Dell Inspiron 1520: Viable After Market Upgrades

[veselatakurabiika]

Brilliant! I am going for an SSD as well....10x brandensteinberg

[padfoot07]

Thanks to everyone who has contributed to the info on this thread as it is freaking awesome!!! I've actually just stumbled across this page from a google search and I've got a few questions regarding upgrades to my Inspiron 1520. Any help would be appreciated!

I've just built a new PC and have stopped using my Inspiron 1520 that I have had for about 5 years or so. I'm looking to improve it a little on the cheap so my younger sister can use it every now and again. It won't be anyone's main PC.

The laptop only has 2gb of RAM and a pretty small HDD (120gb I think). It also came with XP but I have since upgraded to Windows 7. So my questions are:

1) Can I replace the current HDD with an SSD and only have this? I'd like to keep the optical drive if possible. Is any SSD okay to use?
2) Is it worth upgrading the RAM to 4gb/8gb? If so, what RAM do I have to buy?
3) What replacement battery should I buy? I have the original Dell charger.
4) Would you recommend any other upgrades? (I've never replaced anything in a laptop before, so I can't do anything too confusing haha)

Thanks in advance!

[mumpsimus]

1. Can I replace the current HDD with an SSD and only have this? I'd like to keep the optical drive if possible. Is any SSD okay to use?
2. Is it worth upgrading the RAM to 4gb/8gb? If so, what RAM do I have to buy?
3. What replacement battery should I buy? I have the original Dell charger.
4. Would you recommend any other upgrades? (I've never replaced anything in a laptop before, so I can't do anything too confusing haha)

1. Any 2.5" SATA drive should work. This won't affect your optical drive.
2. Probably. Note that 8GB is not possible; 6GB might be (assuming you installed Win 7 64-bit)
3. Search eBay for "inspiron 1525 battery"; filter on 'New'; decide whether you want 6-cell or 9-cell
4. They're not as easy as replacing a drive, but CPU, webcam, and bluetooth upgrades are relatively cheap (under $15 each).

[padfoot07]

Thanks for the help... just a few more questions haha

1. Would you reccomend just replacing the current HDD or is it better to replace the optical drive with the SSD? (I can just use a USB CD drive to install an OS yeah?)
2. I might just go 4GB then. Any DDR2 will work?
3. Does it matter what charger you use or will any charger be fine for any battery?

Thanks again!

[mumpsimus]

1. Would you reccomend just replacing the current HDD or is it better to replace the optical drive with the SSD? (I can just use a USB CD drive to install an OS yeah?)
2. I might just go 4GB then. Any DDR2 will work?
3. Does it matter what charger you use or will any charger be fine for any battery?

1. Just replace the HDD
2. I usually use the Newegg Memory Finder
3. Find a charger that says it's compatible with an Inspiron 1520 (or Vostro 1500). Choices are 65W and 90W (you may get a BIOS warning with the 65W, though it can be disabled).

[Commander Wolf]

2) Any DDR2 should work
3) If you have integrated graphics, the 65W adapter won't throttle. If you have discrete graphics, you should use the 90W adapter.

[SubduedRhombus]

Hey guys, I have a Vostro 1520 and intend to upgrade the processor, RAM, and graphics card. I have a Mobile Intel 4 Series Express Chipset and I've read that I'll need to swap the motherboard in order to upgrade it. Ive done some Google searches on the matter but can't seem to find anything helpful. Can someone point me it the right direction as to how to swap the motherboard, and what to purchase? I would also like to know about the compatibilities between what is already installed and upgrading what I've listed. What else will I have to do besides just install the parts? If you can help, thank you so much.

[Mihael Keehl]

A Vostro 1520? I don't think that's the same thing as Dell Inspiron 1520.

[SubduedRhombus]

A Vostro 1520? I don't think that's the same thing as Dell Inspiron 1520.

Oh my... I need to read better. I could've swore your topic said Vostro 1520. I am very sorry.

[Mihael Keehl]

It's alright, you can check the business class subforum of Dell for that help, if it was the Vostro 1500, perhaps I could have helped then.