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    Dell Studio XPS 16 upgrade to SSD

    Discussion in 'Dell XPS and Studio XPS' started by aleloco, Jul 31, 2010.

  1. aleloco

    aleloco Notebook Geek

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    Hi, im about to buy a 1647 and i want to use a SSD drive on it
    The ssd is a 64 gb, 2,5" SATA.

    Is this possible ?
    Is there any guide to open this notebook ?

    Thanks.
     
    aleloco, Jul 31, 2010
    #1
  2. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    You can install any 2.5" SATA SSD. Just treat the installation as that of any normal hard drive. Dell offers a service manual for the SXL16 for your perusal:

    Documentation

    Specifically:

    Documentation
     
    Commander Wolf, Jul 31, 2010
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  3. nomoredell

    nomoredell Notebook Deity

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    you dont need a guide or bother to read the manual for swapping out hard drives. just open up the bottom panel, everything is there.
     
    nomoredell, Jul 31, 2010
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  4. aleloco

    aleloco Notebook Geek

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    Thanks a lot, Commander ! :D
     
    aleloco, Jul 31, 2010
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  5. Thonsen

    Thonsen Notebook Enthusiast

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    Was the SSD an option on your build? If so why didnt you take it?

    I also want to have an SSD installed on my laptop, but from what I hear there is a huge disparity in performance between different manufacturers. Some are even slower then HDDs apparently. I called up Dell sales and asked them who made theirs, and they couldnt answer the question. So Im a bit reluctant to order a SSD I know nothing about.

    The other option is just to get an Intel G2 and install it yourself, but you are obviously already paying for the HDD you get with the machine.
     
    Thonsen, Aug 1, 2010
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  6. seeker_moc

    seeker_moc Notebook Virtuoso

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    You're absolutely right. There are huge performance differences between different SSDs, even between different models from the same manufacturer. I'd never buy an SSD if I didn't know what model it was. A good site for SSD reviews is Home - AnandTech :: Your Source for Hardware Analysis and News
     
    seeker_moc, Aug 1, 2010
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  7. aleloco

    aleloco Notebook Geek

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    I got this ssd: wd siliconedge blue 64gb
    I cant select the ssd on my build because im going to buy this laptop on bestbuy. Btw, im going to use the 500 gb hdd with an external case :) .
     
    aleloco, Aug 1, 2010
    #7
  8. Commander Wolf

    Commander Wolf can i haz broadwell?

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    For the record, the crappy SSDs, those that're "even slower then HDDs apparently" (typically powered by first-gen JMicron or JMicron spin-off controllers) have largely been phased out of the market at this point. You can still find them, you just have to search (but why would you do that?).

    The Samsung drives that Dell uses (way, way back at the dawn of the SSD era they may have used SanDisk and Toshiba as well) are unfortunately near the bottom of the modern SSD bucket, but still several times faster than your typical mechanical hard drive.

    That being said, it's typically more cost effective to buy your own SSD and upgrade your machine yourself. You can get a drive other than Samsung that's probably faster and cheaper for the same capacity (though at some point, it's hard to tell the difference between a "fast enough" SSD and a "very fast" SSD in day to day use).

    The WD SiliconEdge series uses second-gen JMicron controllers which are "okay" compared to the rest of the available SSDs out there at the moment.
     
    Commander Wolf, Aug 1, 2010
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  9. MrSpock2002

    MrSpock2002 Notebook Evangelist

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    The new generation Sata 2 Samsung drives are ranked very highly and cost a butt load. They are very fast 200+ read 175+ write speed with full TRIM support. The ones that are now being sold from Dell you can buy off different sites for over $450 to $750 depending where you want to go.
     
    MrSpock2002, Aug 1, 2010
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  10. Thonsen

    Thonsen Notebook Enthusiast

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    Thanks for all the helpful replies.

    Do Dell Laptops come with the discs to reinstall Windows, or do you need to buy another copy?
     
    Thonsen, Aug 2, 2010
    #10
  11. seeker_moc

    seeker_moc Notebook Virtuoso

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    seeker_moc, Aug 2, 2010
    #11