Could a SSD be a possbile solution to a broken HDD?

So for some reason my computer crashed. I went through the partition windows recovery process and that failed as well as the discs I made for myself; Acer said all I can do is send in the laptop (that was after they tried making me pay $20 for more recovery discs I already had). I heard the repair service is a huge headache and I really want to avoid wasting time here with a poor repair service. I was thinking about buying a SSD, and my assumption is that the current HDD might be broken/corrupted. So could I just install a SSD and run a Windows installation disc in my CD drive and POSSIBLY fix my laptop that way? I don't know for sure if this is HDD related but the computer was able to turn on, it just couldn't boot or fully reinstall windows without failing which was similar to a problem I had with my last computer. Just for those interested I own a Acer 1830 T.

 

if its just a bad HDD then the SSD is a perfect solution. pull the drive and see if it is a Hitachi, I have seen a few of the die in the 1830 and the 3820.

if you have access to another mechanical drive just to test that it is drive failure I do reccomend doing that first.

 

It's a Western Digital WD5000BEVT 500GB. I will definitely test a different drive before sending it in. Thanks for the help.

I might have to post a new thread about this, but I'm assuming I can't use a acer recovery CD to install windows on a new HDD/SDD? Or would I be able to do that?

 

A SSD can be a solution to anything really... definitely a broken HDD. But for price/per MB effectiveness this HDD: Tietokonekauppa.fi - WD Scorpio Black 2,5´´ SATA 750GB/16mb/7200RPM

Is a fantastic choice for speed/size. It's basically the fastest out there more-or-less.

 

an SSD is a great solution to a perfectly working platter drive lol.

You can not use the recovery disks to install windos on a new SSD. some folks use a copy program to save an ENTIRE HDD bit for bit as an image and transfer it to another HDD/SSD and then you might be able to run the recovery... but you're also bring all the issues from the old OS/HDD over as well. a fresh install is always best with a new HDD/SSD.

 

That thing looks amazing. I'll definitely consider it, although I believe my current HDD was damaged from either heat or too many bumps & bruises so I might play it safe and get the SSD; I won't have to worry about going through this again. But that's a hard price tag to beat considering I would be able to store everything from my mammoth PC on my tiny laptop haha.

But alright, I assumed I'd have to buy windows or ask a friend for a copy. I suppose getting my own copy would ensure I could fix most computer issues myself for now on and I could create a few back up HDDs considering how cheap they are. I would be able to just interchange HDDs if I had windows installed and configured to this laptop on all of them correct? Sorry if this is first grade stuff, I've always been dependent on phone service or computer repair guys but I'd rather just learn how to fix my stuff and not deal with Indian accents and lazy computer tech guys who take forever to fix my stuff.

 

Foxman, you can legally download windows 7 installers

http://forum.notebookreview.com/win...-7-download-links-just-like-vista-before.html

just use your COA on the bottom of the laptop to install.

another drive to look at is the Seagate momentus XT hybrid drive, they work fantastic as well, ( much better than any pure mechancal )

good plan friend

 

Thanks for the advice. I read some good reviews about the Seagate but I'm not so sure about buying a first gen hybrid drive considering some people voiced some technical issues that will probably be smoothed out by the next model. Have you experienced any issues with it that or are they so minor the benefits outweigh getting a standard HDD?

 

Ive ran 2 of them now with no issues. they really arent first gen as it has been done before. there is a long therad about them in here somewhere in you look

 

I had a VERY similar problem on the first 3820TG I got at Staples. The harddrive was bad and I got an exchange.

Here is how you can use Gnome Disk Utility on Ubuntu to check if your harddrive is OK. You can create a bootable USB stick, so you don't even need the CD drive.

I don't know about other countries, but from my experience Acer service is pretty fast here in Canada. I mean, sometimes you talk to people who treat you like a baby and don't believe a single word you say, but I usually ask to be forwarded to another agent. It usually takes a matter of minutes to get help if you know what you need.

Acer doesn't mention it, but you can ask them to send you JUST THE HDD so that you can replace it YOURSELF. Call them up, explain your situation. They will ask you for some information and for your credit card number (they charge you for the harddrive and refund the money if you send the defective one back within 30 days or something along those lines). Then they will ship a replacement HDD to you (it was a refurbished crap HDD in my case), then you reaplce it, put your old HDD in the box and ship it back (they provide return shipping label).

Once that is done, you can reinstall the OS and you are all set!

 

Thats great advice prik. I'll see if the hard drive is ok with that test and if not I'll go for just shipping the hard drive.

I'll search the forum for the Seagate momentus XT crazycan. I've read the details about it and it does look like a great drive so I won't let a couple bad apples stop me from looking further into it.

 

On top of this you could use HD Tune to check your drives health

The moments Xt drives are quite a bit more expensive because of the 4GB flash RAM. However 4GB is tiny and really only for storing essential computer data that speeds up your boot times. On top of boot times you wont notice much of a difference.

The 750gb Scorpio is my bet for a really fast 2.5" mechanical drive/size price per GB. I also have a bit of a vendetta with Seagate but that is just me.

Newegg or Amazon will give you cheaper prices for the Scorpio. That's just the price in Finland I showed you. Europe is more expensive.