07. Video Adapter Replacement
The procedure of removing and installing of a VGA is simple and well described in “C90 Disassembly Procedure” on page 2-7.
The choice of a replacement video card for C90S it should be an easy task and in theory every MXM card Type II (73x78) and Type I (70x68) will work. In practice the MXM cards are not selling to the end customer because the GPU’s manufactures AMD & NVidia have contracts only with the laptop manufactures which are the end clients. Besides that the laptop companies are “customizing” their products in a way that prevents to use them on different systems. One drastic example is Toshiba’s approach to remove the Video BIOS (vBIOS) chip from their ATI Radeon HD Mobility 4650 / 1GB DDR3 and make the vBIOS as a part from the system’s one.
Don’t confuse the right of the companies to customize their products with our wish to use them in C90S. Every manufacture has its own policy(s) implemented at vBIOS level and/or at System BIOS (sBIOS) too. That’s why there is no warranty that a MXM II/I video adapter will work in our C90S.
Something more - the existence of a new MXM video card for C90S it will be a paradox … and this paradox comes from Acer. All of the Acer’s ATI video cards that I’ve tried they are working flawlessly, just Plug & Play. Thank You Acer!
Here you are some pictures of the video cards with short information regarding to their respective models and performance.
Pic. #1: C90S Compatible MXM II Video AdaptersThe results are dependable from the system architecture, the version of the video driver and the operating system. That is why I consider a difference from about 100 points as negligible. In that connection I can’t say that ATI Mobility 4650 DDR3 is faster or slower than NVidia 240M DDR3.
NVidia world famous 8600M ( Specifications )
That is the face of the bad guy, the source of all my troubles.
Pic. #2: NVidia 8600M GT 512MB DDR3 (front)
Pic. #3: NVidia 8600M GT 512MB DDR3 (back)
NVidia 9600M GT 512MB DDR3 ( Specifications )
This card works on C90S. To be mounted requires a modification of the original heatsink. All cards except those with the original NVidia vBIOS version will require a vBIOS modification. For the best results use a heatsink from the “ASME” family!
Pic. #4: NVidia 9600M GT 512MB DDR3 (front)
Pic. #5: NVidia 9600M GT 512MB DDR3 (back)
NVidia Quadro FX 770M 512MB DDR3 ( Specifications )
There is information that this card works on C90S. It requires modifications of the vBIOS and the original heatsink. The layout is in green.
NVidia 240M GT 1GB DDR3 ( Specifications )
This card works on C90S and it is the best NVidia with its 40 nm. It requires vBIOS modification and a heatsink from the “ASME” family. The 4 holes on the PCB for the heatsink attachment are with the same diameter as on 8600M. With other words you’ll be able to use the mounting back plate from 8600M with the 240M GT card.
Pic. #6: NVidia 240M GT 1GB DDR3 (front)
Pic. #7: NVidia 240M GT 1GB DDR3 (back)
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470 256MB DDR2 ( Specifications )
This card works at 100% on C90S, just Plug & Play with Acer vBIOS. It's the coolest ATI HD Mobility with a perfect hardware and software compatibility. The Blu-ray & HDMI are without any problem at all resolutions. The card requires a modification of the original heatsink. I am using the card with the “ASME Easy” 4.0
Pic. #8: The Front
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470 256MB DDR2
Pic. #9: The Back
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3470 256MB DDR2
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 512MB DDR2 / 256MB DDR3 ( Specifications )
The both versions DDR2 and DDR3 of the card are working at 100% on C90S, just Plug & Play with Acer vBIOS. The PCB layout of the DDR3 version is different and has only 4 Qimonda memory chips from the GPU side. It's my choice for a VGA. The software and hardware integration are perfect. No conflicts at any levels, stable with incredible balance and performance! The Blu-ray & HDMI are without any problem at any resolution (TV Sony KDL-46Z5500). Mobility HD 3650 is fully compatible at hardware, driver and application levels. Thanks AMD! Thank You, Kin Ho Chan!
Pic. #10: The Front
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 512MB DDR2
Pic. #11: The Back
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 3650 512MB DDR2
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650 1GB DDR2 / 512MB DDR3 / 1GB DDR3 ( Specifications )
The original C90S cooling design can’t handle this card. You will see its beauty only with the “ASME” Heatsink family. The DDR2 version from Acer is with a layout in red.
The DDR3 version is the one that deserves attention. It comes from Toshiba with a blue layout and unfortunately requires hardware (soldering of the BIOS chip M25P05 with required resistors 10K 0402 SMD) and software (BIOS and Video Drives) modifications before to be run on C90S. I did it and the results are impressive as well as the mod that will be described step by step with all the bits and details when I have time. The Toshiba’s part number of the video card is “K000075440” and behind it is hiding “Toshiba M96 1G DDR3 VGA LS-5001P” aka “ATI Mobility HD Radeon 4650 / 1GB / DDR3”.
For me the 1GB DDR3 version is the best gaming card for C90S. Here you are the pictures of Toshiba’s video card (the missing BIOS & resistors are outlined in red).
ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4670 1GB DDR2 / 512MB DDR3 ( Specifications )
The original C90S cooling design can’t deal with the produced heat from the card. The most powerful VGA for C90S is perfectly handled by the “ASME” Heatsink family. The DDR2 version is with a layout in blue while the DDR3 is in green. The DDR3 version is the one that deserves attention but I can’t find it. As far as I know only the MSI EX625 laptop was equipped with it.