mini PCI to mini PCIe adapter

I was looking around for mini PCIe adapters and I was suprised to find that you can buy a mini PCI to mini PCIe adapter.

http://www.amfeltec.com/products/flexible-minipci-to-minipcie-adapter.php

There are more mini PCIe devices available and this looks like it'll be a fanastic way to get a mini PCIe device into the Alienware Aurora m7700.

Thoughts - Upgrading notebook computers

In this blog, I focus on upgrading and to some degree modding notebook computers.  In general, upgrading notebook computers is not something that's discussed and when it is discussed, it's usually isolated to RAM and hard drive upgrades.  Granted that anything other than RAM and hard drive upgrades tend to be more difficult to perform.  So the question I'm going to answer is, "Why?"

Windows 8 and older computers

When Windows 8 went RTM, I downloaded the ISO that day and because I only seem to have old computers in my house, I tried to install Windows 8 on them.  Right off the bat, I'm at strike 2.

According to reports, Windows 8 is DESIGNED to run on netbooks, see review of Windows 8 Developer Preview and netbooks here.  Windows 8 was meant to be lighter and more efficient.  There are fewer running processes than Windows 7 and has a lower memory footprint than Windows 7.  All of these reports in theory should make Windows 8 faster than Windows 7.  The question then is, why is doesn't Windows 8 work as efficient or better than Windows 7 on my old notebook computers which works well with Windows 7 and can run laps around netbooks any day of the week.  This should be easy!

Thoughts - Return of the Ultraportable Notebook

With the advent of the netbook, marketing and mass public enthusiasm killed the high performance ultraportable notebook computer.  I'm not kidding with the whole "killed" word either.  High performance ultraportable notebooks (smaller than 12 inches) no longer exist.  The Sony VAIO TT (11.1") disappeared from sale in the US in 2009 (http://www.engadget.com/2009/08/19/vaio-tt-disappears-from-sonys-us-site/).  Since then, there have been no products released to fill the gap, at least in the US.  Interestingly enough, Panasonic continues to offer the high performance 12.1" CF-NX and the 10.1" CF-J10 notebook computers.

MsMpEng.exe Hell

MsMpEng.exe is the antispyware component of Microsoft Defender antivirus software suite.  It's also part of the commercial Microsoft ForeFront antivirus software suite.

I run a Intel Core i5 M520 dual core processor running at 2.40 GHz, however, when MsMpEng.exe kicks in, the CPU utilization spikes to 100%.  The system becomes completely unresponsive until MsMpEng.exe completes.

PCI and PCI Express Notebook Expansion

I haven't tried one of these myself, but I'm highly tempted to get one.  I read about it here on forums.nvidia.com.

Magma creates an external expansion system that works with both laptops and desktops:

• The PCI expansion system allows you to expand the number of PCI slots using ExpressCard/34, ExpressCard/54, OR CardBus.  For desktops, you have the option of a PCI Express host card or a PCI host card.  Find it here at Magma.  PCI video cards still exist and a quick search on newegg.com shows acceptable PCI cards.
• The PCI Express expansion system allows you to expand the number of PCI Express slots  using ExpressCard/34 ONLY.  For desktops, a PCI Express host adapter.  Find it here at Magma.
• For those of you with a Thunderbolt port, a Thunderbolt PCI Express expansion system is available here at Magma.

This upgrade doesn't come without a price.  As of 2012-05-03, the PCI expansion system for 1 slot is 1159 USD, the PCI Express expansion system for 1 slot is 829 USD, and the Thunderbolt PCI Express expansion system for 3 PCI Express slots is 979 USD.

Make sure you look over the specifications as there are bandwidth and power restrictions.  Check the compatibility page for more information.

Update 2014-01-11

A while back, I ran into something called a ViDock (Video Dock) or eGPU (External GPU). Search for DIY ViDock or DIY eGPU. It's an external PCI express slot outside a laptop with a standard ATX power supply powering the video card. It hooks up to a laptop using a mini PCIe card or a ExpressCard interface. There are more professional versions of the ViDock (for example, Village Instruments ViDock, VillageTronic ViDock, etc) if you don't feel like doing it yourself and don't want to pay for the Magma premium. Definitely an interesting setup. I haven't tried it myself, but it looks like fun!

• http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5846&review=how+to+upgrade+laptop+graphics+notebook
• http://forum.notebookreview.com/e-gpu-external-graphics-discussion/397667-lets-figure-out-how-make-diy-egpu-previously-diy-vidock.html
• http://forum.techinferno.com/diy-e-gpu-projects/2109-diy-egpu-experiences-%5Bversion-2-0%5D.html

Dell Latitude E6410 Upgrade

I have a Dell Latitude E6410 for work and I have to say, I like the laptop.  The build is good and it's very easy to service.  It has one plate on the bottom that exposes all the components including the heatsink and fan assembly, CPU and GPUs.