Vasishta.Sushant
Forerunner
Although this machine was bought for the purpose of 24x7 downloading, but wouldn't it be great if it does more than what we initially bargained for ?
The netbook (Samsung ND-10) was of just standard config: Intel ATOM 270 (1.6GHz), 160GB HDD, 1GB RAM, Intel 945 Graphics. Of course, in its stock condition it was only good enough for downloading and web browsing.
Initially I upgraded the RAM to 2GB (Transcend 800MHz) and the HDD to 500GB (WD Blue) but still I couldn't realize any perceptible differences in the performance. The netbook was still unable to play HD content flawlessly. 720p rips worked sometimes, 1080p was totally out of question.
While browsing the web, I was inspired from few of the mods done by some folks at the Sammynetbookforums. All that I've done is not something I invented, all the credit goes to guys at that forum.
The MOD is about adding Broadcom Crystal HD video accelerator card to the virtually present Mini PCI-E slot on the netbook's mother board.
Why I said virtual PCI-E slot ? Well its because only the PCI-E circuit was printed on the board and no PCI-E bay was there.
Check the following pic to have an idea about what I am saying:
Note that the slot was probably made to accommodate the 3G modem (HSDPA) but we'll harness this thing for our own purpose.
The first step was to source a Mini PCI-E connector and solder it to the board.
I got hold of a website (kitsnspares.com) which has a tie up with Farnell. I ordered this mini PCI-E connector.
Here is a pic of the connector:
The next trouble was to solder this thing on the board.
With the current soldering iron I had, and no magnifying glass, it was a tough task. The pins were so dense, the tip of my soldering iron was covering at least 5 of them
Just to give you guys the perspective on how small the connector pins were, here is a pic of the soldering area, in reference to my mobile phone:
On a macro level, check the location of the slot on the netbook motherboard:
In the meantime, I ordered the Broadcom Crystal HD card from eBay US. My friend brought it down to India.
Here are few shots of the card itself:
The card, in my hands:
The card, with the PCI-E connector:
The Broadcom processor chip:
With little care and caution, I managed to lap the connector to the board.
Here are the pics:
The Front:
The rear:
A Point to be noted here is that the PIC-E slot we just soldered was still not a fully functional PCI-E slot. Its locked and just works as a USB connector port.
Wasn't willing to toil so hard (to unlock that, I had to solder few capacitors and resistors and with the gear I had, it would have been nothing more than a Leap of Faith); I just swapped the WiFI card from the other PCI-E slot to the newly added PCI-E slot and put the broadcom card in the factory PCI-E slot.
Reassembled the netbook.
Downloaded the drivers from Broadcom's website.
Configured the KMPlayer to work on External Video Decoder (Broadcom's newly added decoders) and I was all set.
Full HD content, playing flawlessly on my netbook. The CPU usage reduced from 99% to sub 50% range. No more out of sync picture and audio.
I sure get a high now, watching this tiny machine working wonders now
Not that I enjoy watching movies here on this thing, just for the kicks, this was a great weekend exercise 
Let me know what you guys have to comment on that.
(Couldn't post the videos of before and after HD content playback but trust me, this thing really rocks !!!)
EDIT: (This is specifically for people who are mocking at the idea of playing HD on a 10" screen)
For the HD playback, I have a 32" S-IPS 100Hz capable HDTV. The source is my Quad Core PC with the ATI 5770 for hardware acceleration. And no, this netbook is not my primary machine for the watching movies. Its just that once in a while you do not want to get out of the comfort of your bed, go and play your movie on the Big Screen. This mod is specifically for those moments when you are just done with the download and want to test the content right there.
The netbook (Samsung ND-10) was of just standard config: Intel ATOM 270 (1.6GHz), 160GB HDD, 1GB RAM, Intel 945 Graphics. Of course, in its stock condition it was only good enough for downloading and web browsing.
Initially I upgraded the RAM to 2GB (Transcend 800MHz) and the HDD to 500GB (WD Blue) but still I couldn't realize any perceptible differences in the performance. The netbook was still unable to play HD content flawlessly. 720p rips worked sometimes, 1080p was totally out of question.
While browsing the web, I was inspired from few of the mods done by some folks at the Sammynetbookforums. All that I've done is not something I invented, all the credit goes to guys at that forum.
The MOD is about adding Broadcom Crystal HD video accelerator card to the virtually present Mini PCI-E slot on the netbook's mother board.
Why I said virtual PCI-E slot ? Well its because only the PCI-E circuit was printed on the board and no PCI-E bay was there.
Check the following pic to have an idea about what I am saying:
Note that the slot was probably made to accommodate the 3G modem (HSDPA) but we'll harness this thing for our own purpose.
The first step was to source a Mini PCI-E connector and solder it to the board.
I got hold of a website (kitsnspares.com) which has a tie up with Farnell. I ordered this mini PCI-E connector.
Here is a pic of the connector:
The next trouble was to solder this thing on the board.
With the current soldering iron I had, and no magnifying glass, it was a tough task. The pins were so dense, the tip of my soldering iron was covering at least 5 of them
Just to give you guys the perspective on how small the connector pins were, here is a pic of the soldering area, in reference to my mobile phone:
On a macro level, check the location of the slot on the netbook motherboard:
In the meantime, I ordered the Broadcom Crystal HD card from eBay US. My friend brought it down to India.
Here are few shots of the card itself:
The card, in my hands:
The card, with the PCI-E connector:
The Broadcom processor chip:
With little care and caution, I managed to lap the connector to the board.
Here are the pics:
The Front:
The rear:
A Point to be noted here is that the PIC-E slot we just soldered was still not a fully functional PCI-E slot. Its locked and just works as a USB connector port.
Wasn't willing to toil so hard (to unlock that, I had to solder few capacitors and resistors and with the gear I had, it would have been nothing more than a Leap of Faith); I just swapped the WiFI card from the other PCI-E slot to the newly added PCI-E slot and put the broadcom card in the factory PCI-E slot.
Reassembled the netbook.
Downloaded the drivers from Broadcom's website.
Configured the KMPlayer to work on External Video Decoder (Broadcom's newly added decoders) and I was all set.
Full HD content, playing flawlessly on my netbook. The CPU usage reduced from 99% to sub 50% range. No more out of sync picture and audio.
I sure get a high now, watching this tiny machine working wonders now
Not that I enjoy watching movies here on this thing, just for the kicks, this was a great weekend exercise Let me know what you guys have to comment on that.
(Couldn't post the videos of before and after HD content playback but trust me, this thing really rocks !!!)
EDIT: (This is specifically for people who are mocking at the idea of playing HD on a 10" screen)
For the HD playback, I have a 32" S-IPS 100Hz capable HDTV. The source is my Quad Core PC with the ATI 5770 for hardware acceleration. And no, this netbook is not my primary machine for the watching movies. Its just that once in a while you do not want to get out of the comfort of your bed, go and play your movie on the Big Screen. This mod is specifically for those moments when you are just done with the download and want to test the content right there.
