Upgrading HDD in Dell 5558 Laptop

edge

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I have a Dell 5558, I7, 6 GB RAM, 1TB HDD 8 MB cache 5200 rpm, Windows 8.1 The current HDD in is a system bottle neck and I would like to upgrade. One HDD I am considering is a WD, 1TB, 7200 rpm 32 MB cache [/COLOR]]Amazon.com: WD Black 1TB Performance Mobile Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM SATA 6 Gb/s 32MB Cache 9.5 MM 2.5 Inch - WD10JPLX: Computers & AccessoriesWill this HDD have enough performance or will I need to upgrade to an SSD. Is there a test to perform that will show the data rate I need ? I have run Crystal Disk Info on my current drive
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IF you notice any change in performance, it will be very little. It is important to note when disk performance impacts over all computer performance - and that is really only during disk reads. And for most users, that is only a small part of their computing tasks. Your boot times will be noticeable, but once your computer is fully booted, drive access is typically minimal. Load times of major applications will be noticeable, but again, once loaded, drive access is typically minimal.

The slowest SSD will run circles around the fastest hard drives so you will definitely see performance gains with a SSD - but again, this really depends on how you use your computer. If primarily for Office type tasks, reading emails, surfing the Internet, updating Facebook, once the computer is booted, the drive steps pretty much out of the way.

Did this computer used to perform fine and no longer does? If so, you might clean out the clutter with CCleaner or Disk Cleanup. Making sure you don't have too many programs starting with Windows can free up resources and improve performance too. And making sure you have lots of free disk space for Windows to operate in makes a big difference. If you disabled disk defragging, defrag after cleaning out the clutter.

And of course, make sure your system is free of malware and fully updated.
 
This computer has always been a slow performer when disk access is maxed out as shown in task manager. Programs that can cause this are AV scan or update, System updates, Dell Backup and Service updates (disabled), and CAD usage . The PC is multi-tasked with office tasks, CAD, and internet browsing. System is up to date and malware free.
 
AV scans are very disk intensive for obvious reasons but are typically done in the background. What AV are you using? I recommend Windows Defender. It is already built into Windows 8.1 and contrary to what many think, it is a very effective security solution - and easy on resources. It is what I use on all my systems. And since, regardless your security of choice, you should always have a secondary scanner for double-checking. I use Malwarebytes for that just to make sure nothing got though - and nothing has.
 
I am running Avira for my AV and Malwarebytes free. On quick scan Avira is Ok with 60% disk utilization, but updating and boot up cause it to go to 100%. However, other programs to cause high disk utilization also cause high disk utilization.
 
Well, I would try disabling Avira and enable Windows Defender and see what happens. And again, of you don't need any other programs starting with Window disable them too.
 
SSDs are one of the best upgrades you can make - I agree 100% with what Digerati has said.

However, if you need the space, an SSD can be expensive. There are two options for this.

Option 1: An SSHD. This is a HDD with a small SSD cache (normally 8GB). The SSHD intelligently places files in the SSD cache to speed up boot and frequently used programs. They're not that much more expensive than a standard HDD. The new Seagate Firecuda drives are a great shout - Seagate ST1000LX015 FireCuda 1 TB 5400 RPM 2.5 inch SATA Internal SSHD Hard Drive with 7 mm Form Factor, 128 MB Cache & SATA 6 GB/s up to 140 MB/s for PC and PS4: Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories

Option 2: Buy a small SSD (128GB/250GB) and replace the main HDD with the SSD. Then, remove the optical drive and replace it with the old, mechanical HDD. I did this exact thing on an old Dell laptop (250GB SSD in the main HDD slot, 750GB HDD in the drive bay). Removing the optical drive is normally quite easy, there's normally one screw holding it in. You would need to check height clearance though, some drives are 9.5mm and others are 12.7mm.

Inside Dell Inspiron 5558 (15 5000) – disassembly, internal photos and upgrade options
Salcar - 2nd HDD / SSD Kit ODD send Hard Drive Caddy Adapter for SATA hard drive and all laptops with SATA 9.5mm drive bay Universal (aluminum): Amazon.co.uk: Computers & Accessories
Salcar - 2nd HDD Caddy for 2.5 inch SATA to SATA ODD or: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

-Stephen
 

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