU.Even if the deeds can be done, that doesn’t mean it makes economic
sense. Weigh the cost of a new motherboard, a new microprocessor, or
both against the price for a new machine. If you farm out the work to a
professional repair shop, add $200 or so for just the labor involved.
Oh, and one more thing: Dollar for dollar and electron for electron, if
you’re trying to eke out more speed from your laptop, boosting the
amount of RAM is the smartest thing you can do. Doubling RAM from
256MB to 512MB and keeping the same microprocessor gives much
more power than keeping the memory and spending several hundred
dollars for a few hundred more megahertz of processor speed.On most laptop motherboards, the microprocessor is held in a ZIF (zero
insertion force)socket. This means that once the locking mechanism is
released, the chip just slips into place. On a desktop machine, the socket usu-
ally uses a lever to lock the processor; specialized laptop motherboards may
use a lever or a small screw.
Chapter 6: Brain Matters: Memory, Microprocessors, and BIOS 109