Form Factors

One of the drawbacks of laptop systems is that they use many nonstandard parts , including the motherboard. Unlike desktop systems, there really aren't any industry-standard form factors for laptop motherboards. The mobile module versions of certain Intel Pentium through Pentium III processors included the processor and main chipset component and were somewhat of an attempt at laptop system motherboard standardization, but they have since been dropped because of the higher costs compared with using discrete chips.

Generally, this means that whatever motherboard came in the system will be the one it will keep for life. A motherboard can be replaced, but in most cases only with another example of the same board from the same manufacturer. This is suitable for a repair, but obviously not an upgrade. Although the motherboard cannot be replaced , most newer processors are socketed, making various types of processor upgrades possible even without changing the motherboard.