The Refurbished Laptops Guide » Components

Promenade into the world of HDMI

GuestPoster — Fri, 07 May 2010 05:37:53 +0000

We have surely heard of HDMI, and very few of us know completely or a good deal about HDMI. HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface. It was in 2002 December when HDMI first came into market. But it took sufficient time for HDMI to get well settled in market. HDMI is basically a single cable which is capable of carrying both video and audio signals from the digital information source to the digital output device. When we say digital output device, it can be your monitor, it can very well be your tv or projector. HDMI is a standard cable that is used by all the device manufacturers and board developers. This is an international standard they have to adhere to.

The first HDMI enabled device came out in year 2003, which was almost after an year after the launch of HDMI itself. It was only after 2003 that the rise in the sales of HDMI cables saw a spike in itself. After 2003, many developers openly adopted the HDMI standard and started developing the devices compatible with HDMI cable. After the HDMI cables came out, people also developed HDMI to DVI and DVI to HDMI converters and cables. It is said that presently there are more than 200 million devices that are efficiently using the HDMI cables. The pioneer companies that were the main reason why HDMI developed were Hitachi, Silicon Image, Thomsan, Sony.

The very best benefit of using HDMI cable is the fact that you won’t have to use multiple cables to connect the video source to video output device. The single thick cable of HDMI takes care of transferring both audio and video data. The best part about HDMI is that it is capable of carrying un compressed video and audio data which brings the best quality pictures on screen. In fact HDMI cable is of so high bandwidth, it is capable of carrying 8 full HD channels in it in parallel. There are many broadcast companies which are presently using the HDMI technology and broadcasting the channels in full HD. To name a few are Disney, Fox, Warner Bros. If you have a HDTV and don’t have a HDMI cable connecting your set top box to the tv, then you might just be missing a lot. If you have a dvi output but a hdmi input for a video output device, you can use a dvi to hdmi converter or adapter to do the job.

Shopping:

Dell D600 Laptop 1.6ghz 40gb DVD/CDRW B Grade Includes Genuine XP Professional restore cd!

Compaq Presario CQ62-210US Laptop PC

HP Pavilion DV4-2161NR 14.1-Inch Laptop (Digital Plaid)

HP Pavilion DV6-2162NR 15.6-Inch Black Laptop--Up to 4.25 Hours of Battery Life

HP G60-630US 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black)

Finding a Power Supply for Your Refurbished Laptop

GuestPoster — Mon, 03 May 2010 15:46:38 +0000

If you’re looking for a deal on a laptop, refurbished might be the way to go. Sometimes you can get a deeper discount if the refurbished laptop is missing pieces, like the power supply. Or perhaps, you purchase broken computers and refurbish them yourself. Again, you might be missing parts, and in order to use or resell your refurbished computer, you’re going to need a power adapter.

If you’re in the business of refurbishing computers for resale, your best option is to find the power supply that is supposed to come with the computer when it is new. Many consumers are put at ease by the fact that the refurbished computer is using OEM laptop parts, rather than a hodge-podge of third party accessories. You can often garner a higher price for such peace of mind. The best way to find these power supplies is to simply go to the manufacturer’s website. Many of them allow you to purchase parts directly from them after you’ve identified the model of your laptop. If they don’t allow direct purchase, they will point you in the direction of a reseller who sells the OEM laptop power adapter.

Another option, is to find a third-party power supply maker. Most of these third party adapters are as good as, if not better than the original parts, and oftentimes much cheaper. These can sometimes be as cheap as half the price of the OEM part. This is because an accessory deals with those accessories on a massive scale, and are in the business of selling just those parts. The manufacturer is in the business of selling computers, and might sell the extra pieces incidentally, and of course, at an added premium. One of the options in third-party power supplies is the universal laptop power adapter. These power adapters are similar in form and function to standard power adapters, with the addition of interchangeable ends for the end that plugs into your laptop. This is a convenient choice for those who refurbish and resell laptops, because you can purchase them in quantity for an additional discount. They should meet the needs of all or most of the computers you handle. One thing to keep in mind here though, is that some makers, such as Dell, limit the use of third-party power supplies. The adapters can be used to power the laptop, but are unable to change the battery.

