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Propriotary hardware

Gallstaff - May 10, 2003

		Gallstaff		May 10, 2003
			Ice just told me that my old shitty gateway could not be updated with a new mobo becuase all the hardware used inside it will only fit in this specially deisgned gateway case. Is this true? I will hae to get all new parts and a new case if I want a computer that can be easily updated then?

		Nadius		May 10, 2003
			As far as i know, yes. You can upgrade, but only directly from Gateway.... I would also think that there are other retailers that deal with proprietary and oem equipment.

		gameboy900		May 10, 2003
			Welcome to the wonderful world of brandname computers. The basic rule is that for 99% of computers that come with some sort of brandname you will not have an easy time upgrading them. The only notable exception to that is the recent DELL pc's which actually are quite nicely upgradeable. Depending on what you want to upgrade it may mean just buying a new case.

		ExCyber		May 11, 2003
			I think some Gateway models use standard cases, but it's probably only the (semi)custom ones rather than the retail ones...

		racketboy		May 11, 2003
			some dell parts are propreitary

		gamefoo21		May 11, 2003
			evil packard bell welded the damned cpu to the socket i hate crazy glue hahaha and they rewrote the bios to only accept a certain config but other than that the thing is stock except have you ever seen simms dual linked to act like slow dimms. that is how cheap packard bell was. i am serious the chipset isn't compatible with simms HeH some very interesting wiring.

		racketboy		May 11, 2003
			haha -- I remember Packard Bell I'm working on a older Compaq Presario right now -- man do those blow. It's got like some huge, proprietary hard drive on the top of the case. The it's got the power supply on the middle of the side of the case so you can't reach anything in the case.

		Curtis		May 11, 2003
			I'll bet the new iMacs (with the LCD screen) are a total bitch to work with. You must need to disassemble the entire unit to do anything.

		Gallstaff		May 11, 2003
			Haha you mean those little half circle ones? You're right, I can only imagine the weird-ass nazi parts they use in those.

racketboy

May 11, 2003

	
	
		
		
			Originally posted by Gallstaff@May 12, 2003 @ 12:23 AM



 Haha you mean those little half circle ones? You're right, I can only imagine the weird-ass nazi parts they use in those.

They showed the insides at Tom's Hardware -- nothing too much worse than a laptop

		IceDigger		May 11, 2003
			I'm glad I don't deal with macs As a tech I see all different kinds of computer brands and some just boggle the mind as WTF were the computer designers thinking!?

		Taelon		May 11, 2003
			What I never understand is why they DO make proprietary crap like this... You'd think using industry-standard, off-the-shelf components would be CHEAPER for them to do...

		gamefoo21		May 11, 2003
			propriotory hardware does one thing it forces you to toss the comp and get a new one sorta like mac's hahaha. since you can't stick off the shelf stuff in it so they get you in the end and still make more money.

		racketboy		May 11, 2003
			mac aren't THAT bad. (at least the powermacs) at least you can upgrade the most common stuff like RAM, hard drive, video card, etc.

		AntiPasta		May 12, 2003
			the regular Imacs are a bitch, too. I had to use a saw because one of the screw's heads was so weak it couldn't be opened (even tho it was the first time) and the harddisk barely fits into it's space. But in response to the original question, some Gateways are pretty easy to upgrade. I have this G7-450 standing here, I replaced it's mobo several times (you need to alter the front panel connector a bit, but it's easy) and about everything in it is common. The CPU's fan is on the power supply, but that doesn't really matter as you can always install a new heatsink+fan. On the other hand, I had another Gateway, a 166mhz Pentium one, which was proprietary all over

		racketboy		May 12, 2003
			yeah usually, the cheaper the computer, the more propietary and/or non-upgradable it is

		Gallstaff		May 12, 2003
			Yeah I just cracked open my newer gateay and it seems hardly propriotary at all. Just like the processor is mounted weirdly so I cant get to it with these tools, but meh. My old one, sweet god. The processor was ENCASED in like a plastic vault and the mobo was under all thse weir metal and shit.