Area-51m R2, i7k 10 gen processor upgrade

Finally a straight answer, thanks crimson. 

 so I couldn’t go from i7 to i7k but it is possible to go to i9, the intel chips are pretty easy to get hold of it’s the 2080 super which I’m struggling to find, any ideas ?

Yeah can’t find them anywhere, dell just passes you from sales to technical without actually giving you a straight answer, the intel processor is pretty easy to get, do you know if I can go from i7 to i7k or just to i9 ? 

The wording from the Dell document makes it sound like a no, and that makes some sense -- the mainboard used for the systems that ship with unlocked CPUs is very likely different from the one that has the processor multiplier lock enabled.

Strange, as it’s advertised as cpu and gpu upgradable on every site that sells them, including dell. 

Any upgradeability has its limits -- in that the model in question is one of the only systems left that has a socketed CPU and a GPU that's on a plug-in board (whereas the vast majority of other systems have both soldered onto the mainboard), it is upgradeable within limits.

It is not uncommon for OEM systems (notebooks included) to have a different mainboard supporting unlocked CPUs vs locked ones -- that may or may not be the case here, but the text of Dell's publications make me suspicious that it is the case with this model.  You can upgrade an i7-K CPU to an i9-K -- but not an i7 CPU to a -K processor.

Pgraham93,

Apologies that you have been transferred unnecessarily. Those teams failed to use the correct Dell tools. You are also correct in showing that the online Area-51m R2 Service Manual pages 60-63 show how to remove/install both the CPU and GPU.

The problem is that none of the parts below are available to Dell spare parts to sell. The parts are reserved for new systems sold and for in warranty defective parts replacements. They all show the notation, "For Sale: No". That does not mean that you could not search for those Dell part numbers on the web to find a reseller that might have them.

C2T71 i7-10700K (3.80GHz/125W/8C) CPU
35G7Y i9-10900 (2.80GHz/65W/10C) CPU
3PH75 i9-10900K (3.70GHz/125W/10C) CPU
7CPGJ Nvidia RTX 2080S GPU

The i7 CPUs for this system are very readily available.  Example:

https://www.newegg.com/intel-core-i7-10700k-core-i7-10th-gen/p/N82E16819118123?Description=i7-10700K&cm_re=i7-10700K-_-19-118-123-_-Product&quicklink=true

Given the general unavailability of GPUs in general, it's not unusual that GPU cards for this system are similarly unavailable - the manufacturer can't build the cards using GPU chips it cannot source.

can’t find them anywhere, I’ve even been to my local computer repair shop and he’s also having difficulty finding them, the intel chips for retail have socket LGA 1200, is this what’s needed ? And the compatible nividia graphics cards are impossible to find.

That is a unacceptable that a customer should be left searching the parts on a just over one year old laptop.

On top extended warranty can only be added for a maximum of 4 years. So after 4 years we will all end up searching the web for spare parts.

Terrible business, customer satisfaction decison sir.

Look at the pre-shortages cost of a 3080 desktop card (around $1000) and what they go for now ($3000), and take the cost of an Area-51m R1 GPU (they were about $1,200) and multiply by the same factor.  Would you be willing to pay $3,600 to upgrade your GPU, assuming the parts were available?

are the area 51m r2 only supposed to have two ram slots?

The system has two soDIMM slots, yes.

I'm questioning the Form Factor of this beast, my Alienware, with how bulky it is, would it be possibly getting a custom motherboard into my Alienware Area 51m R2. The only reason why I'm asking, I do not like the new skinny laptops and prefer the bulkier models. Based on current preferences, I feel bulkier models do not appear frequently in the market any longer.