Purchasing laptops to refurbish, or purchasing refurbished laptops for personal use is a great way to get a computer on the cheap. Often the discount for a missing power supply will exceed the cost of a new one, because of the perceived inconvenience. It’s not too difficult to find the power adapter you need though, and doing so can save you even more money.

Shopping:

Compaq Presario CQ62-210US Laptop PC

Dell D600 Laptop 1.6ghz 40gb DVD/CDRW B Grade Includes Genuine XP Professional restore cd!

Toshiba Satellite L505-ES5015 TruBrite 15.6-Inch Laptop (Silver/Black)

HP Pavilion DV4-2161NR 14.1-Inch Laptop (Digital Plaid)

Toshiba Satellite L505-GS5037 TruBrite 15.6-Inch Laptop (Black)

Cheap socket 478 refurbished motherboard

Brent — Wed, 09 Dec 2009 23:01:48 +0000

If you’re like me, you’re always trying to save money when you’re going out buying components. For example, one of the most heavily searched items on the search engines when dealing with motherboards is “cheap socket 478 refurbished motherboard.” I can tell from that phrase alone that people are interested in making sure that they don’t spend too much money for their motherboard. Now, socket 478 motherboards are some of the cheapest and most readily available motherboards on the market anyway, so it’s really a little useless in my opinion to be going for a refurbished model anyway. But! That’s neither here or there.

But really, since new socket 478 motherboards usually run between $50-$100 USD depending on the type of application they require (the type of processor, components attached, etc.), there’s no reason to not go with a new motherboard. These motherboards tend to be very delicate pieces of hardware that do require that each and every transistor, resistor, and capacitor be functional and attached as required. Used boards aren’t usually a good idea to go for unless you know and trust the person or company selling them. Refurbished motherboards tend to be of a little bit higher quality than a standard “used” one, but it’s important that you know the difference and are able to detect when a motherboard may actually be used (in the basic sense of the word) and not actually refurbished? Do you know the difference?

Well, a refurbished motherboard is just like a refurbished computer. It’s a board that’s probably been taken out of another computer that has been returned or scrapped, brought back to complete working condition, tested extensively, and put back out in the stores for sales. While these are usually very good and very cheap, there’s still a risk when buying one.

Why’s that? Well, no matter how well it’s been rebuilt, it’s still been rebuilt. There are still parts that could be showing signs of wear and will fail earlier than if you’d just bought one new. That’s why I always recommend buying cheaper components new. A laptop, okay, you could probably get away with getting one refurbished. A motherboard? C’mon, pony up the dough and just go for a new one. You’re going to save yourself a lot of hassle in the long term if you do it that way.

Anyway, cheap socket 478 refurbished motherboards are usually found at places like Amazon or TigerDirect. Check out either of them and I’m sure you’ll find what you’re looking for.

Shopping:

ASUS P6X58D Premium - LGA 1366 - X58 - DDR3 - USB 3.0 SATA 6 Gb/s - ATX Motherboard

Dell Factory Refurbished Genuine Dell Motherboard 4P515 / 4P518 Fits Dell Latitude C510/C610 and Inspiron 4100 Similar Part # 4P515, 4P518, 2K072, 7U256, 7D845, 4M984

Genuine Dell ATI Radeon Xpress 200 Socket 775 Intel Pentium 4 / Celeron MotherBoardFor Optiples GX320 SD or SMT (Small Mini Tower) Systems Part Numbers: MH651, CU395, UP453, TY915

Intel Core i7/i5 LGA1156 4DDR3-2200 CrossFireX/GBE/Raid/SATA3/USB3.0/7.1-CH ATX Motherboard GA-P55A-UD3

Genuine Dell Inspiron Intel G333 Express Chipset Nvidia MCP 61 MotherBoard For the Dell Inspiron 531 and 531s Small Desktop Mini Tower Part Numbers: RY206 / G679R

