Today, we're going to open an HP Pavilion Model TP01-1016.
We'll find out just how upgradable this Intel-based desktop is by
disassembling the case to see its internal components.
We'll look at its storage and memory options, and see if we can add anything inside the case.
As we unbox the unit, you'll find a USB keyboard, the computer itself, and finally, a bag that
contains the power cable, a USB mouse, some documentation and a small packet of screws.
On paper, this Pavilion features a 10th generation Intel Core i5-10400 hexa-core processor with
8GB of DDR4 memory, a 1TB hard drive, onboard Intel graphics,
a DVD-writer, wired and wireless networking, and Windows 10 Home.
The case has a brushed-metal look with a height of 13.28", a width of 6.12", and a depth of 11.97".
To see what it has for external ports, let's place on the spinny thingy and take a look.
On the front is your DVD-writer on the left, and then from top-to-bottom is your audio
port, four USB 3.2 Type-A ports, one media card reader, and one USB-C port.
On the back, from top-to-bottom, are your audio jacks, an HDMI 1.4b and VGA port, your
case fan, four USB 2 Type-A ports, a gigabit Ethernet port, and at the bottom is your power supply.
The tools you need are an ESD strap or an ESD mat if you plan to touch any of the electronics
inside, and a screwdriver with either a flat-head or torx bit - for the torx, the specific size you'd need is a T15.
The first thing you'll need to do is remove is the single screw that secures the cover.
When we zoom up close to it, you'll see that it's a flat-head and torx hybrid, so you can use either.
The screw itself doesn't detach from the cover so you can leave it dangling.
Let's slide the side panel off and set it aside.
When we take a peek from above, the insides look clean and well organized.
There is, however, a black cage and a silver tray that obstruct our view, so I'll remove those first.
It uses the same size flat-head/torx screw as the previous one, so let's remove that with the screwdriver.
Next, tilt the black cage and pull up to remove it.
Now let's work on the silver tray, which holds the DVD-drive.
Let's first remove the DVD-drive by detaching its SATA and power cables.
You'll then wan to press on the green lever at the back of the drive and pull it forward out of the case.
You'll find that the tray won't budge, because there happens to be a screw keeping it in place.
Let's spin the case around and flip up the three tabs securing the front face.
By grabbing it and pulling it away from the chassis, it'll fall away and we can set it aside.
There's one screw we need to unfasten and it's right here.
Let's spin the case around again, where we'll see a small flexible metal bracket that holds
a SATA power connector in place. Simply bend that bracket and free the connector.
Afterwards, you can swivel the tray to about 45 degrees, and lift up to take it out.
Now we have a completely unobstructed view of the inside.
Before we start touching anything, I'll wear my ESD strap and clip the other end to the metal part of the case.
Let's first start with the hard drive.
It's a Seagate 7200 RPM 1TB Desktop drive with a model number of ST1000DM003.
Of course, your mileage may vary since HP could source from other manufacturers.
You'll probably want to replace it with an SSD drive if you don't plan on adding storage
to the M.2 slot, which I'll discuss later on. Next, let's visit the processor.
Covered by its CPU fan, the processor is an Intel Core i5-10400, which is a pretty capable CPU.
According to HP's specifications page, you can replace it with any of the processors
shown here, including the i7-10700, which really would be the only worthy upgrade.
Let's pan up to the memory, where there are two DDR4 slots, supporting up to PC4-23400.
As you can see, one slot is populated with one stick of 8GB, but you can upgrade to
two sticks of 16, totaling 32GB of memory. Let's take out the RAM to see what we have.
The memory being used in my system is a Samsung model M378A1K43CB2-CTD, which is an 8GB 1.2V
DDR4 PC-12300 running at 2666Mhz, and rated at CL19.
If you want to add additional memory, you'll want to get the same brand and model if possible.
Otherwise, you can replace the Samsung with a pair of matching memory, up to 32GB.
Above the memory slots, you'll see a blue SATA port on the motherboard, along with a
spare SATA power connector, which means you can add an additional hard drive or SSD to the system.
The drive itself would go into the silver tray that we removed earlier.
Next, let's look at the empty M.2 slot.
There's space for a 2280-sized M.2 storage and if you decide to install one, don't forget
the small packet of screws that were included in the baggie during our unboxing, because
it includes a screw for the M.2 module.
Whether the M.2 slot can take an NVMe isn't clear from HP's documentation, but I'll be
installing one soon in the future. I'll report my findings in the description and/or the pinned comment.
Next, let's discuss the power supply.
This is a 180W Gold rated power supply, which is just sufficent to power the existing CPU,
motherboard and components, and some upgrades to the CPU, memory, SSD, and additional hard drive.
However, if you want to replace the PSU, be aware that this is NOT a standard ATX power supply.
If you trace the power connection to the motherboard, you'll see that it's NOT your standard interface,
with two proprietary four-pin connectors attached to the motherboard.
Notice that there aren't any 12V power connectors for a graphics card either.
If you know what you're doing, you could probably splice the cables of an off-the-shelf PSU
to make it work with this motherboard, but for anything out-of-the-box, you'll need to
go with an OEM power supply from HP.
At the time of publishing this video, HP doesn't sell a higher-watt version of this power supply -
they only have an identical 180W replacement. Next, we have the PCIe slots.
There's a PCI Express x1 slot and a x16 slot.
Again, you could add a lower-end graphics card that relies only on PCI Express power, but nothing more than that.
Physically, there's a little less than 10" from the backplate to the edge of the mounted hard drive.
Finally, let's talk about the motherboard. Here's another highly non-standard, custom component.
With dimensions of 11.45" by 9.17", HP's codename for this motherboard is "Baker."
If we spin the case around to the front, you'll notice that the front ports are soldered onto
the motherboard, which doesn't conform to any standard.
If you want to upgrade the motherboard, your best bet is to replace the entire case, motherboard,
and power supply, then migrate all the other components to it.
Reassembling the computer is simply a matter of reversing the steps.
As I receive reports on successfully upgraded components from viewers, I'll update the description
and/or the pinned comment on a continuous basis, just as I've done for my previously
published video on the Ryzen-based HP Pavilion Gaming Desktop.
For those commenting on your successful upgrades, please include brand and model numbers -
I appreciate any information you can offer.
If you're looking to play high-end games, this is not the computer for you.
Technically, you can add a discrete graphics card to the system but nothing that requires
more power than that given by the PCIe slot.
On the other hand, with the ability to easily upgrade the storage and memory, this would
be a superb office computer or perhaps even a Plex Media Server, acting as an engine to
serve media stored on a NAS device.
I hope you enjoyed - thanks for watching!