Upgrading a Laptop by only adding RAM

bargain crazy on 17/05/2017 - 21:38
Last edited 18/05/2017 - 12:06

Hi All,

I have a 4 year old Lenovo G580 laptop which is now showing sign of ageing (slowing down) but in no way time to buy a new one.
Currently having 6GB ram (1600MHz DDR3 SODIMM) on laptop. So, I am thinking only to upgrade RAM at the moment to say 12 GB or 16 GB?

My question is that, shall I upgrade to latest version of RAM by removing the existing one completely? or just buy compatible RAM to existing one?

The only reason, I am not upgrading to SSD is because, I couldn't find a free software to copy windows (OEM version) from HDD (7200 rpm) to SSD to have my data intact.
Hence only thinking to upgrade RAM?

Any advice from our hardware experts here?

OS:Windows 10

Computing

Comments

  • scrimshaw on 17/05/2017 - 21:50
    +14

    , I couldn't find a free software to copy windows (OEM version) from HDD (7200 rpm) to SSD to have my data intact.

    Um… There's tonnes of free software out there. You could google "migrate HDD to SSD" and get dozens of results which all work.

    Time saving tip: if you buy Samsung / Intel SSD's, they usually include a CD or a download link which contains a licensed copy of some 3rd party software which does the job of transferring / cloning your drives. The software would only work for that particular SSD and nothing else though. It will have simplified instructions for you to follow (newbie friendly).

    You will also need one of these SATA to USB3 dongles or you may also use a hard drive dock or enclosure.

    I personally do not recommend spending so much money on RAM upgrades. You either have enough RAM, or you don't — there's no middle ground.

    Your computer won't respond faster by having an extra 3-4 gigs of unused RAM sitting idle. If your daily workflow doesn't require more than 4G of RAM for example, adding more means you're just having more memory sitting around doing nothing (and money wasted)

    • MelbEng on 17/05/2017 - 22:17

      I totally agree. I upgraded my laptop with a Samsung 850 Evo SSD and it now flies. With the included software it was very easy to clone the old drive.
      Leave the RAM alone, 6Gb is enough.

  • oscargamer on 17/05/2017 - 21:53
    +10

    you will gain nothing by RAM upgrade

    get an SSD, and it will fly again

  • Cheeper on 17/05/2017 - 21:59
    +1

    The ram upgrade will only deliver a minimal performance increase … SSD would give it a more noticeable boost.
    There is free software out there to transfer your hdd but where to transfer it to may be a problem unless you can connect 2 sata devices to your laptop? Sometimes this can be achieved by revoving your DVD and fitting the ssd into that slot temporarily while you do the transfer. Only one screw is normally needed to be removed to take out the dvd player.

    Alternatively you can make a note of your current OS key (can be found on the bottom on your laptop too usually)and do a fresh install.
    To do this you may have to download a copy of your version of windows and burn it to a cd or even borrow one.
    Some laptops also have a feature to back up your current os to dvd built in.
    Whatever… go the SSD route.

  • KaTst3R on 17/05/2017 - 22:03
    +1

    If you want to clone your hard disk, you can use the free version of EaseUS backup.

    http://www.todo-backup.com/

    It is very easy but you need a HDD enclosure for your SSD to connect using USB. Some consideration is obviously, there is no issue cloning a big harddisk to a smaller SSD, just make sure the total amount of data is lesser than the total available disk space of the SSD. Logic right ! But some people still forget! Once you are done, just swap them and reboot.

  • bargain crazy on 17/05/2017 - 22:11

    Thanks all.. I will sure look again into ssd upgrade.
    I will spend more time googling and look for all advices above.

  • VirtuaG on 17/05/2017 - 22:37

    I assume you are using Windows 7/8.1 on the machine. Here's what I would do.

    1. Upgrade to Windows 10 by using Windows 10 AT upgrade path (https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/accessibility/windows10upgra…), still available as of today
    2. register/login to the machine with your Microsoft account where the machine's hardware IDs will now have a valid Win10 registration against your MS account.
    3. Create a bootable USB using Win10 Media Creation Tool (https://www.microsoft.com/en-au/software-download/windows10)
    4. Upgrade your RAM and SSD to your liking
    5. Use the Windows 10 USB you created and install Win10
    6. Use your MS account to login and voila, fresh and clean install of Win10 all activated.

    Done this a few times for family and friends who's missed the free upgrade to Win10 last year.

    As always, backup your data before doing the above, depends on what you do on your computer, should get another 2-3 years out of it. Hope that helps, good luck.

  • Diji1 on 17/05/2017 - 22:48
    +3

    SSD is the single most effective upgrade you can make. Adding RAM may make no difference at all depending on your usage.

  • AlienC on 17/05/2017 - 23:46

    If you are like me and love to super duper multi task then ram might help a little bit for "hardcore" browsing otherwise what everybody is saying is pretty much true ssd all the way.

  • Richardc on 18/05/2017 - 01:56

    I would add a caddy drive, so I can have SSD for system and HDD for storage.

  • Ryanek on 18/05/2017 - 08:06

    You can purchase OEM Windows 10 Pro usually for around $15. Suggest you search OzBargain there are a few.

    • scrimshaw on 18/05/2017 - 11:50

      ಠ_ಠ

      Windows 10 is a free upgrade from a Windows 8 machine

      • Ryanek on 18/05/2017 - 11:57
        +1

        Umm I don't see any mention of Windows 8 anywhere in this post?

  • bargain crazy on 18/05/2017 - 12:08

    I have edited the post. The laptop is on OEM Win10.
    I will try steps mentioned by VirtuaG

    • scrimshaw on 18/05/2017 - 15:37

      Bit of additional advice. A computer doesnt slow down as it ages, it's more like your usage of the machine and lack of maintenance (both software and physical maintenance are just as important) causes the machine the slow down.

      Physically cleaning your computer, like taking the back cover off and giving the heat sink a clean with canned air (buy from Kmart for 5 bucks) will solve overheating issues.

      And uninstalling apps, removing drivers you don't use will have impact on boot times and responsiveness.

      Also making sure you don't have too many background apps taking up CPU and disk activity time. The less things it has to cope with the faster it will react to user input.

      Starting over from the beginning by reinstalling is generally good advice, and should be undertaken if you feel it takes too long to manually debug Windows.

  • Hazzard on 18/05/2017 - 18:07

    I agree with the others here. SSD upgrade is the way to go. Breathed new life onto my aging laptop. I bought a Samsung SSD and hence came included with the "Samsung data migration" cloning software. Honestly, took more fiddling to get access to the hdd than to actually clone the hdd. Had a look in the task manager before the upgrade whenever I noticed lag and it was the 'average response time' of the hdd that was the bottle neck and not the amount of ram being used. I don't recall a time when I have maxed out the ram being used.

Login or Join to leave a comment
Login Join