Using an automatic memory finder

Brent — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 22:10:09 +0000

So, which is better? Using an automatic memory finder or looking in your manual to try to determine which type of memory your laptop takes? If you’ve become absolutely frustrated by looking through your manuals (or heck, with these computers these days, even finding a manual can be tough), you definitely might want to consider going for an automatic memory finder instead. These tend to be pretty accurate, and will tell you just what type of memory your computer will take based on a number of factors. The automatic finder will look for certain details as the type of chipset your computer has, the type of memory installed, and others to determine which type of laptop you actually have. From there it will consult its own internal database to determine which type of memory should go into the laptop. What comes back is usually a pretty accurate description of the type of RAM it takes, and how much exactly the laptop will take. The second is very important to know. While there may be a number of open slots in the laptop that could physically take a large amount of RAM, the operating system and hardware itself may only be able to take a smaller amount of it. Case in point: My current laptop I’m writing this on will fit two PC2700 SDRAM modules without a problem, no matter the size. However, the laptop itself is limited to 2GB, even if it’ll physically take more. It’s something you need to know right off the bat before you place your order.

Automatic memory finders are also great if you simply can’t find your manuals. It’s a shame, but many of the cheap laptops are now coming with very little documentation, if any. You’re paying for a laptop that will be good to do basic things on; they don’t expect that you’ll spend a lot of time on upgrades and so forth. From my experience Compaq has been the worst about giving you actual paper manuals, but a little-known fact is that many manufacturers will give you manuals in the form of electronic ones. If you go into your help menu (F1), you can often find links to the manufacturer’s model-specific manuals either online or buried somewhere in your hard drive. This will have all the details about which type of RAM your computer will take, and even tell you how much it’ll take total. If you don’t trust an automatic memory finder, this may be the way to go.

Shopping:

NCAA Desk Lamp Team: University of Mississippi

Ultrasonic Distance Measurer with Laser Pointer

NCAA Desk Lamp Team: Iowa State University

Illinois Fighting Illini LED Desk Lamp

NCAA Desk Lamp Team: Duke University

Long flight? Get a laptop DVD drive

Brent — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 22:19:09 +0000

It’s hard to imagine a time when laptops didn’t all have a laptop DVD drive. Well, you’d be amazed to know that some right now don’t even come with them. While they’ve become standard on just about every laptop type being produced here in 2009, up until a couple years ago there were laptops that were still coming with a straight CD-ROM drive. How did they live?! But seriously, there are many people out there right now who don’t have DVD capability on their laptops. They can’t watch DVDs, and certainly can’t burn them. If you’re one of these people, have no fear. There is something you can do about it. You can actually buy laptop DVD drives these days and very easily retrofit your laptop to work with them.

There are two types of these drives: internal and external. Frankly, I think you should stick with the external DVD drives if you’re not familiar with the internal workings of how laptops operate. Few really are, and even those who do know what they’re doing have to be careful not to accidentally break some of the fragile components while doing their work. If you do want to go internal, take it to a professional. Seriously.

Now, an external laptop CD DVD drive is going to be your best bet for ease of installation, but not necessarily cost. While all you have to do when installing your external drive is just plug it in and perhaps install a driver or two, you’re going to pay for that convenience one way or another. DVD drive companies know that people are going to go for the easiest solution, so right off the bat the prices are going to be higher. Don’t worry, though. We’re not talking about hundreds of dollars here. There are external laptop DVD drives available for $50-$100, though the lower priced models are going to skip around quite a bit more and make your life a little annoying. But hey, if you’re on a budget there are worse things you can do.

An internal laptop DVD RW drive is going to be a little bit cheaper (no interface with USB needed), but you’re also going to pay for that lower price later on when it comes time for installation. With an internal drive you’re going to certainly need to take apart your laptop, which is never fun. Again, should you decide to do this, take it to a professional first. If you end up doing it yourself, you need to be okay with the idea that it’s possible to break your laptop. Backup all your data before you start installing your new DVD drive for your laptop.

Shopping:

USB 2.0 External Slim CD/DVD Drive Enclosure Case For Laptop Notebook CD-RW DVD Drive with IDE Connector (Only Case!!)

