Upgrade from Celeron M to Pentium M

BillyBuerger · Post by **BillyBuerger** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 6:57 am

I've kicked myself many times for not researching the difference between the Celeron M and Pentium M before I bought my laptop. I knew there was less cache and they were clocked lower. Great, no problem there. I never would have guessed that they removed Advanced Speed Step. That seems like one of the most important things for a mobil CPU. WTF Intel!

So I've been thinking about upgrading the Celeron M with a Pentium M. The celeron has a Dothan core, so I would assume a dothan based P-M would work. My biggest concern is if the Advanced Speed Step would work? Is there something in the MB and/or BIOS that is needed as well that this laptop might not have? If the BIOS doesn't support it, would a software solution like RMClock work? The celeron has a 400MHz FSB. Would a 533MHz FSB P-M work? I would appreciate any info anyone might have. I haven't been able to find much.

I even logged onto Gateway's support chat thing. I think it's more of a sales thing than support. It started off bad when I asked about the upgrade and the guy said that it wouldn't work. I then asked why as they both have the same core. He then asked me to wait and came back and said it would but they didn't have any in stock. (as if I would be buying it from them) He said that the Advanced Speed Step would not work. But after the first comment, I'm not sure I can trust his responses. I'm sure they would like it if I just bought a new one.

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 7:17 am

My biggest concern is if the Advanced Speed Step would work? Is there something in the MB and/or BIOS that is needed as well that this laptop might not have?

From Bay Wolf's Speedstep FAQ:

2 Q: What are the system requirements for SpeedStep™ technology?
A: The system must have the following:

Mobile Pentium processor with Intel SpeedStep™ technology.
A chipset, BIOS, voltage regulator and operating system that supports Intel SpeedStep™ technology.
Intel SpeedStep™ technology driver.

From my own experience using a P4-M in a standard desktop board, Speedstep does not work. Your laptop may have a motherboard that supports Speedstep; however it is more likely that the manufacturer used the cheapest motherboard possible, and because it was only going to be used with a Celeron M, unlikely to have Speedstep support.

However:

15 Q: I have heard some talk of a program called SpeedSwitchXP. What is this?
A: SpeedswitchXP is a small applet created by Christian Diefer that sits in the system tray and allows dynamic switching of the frequencies of Intel and AMD mobile CPUs under Windows XP. As noted in the FAQ, WinXP does not have the "flag" in taskbar that gives you the ability to switch your power schemes. This applet gives you that ability in WinXP.

Bay Wolf's Speedstep FAQ

BillyBuerger · Post by **BillyBuerger** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 8:47 am

Dang, so it's not looking good. Thanks jaganath.

stupid · Post by **stupid** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 11:45 am

The chipset determines if the laptop is capable of using both Pentium M and Celeron M, or simply just the Celeron M.

The following chipset only support Celeron M and ULV (Ultra Low Voltage)Core Dual/Solo :

910GML Express Chipset
945GM Express Chipset
945PM Express Chipset

All other Intel mobile chipsets will support both Pentium M and Celeron M.

Click for a comparision chart.

Simply find out which one your laptop is using.

BillyBuerger · Post by **BillyBuerger** » Tue Apr 11, 2006 2:06 pm

Okay, I've got to get off this rollarcoaster. According to CPU-Z, my chipset is i855GM/GME. Which according the the Intel chart, supports the Pentium M and the speed step stuff. Unless there's something else missing in the motherboard and/or bios, then I should be okay. I guess I won't know until I try. But I'd hate to spend $200 for something that isn't going to do much for me. I'm still hoping that as the Core Duos become more mainstream, that the P-Ms will drop in price.

BillyBuerger · Post by **BillyBuerger** » Tue Apr 18, 2006 5:27 am

I am a weak man. I saw a Pentium M 725 on ebay and couldn't resists. Got it for just under $90 shipped. Guess what, it works! Clocks down to 600Mhz and 0.9V when on battery or plugged in and idle. Now I get about 2 hours of battery life and the CPU fan even shuts off sometimes. Ah, silence! Thanks for all the comments and help. So much for Gateways support.

jaganath · Post by **jaganath** » Tue Apr 18, 2006 5:59 am

I saw a Pentium M 725 on ebay and couldn't resist. Got it for just under $90 shipped. Guess what, it works!

Congratulations!

Another SPCR success story.

That's a good price for a 725, the cheapest you can get it over here is about $170 (£100).

BillyBuerger · Post by **BillyBuerger** » Tue Apr 18, 2006 7:32 am

Well, the description said New OEM. But, there were some little streaks on the core as if it wasn't cleaned off completely. So it very well may have been used. That doesn't really bother me. Just so long as it works.