Can I replace a Celeron M witha Pentium M?

I purchased a new Toshiba laptop which came with a Celeron M 370, which is a 1.5GHz with 400MHz FSB (socket 478).

This, of course, made the laptop cheap, but I'm browsing NewEgg.com and thinking about purchasing a Pentium M 740, which is 1.7GHz with a 533 MHz FSB (also socket 478).

This is my first laptop, but on the hundreds of desktop systems I've worked on, it was easy to swap a socket 370 Celeron with a socket 370 Pentium (or vice-versa).

Not sure if I can do that with a laptop...

The question is probably if the motherboard supports that FSB, and that the cpu isn't soldered down or anything.

Unless you feel competent enough, I wouldn't' attempt changing the processor on a laptop by yourself. Laptops can be notoriously hard to upgrade.

So I suppose a laptop can be like a desktop in that as long as the processor architecture is the same, it's quite possible that substitutions can be made? Hmm... $200 to turn my Celeron into a Pentium powerhouse would be nice. Although, I suppose I should buy a bigger battery as well...




Thanks for the warning, but after earning my A+, Network+, Server+, MCSE, and CCNA, I think I can handle a measly lil' laptop . But you are right, opening a laptop isn't for everyone.

My question was particular to the FSB speed. I'm wondering if the motherboard is capable of that speed (you know how manufacturers like to reuse things for various products), or, if that Pentium M will operate at a lower FSB...

Lol !! Sorry, didn't realise that !!

No offense, but if you have all those certs shouldn't you be able to answer the question without asking it?

Having any sort of certification (A+ being more closely related) doesn't mean that person then knows everything about every piece of hardware.

In fact, it's my certifications that prove to my employers that I am competant and deserve good pay. Specifically, the A+ means (among many, many things) that I can crack open my laptop and replace the processor without worrying or screwing things up.

I don't mean to toot my own horn -- I just didn't want a bunch of replies from people telling me not to open my laptop.

First a disclaimer, I know a lot more about AMD's processor line-up than Intel's these days. However, I'm assuming that the Celeron M is much like its Pentium M counterpart just with its cache crippled. Another thing to think about is what is the FSB of your laptop and the chipset. I ran across an article a while back regarding pin modding the cpu socket to overclock the FSB on "any Intel 915 chipset-based “Sonoma” laptop" from 400 to 533 FSB. Here's the link.... it'll be much better at explaining it than I could do here.Pentium M pin-mod guide

Hope this helps!

My experience with the newer Toshibas has been that I have not seen one that had a soldiered processor. It should not be hard to make such a switch. But I have worked on a lot of laptops where people thought they knew what they were doing and broke parts un-wittingly.
If your as savy as you say you are........you will get a schematic of the assembly before attempting something you have never tried.
Laptops aren't put together anything like desktops and they are flimsy by comparison. There will be screws where you never thought they might be. Clips will be set that are not really designed to be un set. Sometimes it takes breaking a part, just to know how to get it off the next time if there is no set of rules to follow.
I have torn down hundreds of laptops of nearly every brand. Your bravery is to be commended......but your overconfidence may lead you astray............so beware.

Me too (just not a Toshiba Satellite). All I wanted was to hear from someone who'd actually done this (whether with a Toshiba or whatever) because I know laptops are more complicated than desktops. I can confidently tell anyone what will and won't work in a desktop, and while I was fairly confident about the laptop, I just wanted to make sure.

By the way, I should share this advice: when someone asks for help, you should treat them as if they know what they are doing rather than treating them as if they are "overconfident" and prone to leading themselves "astray". I've found that in dealing with people who truly do not know as much as yourself, they will usually stop and ask if they do not understand. This prevents them from feeling belittled and offended. Those who are truly overconfident and do not take the time to ensure they understand will, inevitably, break stuff, and from that they may learn.

Too often, in the forums I read where someone asks a simple question, and the majority of replies are those which try to find fault or tell them they don't know what they are doing and should stop. I'm not trying to start a flame war (because I am certain someone's going to rip my head off).

To those of you who simply addressed my question, I thank you. To those who would rather warn me about what I shouldn't do, I appreciate your efforts, but think about what I've said...

You spoke as if you knew very little about laptop tear downs And the experience you referenced was in theory and on desktops. So I don't think that my suggesting caution was out of line. I am a brave player.........and I have broken my share of laptop parts in mere ignorance and the lack of good schematics to draw upon.
Anyone........and I mean anyone who does not approach a laptop tear down with caution is either well experienced with that model......or a fool in my opinon.
This does not refer to present company.......I'm sure.

Also........I did tear down a centrino ..... qosmio about four moths ago........1.8Ghz........the processor was not soldiered.
And I'm thinking along the same path as you on these celeron Ms.......I am going to tear down a Compaq M2000 this week.........specs say it is a 479 pin set.......same as the centrino.......It has a loose ac jack......I figure while I'm in there......I'll drop a 1.7ghz centrino I have laying here......479 pin set...........I'll let you know how it goes.

The battery thing ........never heard of doing that......lol

The battery specs for the m2000 celleron M and the centrino version are the same.

Well....I got stage one completed. I have cleaned the laptop up and looked at the specs on the processor....which wasn't soldiered by the way. Looks like an easy enough task from here......I do see that the front side bus on the celeron is 400......it is 533 on the centrino.......ah well........guess I'm thinking now over the gamble....considering my odds.......lol


I opted to contact hp support.......the bus must be 400 on this one......I got to comparing the list they gave me and only two PMs match up to the cellerons in specs......I opted for a 1.6 PM....2mb cache.......400 fsb. Most of the centrinos that I could redily find availble for a reasonble price were less processor in the cache catagory. I was surprised. I bought what is supposed to be a good used one for $30 delivered.

I'll bump the system with two sticks of pc 2700 ram and that will be all she wrote on this one.

So the answer to your original question.............IS.........YES !.........lol

But be careful...........the Celeron M may be more processor than a centrino........be sure to look at the processor specs and I advise going to Toshiba for support in the upgrade.