Slim external USB 2.0 Black CD/DVD Burner Enclosure case For Laptop Notebook slim drive [ only case included!! Dimensions: 5.2"(W) x 0.8"(H) x 5.5"(D) ]

24x10x24 USB 2.0 External Slim CDRW/8x DVD-ROM Drive (Black)

USB2.0 Slim Portable External Rewriteable 24x CD and 8x DVD +/- RW Drive, Read/write DVD Burner for Dell Inspiron Mini IM10 Mini IM12 mini 10 seires Laptop

NEW Slim USB 2.0 External Slim USB 2.0 CD-ROM Drive for all Laptop notebook

Having sound problems? Get a new laptop sound card

Brent — Thu, 03 Dec 2009 21:27:26 +0000

I bet half of you didn’t even know that you could replace a laptop sound card. Well, you can! It’s sometimes not as easy as if you had a PCI-equipped desktop PC that just allows the sound card to be slid out of the case, but it’s doable if you know what you’re looking for. Actually, let me just preface this whole article with this: It actually can be easier than a desktop PC sound card replacement. There are actually laptop sound cards that are external. Yes, you heard right: You can find a USB laptop sound card that plugs right into your computer’s USB port like any other peripheral. This is actually the preferred method of getting a new sound card, actually. You don’t want to be tearing your laptop’s case open trying to replace the card that came from the manufacturer. In fact, most of the time you just can’t; most newer laptops come with the sound card soldered onto the laptop motherboard. You’re going to have to get an external card.

Contrary to popular belief, a sound card for a laptop isn’t too expensive, even with the external varieties. Doing a Google search I’m seeing sound cards right off the shelf built for laptops that are $50-$150. Naturally the ones that sell for $150 are going to give you the best quality and features in the card itself. If you have a big subwoofer system and take your sound system seriously, you’re not going to want to skimp on this. That’s especially true if you use your laptop in conjunction with a media hard drive; you want to be able to stream your HD movies to your computer and watch them with the full effect of great sound and picture. Even if the picture looks great, a cheap external sound card for your laptop is going to ruin the experience, trust me on that.

What should you look for when buying such a card? The first thing you really need to do is go to an online review site and see what other users have to say about it before you buy. Large electronics sites online are a great source for this, as you’ll be able to find reviews on just about anything, good and bad. Do your research through there, and when you’re done, look at the specs. It’s important to look at features such as sound output mode and system compliant standards. You don’t want to go home with a USB sound card for your laptop that doesn’t fit well with your system.

Shopping:

External 5.1 USB 3D Audio Sound Card Adapter for PC Desktop Notebook Laptop

USB 2.0 External 5.1 Channel 3D Sound Card Adapter for PC Notebook Laptop

External 5.1 USB 3D Audio Sound Card Adapter for PC Desktop Notebook Laptop

PC133 memory isn’t tough to find

Brent — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 01:20:22 +0000

So how many of you are at a bit of a loss when it comes to finding good deals on PC133 memory? Heck, how many of you are a little frustrated when it comes to finding PC133 memory period? Have no fear: This type of memory is still widely available if you know where to look, and you know the different types that are offered. There are many types of RAM being made today, so ensuring that you really need PC133 is the first step in determining where you should get your memory.

The first thing you really need to do is go use a commercial laptop memory finder. Use the one over at Crucial’s website; this is probably the most comprehensive one, and includes an “auto detect” function that will do a pretty good job at ensuring that you get the type of memory that your laptop actually takes. If it does require PC133, it’ll let you know ahead of time. As I said in that last post, don’t always just go by this. These finders can be and are wrong at times; make sure that you’re looking at your manuals before making any big purchases.

PC133 memory is actually another name for standard PC2100 memory; it’s just a different name that some people call it by. Why’s it called PC133 then? It has to do with the clock speed of the RAM module itself. The 133 in PC133 refers to the fact that it has a clock speed of 133 MHz. It’s actually not much if you’re keeping track. Newer memory modules often have close to double that; newer laptops will usually come with PC3200, which has a clock speed of 200 MHz and above. As such, you’ll usually find these PC133 SDRAM memory modules on older machines.

Laptops made in the early 2000s are more likely to have this than models produced later on. You might still find laptops that run cheap PC133 memory, but they will tend to be the “budget” laptops people are usually able to pick up at Best Buy for cheap.

