Computers & Tablets

[bobberuchi]

Maybe maybe not.  it is a little confusing but think of a mainboard and a processor as legos on a green lego base board.

If you have a yellow lego shaped with 6 nobs you can put any other lego of the same exact shape on top of it and there will be a variety of colors

There are many different motherboards.  The mother boards each have a socket set that accepts the cpu.  There are a variety of socket sets and a variety of differt cpu's.  and not all i7's are the same.

However, to determine upgrade ability you will need to tell us your exact model number.

However, I just picked a slimline at random from the HP web site and checked the specs.

This system uses what is called System on a Chip (SoC).  This means the motherboard is combined into a single unit with the processor.  Short story short.  This computers processor cannot be upgraded. 

So chances are all the Slimlines are built with the same core archecture and cannot be upgraded.

[MichaelM-BBY Retired: Social Media Specialist · Accepted solution]

Hello Aidan –

Bobberuchi is likely correct on this. In many cases pre-built systems cannot have components like their processor upgraded for a variety of reasons. Other than the reasons provided by bobberuchi, heat and power draw are other things to consider, and an i7 generally requires more power to run and puts out more heat that needs to be expelled. Often a slim line PC is purpose built for the components inside it with little to no headroom for more powerful components.

That said, if you’re looking for an upgrade to make your system feel and run faster you’ll probably be better off upgrading to a Solid State Drive. Not only is this upgrade a lot cheaper (many i7’s can cost around $300 by themselves) many people don’t need the power an i7 provides. If you want to learn more about upgrade I recommend taking a look at our Upgrading your Computer article, or feel free to ask any other questions you may have.