Orange epoxy in T40?

[lukee]

Hi, I have been changing CPU (1.5GHz Banias --> 1.8GHz Dothan) in my mother's T40 last weekend and I've noticed that the mobo has orange epoxy on both problematic chips: GPU and southbridge. GPU had two epoxy points on each chip's side, southbridge had three epoxy points on each side. I always thought that epoxy was never used in T40 series. Model (checked from BIOS) is 2373-75G. Can be this board reballed? The laptop has no signs of GPU or southbridge failure, I am only surprised about the epoxy on the chips. Thanks.

[ajkula66]

That board must have been replaced under warranty by IBM after spring of 2005...

[lukee]

Thanks George for your reply. Does it mean that this T40 is more GPU/southbridge failure resistant than older T40 boards without epoxy?

Edit: the board also accepts any WiFi card - no 1802/1804 error appears when a TP-LINK 802.11b/g card is inserted.

[poshgeordie]

the mobo has orange epoxy on both problematic chips: GPU and southbridge. GPU had two epoxy points on each chip's side, southbridge had three epoxy points on each side. I always thought that epoxy was never used in T40 series.

All T4x versions have epoxy of different colours.

We repair many orange epoxy boards but possibly less than other coloured epoxed boards (but I guess there will be less orange than other coloured boards?). In any case by now the solder ball joints will be as likely to break as any other regardless of the dot colour (or lack of epoxy).

Orange epoxied Southbridges sometimes have 4 extra dots underneath the chip between the centre and outside sets of solder balls, and having to prise the the chip off the motherboard usually damages the chip. Good thing that new SB chips are cheap!