I think that it would be very possible to do this, but highly dependent on Apple deciding whether or not to let you do so.neonart said:
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Intel iMac CPU Swappable?
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bigbossbmb
macrumors 68000
someone will rate this negative... but that makes no sense at all
the possibility of intel macs being easier to upgrade is good news to all. surely it isn't as easy as installing RAM, but to have the option of taking in an out of date machine to a store and being able to have them drop in a new cpu (as long as they still make chips for that socket) is very valuable to consumers that don't want to buy a comp every other year.
who knows how long intel will make chips that fit these sockets...but the possibility of upgrades can't be a bad thing
the possibility of intel macs being easier to upgrade is good news to all. surely it isn't as easy as installing RAM, but to have the option of taking in an out of date machine to a store and being able to have them drop in a new cpu (as long as they still make chips for that socket) is very valuable to consumers that don't want to buy a comp every other year.
who knows how long intel will make chips that fit these sockets...but the possibility of upgrades can't be a bad thing
nagromme
macrumors G5
I think someone posted pictures comparing the BACK of the iMac G5 internals to the FRONT of the Core Duo internals (or vice versa), leading to false reports that the Core Duo was vastly "less-organized-looking" inside. But in fact if you compare the SAME side of both machines, then the Core Duo Macs and recent G5 Macs look very similar inside.The Red Wolf said:
Now, the ease of access of the FIRST (thicker) G5 iMacs was indeed great, and it was sad to see that go last year. They even had indicator lights to help users self-diagnose problems. I guess other priorities pushed that strategy aside.
As long as it doesn't make my MacBook thicker... yes please!Yvan256 said:
neonart
macrumors 65816
shamino said:
Yes, but remember that both the 20" and 17" were designed to accept higher clock speeds in their respective cases for at least some time. Apple (or any manufacturer) can't redesign cases, or internals, every time they up the speed on the CPU.
Look at the White iBook G3- 500Mhz to 900 MHz. The 12" Powerbook- 867Mhz to 1.5 Ghz. The 12" iBook too. Ther is usually some room to upgrade some 400-600 Mhz without major changes.
Multimedia
macrumors 603
Support Processors and RAM May Need To Be Different As Well
I'm not sure just poping in a faster processor will be enough to accomplish an upgrade. Faster processors are likely to want faster RAM and other support processors to work as well as a new computer. I think adding a faster processor 3 years later is not going to be as fast as the new model nor even necessarily work with original RAM and support chips.asphalt-proof said:
Maxx Power
Cancelled
Yep, sure are upgradable, unless Apple implements restrictions to CPU ID's at the firmware level, then you are toast until someone figures out how to hack that too. Finally, X86 style upgrades...
Maxx Power
Cancelled
LoonyPandora
macrumors newbie
I've not had the 'pleasure' of taking one apart and looking for myself, but the service manuals mention nothing of this :-/
Jobs won't let you do it
Apple will probably find a way to stop this. this would be disasterous on Apple's part.
but my question is that if you can swap CPUs like that, what happened to the thing on the processor or motherboard that Tiger seeks to boot to prevent other computers from booting Tiger?
swapping Apple's processor into some beige PC case is one thing, I am not sure about the other way.
but if it works without any problem, hell yeah I am buying imac.
Apple will probably find a way to stop this. this would be disasterous on Apple's part.
but my question is that if you can swap CPUs like that, what happened to the thing on the processor or motherboard that Tiger seeks to boot to prevent other computers from booting Tiger?
swapping Apple's processor into some beige PC case is one thing, I am not sure about the other way.
but if it works without any problem, hell yeah I am buying imac.
t^3 said:
Yep, and with Merom being a different architecture to Yonah, the likelihood of the socket/support chips changing is going to be quite likely I'd have thought.
