Upgrading laptop (installing a SSD), how to do it?

i know nothing · 28 Oct 2019 at 10:57

I have an elderly laptop which I would like to upgrade. It is a HP model with an Intel Core i3 @ 1.50GHz with 6.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 665MHz and a 465GB TOSHIBA MQ01ABD050 (SATA ) HDD. Works perfectly fine and has enough computing power to do what I want it to do, it just takes ages to load and I find that frustrating. Having recently built a desktop PC with a SSD I am aware of the significantly faster load times a SSD can deliver.

However, this is a laptop and I'm unsure where to start. e.g.
1) If I were to buy a 500Gb SSD (big enough for me), how can I transfer everything (i.e. clone) from the existing HDD to the new SSD?
2) How do you make a physical connection between the new SSD and the laptop to actually tranfer the files? Do you need one of those USB to SATA HDD cables?
3) Are all SSD's the same physical size? Do I need to take the laptop apart and measure check the existing HDD?
4) Presumably, once I had cloned it, I could then just remove the old HDD and plug the new SSD one in it's place?
5) Anything I need to check before I start?

Any advice/insight would be much appreciated.

bremen1874 · 28 Oct 2019 at 11:03

Use Macrium Reflect or similar software to clone the existing drive. Swap them over once done.

For the cloning you have two main options

Connect the SSD to the laptop using a USB adapter.
Plug both drives into a desktop's internal SATA ports.

You can also backup and then restore using an intermediatory drive to hold the image.

WozzaX · 28 Oct 2019 at 11:16

i know nothing said:
3) Are all SSD's the same physical size? Do I need to take the laptop apart and measure check the existing HDD?

SSD's are all pretty much the same size and luckily the usual size of a laptop HDD, so I would assume you will be fine.

i know nothing · 28 Oct 2019 at 13:05

Thanks for the replies. :cool:

I've ordered a Samsung 500Gb SSD and adapter cable. I shall have a go in a couple of days once I've received everything.

Danny75 · 28 Oct 2019 at 16:54

Should be fine with the Samsung.

Some SSDs, like a Team Group model (can't remember which), have the Sata ports offset slightly and won't fit in a laptop because of this oversight. But most should be fine.

i know nothing · 30 Oct 2019 at 08:45

Job done!

Most difficult part was figuring out how the laptop came apart! I downloaded and used Samsung's data migration tool as that was mentioned in the instructions that came with the SSD, it was super easy to do.