Electronics hobbyist Blighted Agent converted a used laptop memory kit into a desktop memory kit, according to Tom's Hardware. The donor parts were a SK hynix 2x16GB DDR5-5600 SODIMM set purchased for $120 on Facebook Marketplace. Adding blank desktop DDR5 PCBs and heatsinks brought the total bill of materials to $175. The resulting 32GB desktop kit is claimed to be worth around $1,000.
The conversion involved removing the memory chips from the SODIMMs with a hot air station, cleaning them, adding leaded solder balls, and reballing them onto the blank desktop PCBs. The SPD and BIOS chips were also transferred. The finished modules were recognized correctly by an Asus ROG Maximus Z790 Apex Encore motherboard and ran stably at DDR5-7800 with CL38 timings at 1.40V after a 90-minute stress test.
The creator notes the process is risky; without proper testing equipment, a faulty chip or soldering defect would be hard to isolate. The article also notes that used DDR5 SODIMM deals like this are rare—similar kits were listed around $320 on eBay at the time—and that a new 32GB DDR5-6000 kit cost about $449. A similar conversion was previously reported by a Russian enthusiast, though that project also involved custom firmware for XMP support.