SSD in 4 year old Inspiron 9400

HerrKaLeun · 22 Apr 2010

I have a Dell Inspiron 9400 and think of upgrading to an SSD (likely the 40 GB Intel since I don't need much space).

I removed the HDD and saw it is a 100 GB SATA from June 2006. Hitachi HTS721010GSA00 with 7200 rpm. no cables, it seems to plug right into the power and SATA plug inside the laptop. Wil that be the same type as a new SSD? I mean position of the plugs. there is a little plastic piece from the laptop case attached to the HDD. I wonder how that transfers to the SSD?

Will I encounter any problems? I didn't see any laptop-specific the Newegg Laptop SSDs bring me straight to the normal SSDs.

From what Intels says it seems to be very similar in dimensions

I googled to some, but didn't get clear answers.

not so gray matter · 22 Apr 2010

From what I know, it should work fine as long as your laptop uses SATA. Even if it uses 1.5Gb/s SATA the drive should be backwards compatible. However, someone with more experience with SSD's should be able to tell you for sure.

EDIT: It seems that you'll be limited to 150MB/s but thats not much lower than most SSDs are rated.

http://en.community.dell.com/support....aspx#19553191

Darryl Licht · 22 Apr 2010

HerrKaLeun:

First off, a 2.5" SATA HDD is a standardized size and plug layout, so yes it will work!

My only question is why on a 4 year old lappy? The performance benefits of switching to an SSD on an older lappy wouldnt be that great once you factor in price. Sure you will boot faster and gain a little more batt life. But if you want "bang for your buck" performance, max the RAM and ditch that Hitachi in favor of a true performance mechanical HDD (Western Digital or Seagate 7200 or faster)... IMHO!

HerrKaLeun · 23 Apr 2010

Maybe once I moved my laptop data off the HDD will be faster. but of all the options (new high-speed HDD, more RAM), the SSD for $ 114 is not so bad.

the problem with a new laptop is, it still has a HDD unless i buy an expensive one. and the laptop HDDs are slow compared to desktop HDDs. Hence the SSD would make even more sense than in a desktop.

Well, maybe I just leave it as is. Or i try to sell it and use the money for a new one.

Darryl Licht · 23 Apr 2010

HerrKaLeun said:

Maybe once I moved my laptop data off the HDD will be faster. but of all the options (new high-speed HDD, more RAM), the SSD for $ 114 is not so bad.

the problem with a new laptop is, it still has a HDD unless i buy an expensive one. and the laptop HDDs are slow compared to desktop HDDs. Hence the SSD would make even more sense than in a desktop.

Well, maybe I just leave it as is. Or i try to sell it and use the money for a new one.

What are the specs on your current lappy?

whs · 23 Apr 2010

Here is a SSD picture if that helps.

HerrKaLeun · 23 Apr 2010

Darryl Licht said:

What are the specs on your current lappy?

17", 2 GB, Core-duo 1.86 GHz

not the fastest anymore, but at the time it was pretty impressive and I used it as desktop replacement. Now you get 4GB and faster CPU for $ 500

whs · 23 Apr 2010

HerrKaLeun said:

Darryl Licht said:

What are the specs on your current lappy?

17", 2 GB, Core-duo 1.86 GHz

not the fastest anymore, but at the time it was pretty impressive and I used it as desktop replacement. Now you get 4GB and faster CPU for $ 500

Interesting. I have a very similar (15") laptop that I paid $1100 over 3 years ago and I am now putting an 80GB Intel SSD on it - and that will be ample. My wife who uses it has all her files on an USB stick because we move between 3 locations (but do not move the laptops). I hope to get better performance and less heat (heat was a problem from day1 with this laptop because it vents to the bottom. Had to put a chillpad under it).

Darryl Licht · 24 Apr 2010

At the current price per GB of $4-5 for SSD's, I think you will get better all around performance by spending that money elsewhere.

With RAM prices down maxing the RAM and adding a fast energy efficient mechanical HDD such as a WD Caviar will yeild better overall performance for about the same cash. 2x2GB RAM will run you $80-100, and a you can get a 300GB HDD for $80-90!

whs · 24 Apr 2010

At the current price per GB of $4-5 for SSD's, I think you will get better all around performance by spending that money elsewhere.

There is nothing, absolutely nothing that can speed up your system as much as an SSD - for the same money. Any modest older system will start flying once you put the SSD in. The only prerequisite is a reasonable amount of RAM (e.g. 2GBs).