Build your own laptop

Intel 945GM/PM

The best choice for an Intel laptop at the moment is the Core 2 Duo platform, it has the same possibilities as the desktop model, but uses a different socket and a slower front side bus, 667Mhz in stead of the 1066MHz the desktop model uses. As a result of this the chipsets are different as well, most Intel notebooks now use the 945GM or PM chipset.The GM has an integrated graphics chip that is relatively slow, the PM can be cobined with a faster nVidia or ATI graphics chip. When looking for a powerfull notebook we would advise the PM chipset.

The 945 chipset supports a maximum of 2GB DDR2 -667 memory, and although 2GB DIMMs are now on the market, it is unclear of all versions of the chipset support a total of 4GB. Hard disks are almost all SATA, but there are still some older PATA models around, so you have to pay attention when shopping for a notebook hard disk. DVD writers are widely available, but most barebones will already have one of these built in. The last thing to take into consideration is the WLAN adapter, modern laptops use a MiniCard, a compact version of PCI-Express x1. The model most used is the Intel Pro/Wireless 3945ABG, compatible with the 802.11 a/b and g standard.

To test the theory we decided to start and build our own laptop, which proved to be easier than we thought. We chose a Compal EL80 barebone, it supports the Intel Celeron M 4XX-series, Core Solo, Core Duo and Core 2 Duo Mobile processors. The barebone sports a 15,4 inch widescreen TFT and a nVidia GeForce 7600 Go (256 MB), so very suitable for a powerfull laptop.

We used the Compal EL80 barebone.