PC133 memory RAM isn’t a bad chip, though. It does its job just fine, and can actually be found for pretty cheaply at major online stores. The large physical stores such as Best Buy may not carry them, but you’ll find better deals online anyway. Check out Amazon, TigerDirect, and others for solid deals. Since there are new and improved modules out that blow PC133 out of the water, the price will be right.

Shopping:

Kingston ValueRAM 256MB PC133 SDRAM DIMM Desktop Memory KVR133Q/256R (Retail)

PNY OPTIMA 256MB SDR 100/133 MHz PC100/PC133 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN0256SSD-100/133

Generic 512 MB PC133 SDRAM

PNY OPTIMA 512MB SDR 100/133 MHz PC100/PC133 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN0512SSD-100/133

256MB PC133 Dimm

Does your laptop take PC2100 memory?

Brent — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:46:15 +0000

PC2100 memory has in the past been one of the most popular types of DDR SDRAM in production. Just like its PC2700 cousin, it’s a type of memory stick that’s been in mass production in laptops for years. PC2100 memory is much like the other types of DDR RAM; it’s a double data rate type of memory that allows a large amount of data to be processed in a short period of time. Quite simply, this is done by “double pumping” the RAM to increase the bandwidth by about 100% over its predecessors. While I don’t want to go into the technical reasons behind this, all you need to know is that it creates a noticeable increase in performance in your laptop without increasing the amount of the RAM installed. A single 1 GB stick of PC2100 memory may feel faster than a comparable amount of non-DDR type RAM.

So, does your laptop take PC2100 DDR memory or something else? It’s pretty much a given that laptops built in the last 10 years take DDR, but it’s up to you now to figure out which type. DDR SDRAM tends to come in various types: PC-1600 is the first type of DDR that was introduced way back in the day. This can usually be found on the older laptops that were made back in the mid to late 1990s. This type of memory isn’t normally seen much anymore. However, after that came PC2100 notebook memory; this is the second generation of this RAM style, and has since been made obsolete by later types such as PC2700 and PC3200. The PC2100 is a 133 MHz bus speed, which isn’t very fast if you’re looking for a performance machine. Truth be told, if your laptop still takes this type of memory, you may want to get a new computer before trying to play games that take a lot of your computer’s performance.

So, where would you find good PC2100 DDR SDRAM memory? Great places to do this are the typical memory hot spots: Crucial is a great source of RAM as always. You can also find great deals on RAM at sites such as TigerDirect and NewEgg, but you probably already knew I was going to say that. If you’re looking for a good “brick and mortar” store, look at Fry’s Electronics. While many stores won’t carry PC2100 memory anymore, there’s a solid bet that you can find it at Fry’s, and barring that, you’ll have no problem finding it online still.

Shopping:

KB 1GB PC2100 DDR 266 CL2 ECC Registered 184 Pin

ValueRAM 512MB 266MHZ DDR SDRAM-PC2100 ECC DIMM ( KVR266X72C2/512 )

Generic 512 MB PC2100 DDR Memory

ACP-EP Memory 512MB PC2100 200-PIN DDR 266MHz SODIMM (MAC and PC)

Future Memory 1 GB PC2100 DDR 184-PIN DIMM 266 MHZ ECC Memory FMD1128X72R266LDX4

Can I trust a laptop memory finder?

Brent — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:45:02 +0000

Have you ever used a laptop memory finder? If you have, you probably have noticed that they can be hit or miss. Most of them are pretty decent; the ones from major memory manufacturers are usually pretty solid and do a good job at making sure you get the right type of memory. However, laptop memory finders from less-established sites and companies can be a little suspect. Those memory finders might not have all the data about your laptop, and can give you inaccurate data just to get you to buy something you don’t really need. Be careful.

So, we’re going to talk about a couple memory finder applications that can really be worth your time and money. Most importantly, these will ensure that you’re actually getting the type of RAM that your computer actually needs. This is what really matters, doesn’t it?