I guess it depends on how long Intel keeps producing Yonahs
Still, if the iMac will take the upcoming 2.3-ish Yonahs, that's not a bad upgrade from the 1.83. It's possibly cheaper to sell your old Mac and buy a new one still though if the CPUs are near $500 now. 2 years on though, a dusty old Yonah sat on the shelf for $50 might be nice though.
neonart said:
Those largely came about because newer versions of the CPU drew about the same power as the slower ones. This either came through better CPU design or changes in processes like dropping from 130nm to 90nm.
Core Solo --> Duo --> Quadro upgrade?
Does the Intel Core Solo use the same socket as the Intel Core Duo? If it does then when/.if the iBook replacemtn comes out and if it uses the Core Solo as expected then it might be usful to swap out the CPU chip. Of course there'd be the problem of heat.
THe trouble with doing a CPU upgrade years after buying a computer is that Intel keeps changing the socket and thenew CPUs don't work in the old PCs except if you want a marginal Ghz upgrade
But just maybe in three years peole will be swaping out the Core Duo chip in thier iMacs for a new "Core Quadro" chip. Wait and see. Sun is shipping 8-core CPUs today so it's not unrealistic to expect quad core Intel chips in a few years
Does the Intel Core Solo use the same socket as the Intel Core Duo? If it does then when/.if the iBook replacemtn comes out and if it uses the Core Solo as expected then it might be usful to swap out the CPU chip. Of course there'd be the problem of heat.
THe trouble with doing a CPU upgrade years after buying a computer is that Intel keeps changing the socket and thenew CPUs don't work in the old PCs except if you want a marginal Ghz upgrade
But just maybe in three years peole will be swaping out the Core Duo chip in thier iMacs for a new "Core Quadro" chip. Wait and see. Sun is shipping 8-core CPUs today so it's not unrealistic to expect quad core Intel chips in a few years
nagromme
macrumors G5
A while, I'd say: they'll become the low-end once Merom is out, but I expect faster Yonah versions will still be made.aegisdesign said:
I would assume so: Core Solos are simply failed Core Duos. If one of the cores doesn't test out, then rather then throwing the whole chip out they disable the bad core and have a perfectly good Core Solo left.ChrisA said:
matthewHUB said:
Sounds incredibly interesting to me.
As someone already mentioned, this is most appealing for things like getting a cheap mini or ibook with a single processor and getting a cheap upgrade to a duo. Also, down the road there will be faster chips and cheaper prices on them. Right now, upgrading a brand new machine makes zero sense, but in a year if you can get a 2.5 gig chip for $150? That's a killer upgrade for dirt cheap.
Anyone know if the core solo and core duo are socket compatible?
syklee26 said:
It's on the motherboard. The processor is identical to the ones in PC's. It would be cost prohibitive to actually customize the CPU.
bugfaceuk
macrumors 6502
Chaszmyr said:
Well I think the assumption would be when the future faster low-voltage ones come out you can upgrade, rather than put a high-voltage one in.
milo said:
I'm not sure if they are socket compatible, but thoughts of a really really fast mini are now streaming through my head. Ahhhh sweet fantasy
Mord
macrumors G4
pentium M's are like 80% cache, the addition of a core does not cause a large difference in power consumption, besides the second core shuts down when not in use.
only pay attention to the letter before the cpu T, L and UL.
as for merom it uses the same P4 bus as yonah, but intel may decide to move a pin randomly because they are like that.
oh and solo's and duo's are completely compatible with each other.
only pay attention to the letter before the cpu T, L and UL.
as for merom it uses the same P4 bus as yonah, but intel may decide to move a pin randomly because they are like that.
oh and solo's and duo's are completely compatible with each other.
SiliconAddict
macrumors 603
Well of course it would work with a 2GHz chip. Apple makes 2Ghz systems. the question is can it go above and beyond that?
Mine doesn't. Its an IBM X31 Thinkpad and the chip is soldered to the motherboard.
Hector said:
Mine doesn't. Its an IBM X31 Thinkpad and the chip is soldered to the motherboard.