Good day everyone. I am new to this site, and hoping to get some input. I have a older Gateway, around 7 years old. Using XP AMD processor,951 mhz, with 640 of ram. Is there anything i can upgrade that won't cost a arm and a leg?. I use the machine ony for surfing the web, no gaming at all.

Thanks in advance,


Belize

Not really. Most modern AMD CPUs use a different socket type, so you would have to look to the second hand market for a cpu upgrade, and upgrading the motherboard itself is probably not worth it as dell, hp, gateway tend to use nonstandard sized cases and / or power supplies

640 ram should be suficcient for surfing the web etc...

Theres not much you can do to upgrade this machine. It shouldnt be too slow though, it probably just needs a spring clean

Hi Belize,

You could probably almost double the processor speed if you know where to look, also, could you give us some details of the motherboard spec?

Let us know what socket type the cpu is currently (im guessing maybe socket A?)

Im sure someone may have a few links for you with old processors of the type you require that will be faster for you.

Having said all that, its probably a better investment getting a new pc unless you will be happy using it for another good couple of years for general use

Hope that helps!

Socket A or Socket 939 yeah

But i personally think a new pc would probably be better.

with surfing being ur only need i dont see a reason as to why u should upgrade.
However if ur Pc is too slow ,it may be due to the rigours of the 7 year long performance...
A clean up of ur software, or a clean os installation should do u a fine job as far as getting maximum speed from ur PC.

If U plan to get a new PC soon you can invest in good LCD monitor as it will enhance your web experience immensely(i assume u have a crt monitor)

^^^^

I Agree, thats often the best way if you dont wanna really spend any money, shame xp doesnt have ready boost also

I wonder also.. what size is the harddrive? as small capacity harddrives often result in slow performance, so upgrading it to a large capacity would also be useful (to some extent), and would be nice n cheap with it being an older PATA connection, but depends very much on what its running with currently in terms of how much of a difference that kind of thing would make.

Wrong. Faster RPM and bigger cache = better performance. Increased raw size actually leads to decreased performance.

also a) readyboost is a scam and b) he doesnt need it as he has 640mb of ram and c) it would slow his pc down even more as he has usb 1.1 probably

Good point, usb ports would be useless anyway in this case,

Id have thought that a newer harddrive (regardless of capacity) would ALSO have a faster RPM and cache, and i guess depends if its actually 'clogged up' with too much data etc too

u can go for a new hard disk but be sure to check iwhat size max ur bios supports

For internet use Your computer is sufficient. Neither upgrade helps You. Use every week free programs to cleen registry, history...: CCleaner and EasyCleaner. EasyCleaner--> Startup manage programs starting automatically on startup(consult first before delete) .Your desktop should be almost empty.Only MyComputer, Trash, MyNet, MyDocuments, some folders with no big files. Your wallpaper should be small. Secure Yor computer with Kaspersky Anti-Virus - free trial. Some viruses and other threats slow down computer. A few times in the year defragment hard disc volumens. In System Properties --> Visual Effects select Best Performance.

quuba