I’d have to say that Crucial’s laptop memory finder is probably the best. You can put in your exact make and model of laptop and it’ll spit out what type of memory your laptop takes, plus the amount that your laptop can handle period (also a great thing to know before you go out and buy 8 GB worth!). I don’t work for this company so please don’t feel that I’m pushing my wares on you. I’m just telling you what I really think about the place, and I think it’s solid. I’ve bought plenty of RAM through their site previously using their memory finder for laptops. Check it out.

Most reputable sites these days even have an “auto check” function that’ll actually take all the guesswork out of the process. If you really don’t know the brand of laptop, this is the thing for you. I have to caution you again, though: You really should know what type of laptop you have before you get started on this venture. These tools are sometimes wrong; if the tool does get it wrong you’re not going to know any better. This is also a good reason to check your manuals before you get started (you do have manuals don’t you?). But, an automatic laptop memory finder is better than no finder at all, so if you really trust the results the computer spits out, go for it. Oh, and don’t let me forget: If you’re not new to working on computers, you can even open up the bottom part of your laptop and compare the picture of the RAM on the screen (the finder program will show you a picture generally). If the two match, there’s a very good chance that what it says is correct. Still, do your homework.

Shopping:

PNY OPTIMA 512MB DDR 333 MHz PC2700 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN0512SD1-333

PNY OPTIMA 1GB DDR2 533 MHz PC2-4200 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN1024SD2-533

Corsair 4 GB DDR3 Laptop Memory Kit CMSO4GX3M2A1333C9

MINOLTA F15B MEMORY MAKER III BIG VIEW FINDER

PNY OPTIMA 2GB DDR2 667 MHz PC2-5300 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN2048SD2-667

Buying PC2700 memory for a laptop

Brent — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 22:01:06 +0000

If you’re like me, you like to really make the laptops you own absolutely beasts. What’s the first step in doing that, usually? Getting some great memory is usually the first stop we make, which in many laptops is PC2700 memory. This is a very common type of laptop RAM that has created a whole new world of opportunity for people to make their laptops fly. The benefit of having a PC2700-equipped laptop is that it’s a cheap RAM type, and it’s very readily available. You can pick up PC2700 up just about anywhere you can buy memory these days. You’re not going to go running around looking for this stuff not able to find it.

So what’s the big deal about this type of memory anyway? Why’s it so good at what it does? Well, it’s a type of “dual channel” memory. The exact acronym is “DDR,” which stands for “Double Data Rate.” This is an SDRAM (Synchronous DRAM) subtype. Okay, sorry, enough techno-babble. What you really need to know is that PC2700 DDR memory almost doubles the throughput of traditional RAM with the way the chip is designed. That means that it can handle twice the data in the same amount of time; this means that it effectively doubles the speed at which it works. That’s a good thing for you. Even a marginal increase in RAM (say, from 512MB to 1GB) can provide very serious gains in performance. Heck, I went from 1GB to 2GB in my current laptop and could tell the difference right as I started up the computer. It’s that good.

Did I mention PC2700 laptop memory is cheap? I think I did actually, but it bears repeating. You can go visit sites that can offer you significant savings. Heck, I’m looking on Google right now finding this stuff for an absolute steal. $57 for a full gig of 200-pin PC2700 DDR333? Just a few years ago that was unheard of. Get this stuff while it’s cheap, everybody.

You can find these types of prices mostly online, but if you have access to a store like Fry’s Electronics you can definitely find PC2700 DDR DIMM memory (the usual type you’d see in laptops) for next to nothing. That $57 figure can probably even be beat depending on where you go.

So I hope that’s answered a few questions, guys. Check out some retailers online and see what you think. Until next time.

Shopping:

PNY OPTIMA 1GB DDR 333 MHz PC2700 Desktop DIMM Memory Module MD1024SD1-333

PNY OPTIMA 512MB DDR 333 MHz PC2700 Desktop DIMM Memory Module MD0512SD1-333

PNY OPTIMA 4GB (2x2GB) Dual Channel Kit DDR2 667 MHz PC2-5300 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Modules MN4096KD2-667

PNY OPTIMA 1GB DDR 333 MHz PC2700 Notebook / Laptop SODIMM Memory Module MN1024SD1-333

Crucial Technology 512MB 184-Pin PC2700 333Mhz DIMM DDR RAM