MobileArtist Posted April 17, 2009 Report Share Posted April 17, 2009 If there ever was a laptop that merited a gpu upgrade it would be the 20.1 HP HDX Dragon. The card in the Dragon is an MXM 8800m gts. When I bought it an HP Tech told me the gpu was upgradeable. Similarly am HP tech in Holland told me the same. Naysayers say the cards are proprietary, and the bios presents another obstacle. I would be interested in pursuing this with like-minded people. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MobileArtist Posted April 22, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 22, 2009 I must admit this is a lonely thread. I was hoping either an HDX Dragon owner or an Nvidia MXM enthusiast would add some insight. Once again, the Dragon is an amazing device with its 20.1 inch screen and audio system. An MXM upgrade to a Quadro 3700M would be incredible if possible. Does anyone know of an MXM expert that could pursue this or attemp an upgrade? I contacted MXM upgrade in Belgium, but despite their friendliness and willingness to help they know nothing about this laptop with respect to an MXM upgrade. I'd appreciate any help or insight. One thing is clear...vendors don't want you fiddling with their MXMs. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zipper Posted April 22, 2009 Report Share Posted April 22, 2009 Might work as HP has FX 3700M in 1730w - but where to get it and how much does it cost - I'd guess nearer $1000 than $500. But is it MXM or proprietary - no idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eugene2878 Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 Might work as HP has FX 3700M in 1730w - but where to get it and how much does it cost - I'd guess nearer $1000 than $500. But is it MXM or proprietary - no idea. I hace HDX Dragon myself now, but as I found out from this forum the card can not be upgraded. See http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread...32&page=523 But I aslo thought if say I could get and HP card like fx 3700 may be it can be possible but people says not, because bios would not support any other mxm cards. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zipper Posted April 26, 2009 Report Share Posted April 26, 2009 It's very probable; 1710/30 instead do house different cards - Quadro FX 1600, 2700, 3700. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MobileArtist Posted April 28, 2009 Author Report Share Posted April 28, 2009 The Dragon does have an MXM card. I wouldn't look at the Notebooreview post as definitive. The card may or may not be proprietary and MXM Upgrade gives a different designation for type. If you read about MXM you'll find that vendors discourage any active inquiry into upgrade possibilities as MXM was envisioned as a way for computer makers to upgrade the offerings they manufacture more easily. Despite this, a number of people have successfully upgraded the gpus in their notebooks. The Dragon is uncharted territory, Have a beautful day Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MobileArtist Posted July 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 A very enterprising and fine tech tried to install a 280M GTX GPU into the HDX Dragon. He was able to get the card to boot to Windows, but the screen was fuzzy VGA. Then he used a modded Nvidia driver which maximizes performance, and he got the card to properly identify itself as the 280M GTX with the right ID and proper number of shaders. But that's as far as he got, asserting that he would need to modify the BIOS...impossible without the HP BIOS tools. Another fellow stepped in. He pointed out that the Video BIOS is separate from the MOBO BIOS. He said that to proceed he would need a tool which is able to understand the BIOS format in the HDX. Only then, he said, could he extract the video bios and either update it or replace it with the 280GTX BIOS. After that he tried to extract the video bios from the HDX bios files using hexeditor. It failed. He assumed that it is somehow encrypted. He tried to dump the BIOS in DOS. He was able to do that partially but still parts of the BIOS remained encrypted. Does anyone have any insight here? It seemed to me the fact that the first technician was able to get the card to boot in Windows was promising, and that with a better driver he was able to get the card to identify itself. Thanks for any input. MA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Darris Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 A very enterprising and fine tech tried to install a 280M GTX GPU into the HDX Dragon. He was able to get the card to boot to Windows, but the screen was fuzzy VGA.Then he used a modded Nvidia driver which maximizes performance, and he got the card to properly identify itself as the 280M GTX with the right ID and proper number of shaders. But that's as far as he got, asserting that he would need to modify the BIOS...impossible without the HP BIOS tools. Another fellow stepped in. He pointed out that the Video BIOS is separate from the MOBO BIOS. He said that to proceed he would need a tool which is able to understand the BIOS format in the HDX. Only then, he said, could he extract the video bios and either update it or replace it with the 280GTX BIOS. After that he tried to extract the video bios from the HDX bios files using hexeditor. It failed. He assumed that it is somehow encrypted. He tried to dump the BIOS in DOS. He was able to do that partially but still parts of the BIOS remained encrypted. Does anyone have any insight here? It seemed to me the fact that the first technician was able to get the card to boot in Windows was promising, and that with a better driver he was able to get the card to identify itself. Thanks for any input. MA There's an awsome guide here on modifying VGA BIOS. Maybe something there can help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MobileArtist Posted July 8, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 Thanks for the response. Unfortunately the link didn't work for me. Do you have the URL? HP tends to encrypt everything. The gentleman who tried to install the 280M also said he'd need the HP BIOS tools. Is he incorrect? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Point Oh Posted August 10, 2009 Report Share Posted August 10, 2009 The problem with the HDX's BIOS is, if any "mod" is not done perfectly, you can easily brick the HDX. And its BIOS has no known recovery method. Experimenting with it is lethal. So I would seriously advise on going another route. What's more is that the HDX may not supply enough power (current/voltage) to support MXM cards with 75w TDP(thermal design power). Seeing as their card (8800M GTS) is custom designed for the HDX, I have a strong suspicion that HP implemented their own specifications concerning MXM III. While the form factor is correct, the electrical specification likely are to their (HP's) spec. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Two Point Oh Posted June 2, 2010 Report Share Posted June 2, 2010 It appears that someone from Poland has managed to get a 280M GTX in the HDX. You can read about it over on Notebookreview. Details should be forthcoming as this was tried once without success. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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