Y580 mSATA SSD Installation

[Molite]

Hey guys so I finally pulled the trigger on this Y580:
Lenovo - 15.6" IdeaPad Laptop - 8GB Memory - 1TB Hard Drive - Dawn Gray - 209942U - Best Buy

I bought it from Best Buy because I wanted 18 months no interest. I usually don't shop there. I can still return it so if you guys have another recommendation that'd be great. I also missed out on the barnes and nobles July 4th sale.

Well my main question is that this model has a 1TB 5400 HDD. I was wondering if I could install a mSATA SSD still even though it's not Pre-Configured with one. If so is there a guide to do so and is there any good deal on a mSATA SSD going on with at least 32gb.

Thanks!

[Draghmar]

You can install mSATA SSD without any problem. It's quite easy. All you have to do is remove back cover. You can see how it looks like in my mini review - there are photos attached at the bottom.

[sensei22]

I want to buy this model

Lenovo - 15.6" IdeaPad Laptop - 8GB Memory - 1TB Hard Drive - Dawn Gray - 209942U

which does not have the mSATA drive included, but I could buy a 32GB kingston SSD for less than $60 and pop it in myself. If I do this, can I easily set it up for cache purposes?

[broncito]

I want to buy this model

Lenovo - 15.6" IdeaPad Laptop - 8GB Memory - 1TB Hard Drive - Dawn Gray - 209942U

which does not have the mSATA drive included, but I could buy a 32GB kingston SSD for less than $60 and pop it in myself. If I do this, can I easily set it up for cache purposes?

Hi sensei;

Make sure you're not confusing SSD with mSSD. The Y580 comes with a mSSD slot (in addition to the optical drive and the hard disk drive). But if you buy a SSD (not a mSSD or mSATA) you'll have to sacrifice your ODD to have both your hard disk drive and your SSD.

Sorry for not answering your cache question. Don't know that.

[AnimalMother]

Hey guys, what's a good cheap reliable SSD simply hook up to lenovo. Wondering how to load the information on it.

[sensei22]

I'll be receiving mine next monday and bought an mSATA SSD to boost up performance. Can anyone point me out to a guide to re-install everything in the mSATA SSD and merge both SSD with HDD with Lenovo's Rapid Drive?

[@bobo]

I'll be receiving mine next monday and bought an mSATA SSD to boost up performance. Can anyone point me out to a guide to re-install everything in the mSATA SSD and merge both SSD with HDD with Lenovo's Rapid Drive?

You don't need to do anything with "Rapid Drive" if you are going to install your OS on the mSATA. Lenovo Enhanced Experience is Lenovo's caching optimization program used when you have your OS on the standard HDD and are caching frequently used boot files etc on a small mSATA.

[carpenj]

For those of you wanting to move your OS onto the mSATA (if you installed the mSATA yourself), a quick piece of info: I had to use an adapter to hook up the mSATA drive to the standard 2.5" drive to get my OS to install on it. I guess my laptop only wanted to reinstall the OS to the "HD0" input or whatever.

[@bobo]

For those of you wanting to move your OS onto the mSATA (if you installed the mSATA yourself), a quick piece of info: I had to use an adapter to hook up the mSATA drive to the standard 2.5" drive to get my OS to install on it. I guess my laptop only wanted to reinstall the OS to the "HD0" input or whatever.

A better way is to remove the HDD while you install the OS on the mSATA and then drop it back in once you're done.

[UnexplainedBacon]

A better way is to remove the HDD while you install the OS on the mSATA and then drop it back in once you're done.

This was my plan for installing the mSATA I just bought, but I am wondering.... how does the computer handle that first boot, with the fact that there are two boot drives in the PC now? Would you need to hop in to the BIOS before it boots and set the boot order or something?

Thanks


(wow I just said "boot" a lot...)