How To Replace Your disk drive with An SSD To Speed Up Your Laptop

A solid-state drive is one of the easiest and most cost-effective solutions to speed up a slow laptop SSD. In most cases, swapping will drastically reduce the time it takes to start Windows, load programs, and perform any activity that involves a significant amount of disk access. 

Microsoft’s Windows startup time reduced from almost an agonizing 10 minutes to less than one minute when I switched my hard drive for an SSD And programs like Adobe Photoshop, which used to take a minute or more to launch, now open in a matter of moments. Old computers won’t be as good as new ones, but they will be better than they were before. With an SSD, you also get the added benefit of higher endurance (SSDs are much less susceptible to drop damage than hard drives because they have no moving parts), better battery life, and quieter operation.

Although SSDs provide many advantages, the hefty expense of upgrading has kept many consumers away. Nevertheless, with 1TB SSDs now available for less than $100, it’s nearly stupid not to make the transition. Also, you don’t have to be an expert to perform it. You can easily replace your hard drive with an SSD by following these simple instructions.

What SSD size should I buy?

To acquire an SSD, the first thing you need to know is what size you need it to be. If possible, choose one that is at least the same size as your current disk drive, or perhaps larger. To avoid running out of space, try upgrading to a larger hard drive. I’d recommend no less than 500GB, and ideally, 1TB, which should be enough for most individuals to work with.

Where to get a solid-state drive

Almost definitely, your laptop’s hard disk is a 2.5-inch SATA drive if it contains a conventional hard drive. Then, you’ll replace it with a similar-sized SSD with the same interface design as the original (internal connections). You might see other things being referenced by people (NAND technology, SATA III, etc), don’t worry about that, all you need to know is the 2.5 inch SATA.

Hard Drive vs. Solid State Drive

The first consideration when deciding to shop for a knowledge storage drive is whether or not you would like a solid-state drive (SSD). While SSDs have the same general function as traditional hard drives (HDDs), they do have some pros and cons. A Cheap Solid State Drive may be a sort of data drive that uses non-volatile storage rather than the spinning metal disks found in traditional HDDs. Think of an SSD as a USB drive or a massive SD card.

What to buy?

There are dozens of SSD versions on the market from dozens of manufacturers. It’s not a good idea to buy the cheapest hard drive because it will hold all of your computer’s vital information, so don’t waste your money. In addition, it is not necessary to have an accurate performance model for large server applications. It took me a lot of research to narrow down the choices of SSDs to two models that I would recommend. Pick of the day by the publisher The Samsung 860 EVO is the one I recommend, and the one I use on my own laptop. When compared to rival models, it consistently performs at the top or near the top in performance testing, and it comes with a 5-year or 600 TBW warranty (for the 1 TB model).

To save money, the Crucial MX500 is arguably as excellent as the Samsung 860 EVO. Crucial’s Acronis True Image software simplifies drive cloning, and data transfer speeds will remain the same.

2. A SATA to USB data transfer cable is a must-have!

The data transfer cable is what you will use to clone your existing hard drive to your new SSD using your laptop’s USB port. On Amazon, you can buy a cable for less than $10. According to reviews on Amazon, the Sabrent USB 3.0 to SATA is a top-notch product that will perform as expected.

This is also a good time to check and make sure you have a screwdriver that will fit the screws on your laptop. A basic screwdriver kit for computers is also a good option. This screwdriver set has tons of heads and a tool to help you open your laptop case, if necessary.

3. Clone your hard drive

If you’re worried about the trouble of transferring Windows to your new drive, reinstalling all of your programs, and transferring all of your files, don’t be. As long as your SSD comes with a cloning application, you won’t have to reinstall anything. Even if your drive doesn’t come with software, you can download several free disk cloning apps yourself.

How to get started:

• Copy program to your laptop.
• Connect your SATA to a USB data transfer cable to your laptop.
• Plug your brand new SSD into the SATA cable

To clone your existing hard disk, follow the instructions in your drive cloning software. To transfer your data to your new drive, the cloning process will take a long time. This is because any modifications you make to your computer’s settings or files may not be cloned to the new disk. Time to go out to supper, binge-watch Netflix or get some sleep.

4. Install the SSD drive

Now that the cloned disk has been created, you can use it on a laptop.

• Unplug your laptop’s SATA to USB and SSD cable.
• Simply unplug the power cord and remove the battery from your laptop (if removable)
• Remove the screws to open the laptop case. There are certain laptops that feature a small door with a few screws that allows you to access the disk drive bay directly if you’re lucky. There are 10-20 screws to remove if you have a newer “unibody design” model. Your disk can then be accessed by opening the case bottom. A flat-head screwdriver or the helpful tool that comes with the screwdriver set I described above may be needed to CAREFULLY open it. Searching for your laptop model and “open the case” or “change the hard drive” on YouTube can generally bring up a lot of helpful tutorials.
• The mounting bracket for your existing disk drive should be disconnected, and the drive should be removed from the shell once it’s been opened. Starting out, it should be a piece of cake for everyone involved. Set up your new SSD on the mounting bracket, connect it to your laptop, and then screw the mounting bracket back on your laptop to complete the installation process.
  
• Snap the new cover into place. We want to make sure everything is operating before we change anything, so don’t fix the housing yet. When you turn on your computer, it seems exactly the same as it did previously. Shut down the computer and reinstall the screws if everything is in order.

5. Install the drive management software provided by your manufacturer.

For example, Samsung Magician allows you to tweak performance and other settings. For firmware updates, install it, but leave the other settings alone unless you’re an expert. When it comes to performance, your SSD will be quick out of the box, and most performance modifications will have little to no effect.

That’s it! Now that you have a new SSD, you can appreciate the tremendous performance improvement it provides. However, if you occasionally clone your new SSD to your old hard drive using the USB-to-SATA connector, you can utilize it in place of your old hard drive, should the necessity arise.