Compared to regular PCs, laptop upgrades are seriously simple to do. While you’d think the compact shape would make it more difficult to take apart and upgrade, this isn’t true.
In this article I’ll give you the how-to on three simple upgrades for major components – and how/where to get the parts you need.
Why upgrade?
Because it’s cheaper than buying a new laptop. And furthermore all your stuff is on the existing one you have.
The three upgrades I will detail here will be the RAM (memory), optical drive (i.e. the CD/DVD drive) and the hard drive.
RAM
It used to be that RAM on most laptops was located underneath the keyboard. It was annoying to get to because you had to crack off the top bezel, loosen the keyboard screws on the backplane, physically pop up the keyboard, remove the ribbon connector, install the RAM, reconnect the cable, put the keyboard back, reconnect the screws, crack “back” the top bezel and you were done. This took at least a good 30 minutes to do it properly.
These days the RAM is directly located on the backplane (i.e. the bottom of the laptop) and installation takes less than five minutes.
Where to get the RAM
Only one place: Crucial. The reason is because you can match up RAM that a) is guaranteed to fit and b) guaranteed to work. You literally can’t get it wrong.
How to install RAM
- Turn off your laptop.
- Unplug the power cord (if connected).
- Remove the battery.
- Flip the laptop over and locate a plate with screws on it. It should be near the center of the backplane. Loosen these screws and take the plate off. NOTE: It is normal that the screws even when loosened cannot be removed. This is done on purpose so you don’t lose them.
- Pull off the plate. You’ll see the RAM there.
It will look something like this:
Laptop RAM is “fat” looking and rectangular compared to normal PC RAM.
RAM is removed via two metal clips on either side. You pull both outwards at the same time and the RAM simply flips up. Then you pull it out.
Take your new RAM chips and put them in. There is a a tooth-style cut on the chip itself to ensure you absolutely cannot install it the wrong way.
Looks like this:
Notice the tooth-cut is purposely off-center.
You slide the RAM into the slot, then push down until you hear a click and the metal flaps reconnect.
At this point you’re done. Reconnect the plate, screw it in, put the battery back in, flip it back over and boot it up.
Note: I suggest having the power cord connected for first boot-up after a RAM install just to be on the safe side.
Why remove the battery for an install like this?
The general rule of thumb is to always remove the battery whenever performing hardware work on a laptop. This ensures there is absolutely no power going anywhere for system features that can potentially screw up when hardware is removed/replaced.
Will drivers be needed?
No. RAM requires no drivers. Just boot and go.
Optical Drive
Contrary to popular belief you do not need an OEM-specific drive when replacing/upgrading one on your laptop. In this context, “OEM” means a specific manufacturer, such as Dell or Gateway.
Your optical drive on your laptop most likely has a small circuit connector board, and that is OEM specific. However you can remove this board and attach it to your new optical drive and it will work.
Your #1 concern when shopping for a slim optical drive is whether the door will fit in your laptop chassis. Yes, it is a guessing game and yes, the optical drive you buy may not fit. However 99% of them should.
Where to get an optical drive for your laptop
NewEgg. In particular, the slim drive section. You’ll notice that all the drives look the same. Pick the one that best suits your needs (or just go by lowest price).
How to remove an optical drive
On most laptops, the optical drive is only held in by a single screw on the backplane with a small area where you can push out the drive.
Note: NEVER pull an optical drive out by its door or tray. If you do either it will break off. Use the screw and small area to push the drive out from the backplane. You will see this in plain sight.
What about that small board you spoke about?
See this:
Note the small board held on by two screws. Remove that and transfer it to the new optical drive. That’s all you need to do.
Installing the new optical drive
- Unplug the power cord.
- Take out the battery.
- Remove the screw holding the drive in on the backplane as noted above.
- Transfer the connector board from the old drive to the new one.
- Slide the new drive in.
- Put the screw back and tighten.
Done.
Will drivers be needed?
Not usually. It should auto-detect and be ready-to-rock on boot.
Hard drive
Hard drives are installed very similarly to optical drives.
Note before continuing: If you need to copy everything off your old drive to the new one, get some drive imaging software. You can “image” your drive then transfer that image. That’s how it’s done.
What’s the difference between a standard hard drive and a laptop one?
Physical size. The standard HDD is 3.5 inches. A laptop’s is 2.5 inches.
How big can I go?
At the time of this writing there are 320GB drives available – however – bear in mind some laptops CANNOT support drives that big, especially on older systems.
If you want to play it safe, don’t use anything over 160GB.
Installing a hard drive on a laptop
Usually on most laptops the hard drive is taken out from the side of the chassis and is held in by a single screw. Usually this screw is in plain sight. If not it may be hidden by a flap or door.
Once the screw is removed, the drive will not just pop out. If the laptop is sitting in its normal position (screen up, backplane down), the edge of the door must be pushed down. It will click and then you can remove the hard drive.
Being that laptops have different ways of doing this, if you’re having problems, CALL THE MANUFACTURER. It is totally OKAY to do this even if you have an older out-of-warranty system. The help desk at the laptop manufacturer company will very quickly be able to assist you with hardware removal as they have all that stuff documented well.
Once the hard drive is out you will notice it’s sitting in a hard drive caddy. This caddy holds the drive in with several screws (usually 4 to 6 or more). Loosen these screws and the drive will pop out.
To note: Like the optical drive, the hard drive will have a connector board on the end. Remove this board (usually 1 to 2 screws).
Transfer this board to the new hard drive and screw it in.
After that, put the new drive in the caddy and screw it in.
Slide the whole thing back into the laptop.
Reattach the screw to hold the door shut.
Boot it up.
At this point you reinstall your operating system, or use the drive imaging software to put your image on the new hard drive.
Will drivers be needed?
No. Or rather, not unless it’s some fancy custom-hardware thing like those new solid state drives (which this isn’t).
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