Are there any good upgrades I could make to my UX31A?

I'm looking to increase the performance a bit in my Asus UX31A 2013. The biggest limitations are the 128 gb SSD which is a non-standard connector (why did anyone think this was a good idea?), the 4 GB soldered RAM, and the non-touch screen. I can't really think of anything else I could upgrade but maybe you guys can? I don't really want to buy new right now, I'd rather wait for the next generation. What upgrades could I do to this computer that would make my experience better?

 

I think it would be important if you defined the performance. Is Windows running slower than what it was when it was new? Does playing Youtube lag the laptop? Soldered RAM is not something you can solve (I think the model in itself was limited to 4 GB RAM). I know ASUS did maker larger SSDs, but being a nonstandard connector makes it difficult to find a specific part number. You could try ASUS online site for parts or directly contacting them. I've worked on an UX31A, and let me tell you, it is not upgrade friendly or for the faint of heart.

 

You can add a cheap chinese resistive touchscreen with usb interface...

 

That sounds like a fun project, I'd try it if the price was right. Where do you suggest looking for one of these? Ali Baba has some but they're the kind that you would have to order a couple thousand to get a good price.


@Tsunade_Hime - Playing 1080p videos sometimes lags a bit. I'd like to be able to use it as my primary computer, so I want to run Photoshop on it. I've done a fair bit of work inside the computer because of the keyboard issues so I know what you're talking about with respect to difficulty of working in it.

I was trying to restore it to factory settings for the better part of an evening because despite the existence of a recovery partition, F9 does not open the recovery interface. I sent it back (due to the keyboard problems) with the express request for them to wipe and restore it.

Has anyone had any experience overclocking ultrabooks?

 

You need to reinstall windows and you could have easily done that on your own.. Also forget about OCing the ULV processor.. It isn't possible...

 

I sent it back because the keyboard didn't work, not because I don't know how to reinstall windows. I just thought I'd get them do some more while it's there and I don't have to worry about licensing or any of that.

 

Provided you have the OS disc from ASUS, the operating system should activate automatically once installed; there are special codes in the notebook's firmware that allow it to do so.

It depends on what you're looking to get out of your notebook that it's not doing now; if it's too slow, etc you should look into the resale value and put it towards the purchase of a new notebook.

 

Charles - Thanks for the advice but this being an Ultrabook, it doesn't have an optical drive. There's a recovery partition but the shortcut to access it doesn't work (documented problem). I could have loaded Windows 8 from a USB stick/done a system reset but the original license for the notebook was for Windows 7, so that's why I was worried I might mess something up.

 

You may be able to get ASUS Support to send you a physical OS disc assuming the notebook is still under warranty. Explain to them you don't want to have to send the notebook in for OS reinstalls.
I bought an external Rosewill USB DVD burner two years ago for not much money, I think it was less than $50.