I5 upgrade

[Meister-Man]

Hi guys

I am not a techie, but my 3 year old Dell i5 needs some new life.
I was given 2 options, a ssd or a nvme.
Nvme is slightly more expensive.
Mainly just want a faster computer especially for big excel docs.

Ciao

 

[Willie Trombone]

Hi guys

I am not a techie, but my 3 year old Dell i5 needs some new life.
I was given 2 options, a ssd or a nvme.
Nvme is slightly more expensive.
Mainly just want a faster computer especially for big excel docs.

Ciao

Either will be a big boost, but I would hazard a guess that the SSD will be easier to install if you have an existing hard drive (since you already have the bracket). I don't think you'll be unhappy with either to be fair but the NVME is the better (faster) channel, so it boils down to what you want to spend.
How much RAM does it have? 8 or more is ideal.

 

[Meister-Man]

Either will be a big boost, but I would hazard a guess that the SSD will be easier to install if you have an existing hard drive (since you already have the bracket). I don't think you'll be unhappy with either to be fair but the NVME is the better (faster) channel, so it boils down to what you want to spend.
How much RAM does it have? 8 or more is ideal.

It has 8gb ram currently, might try and see if I can get another 8gb ram as well.
Im not paying to have it fitted, so easier to install is not really a factor.
I just want the biggest improvement within reason (and budget).
Also I intend keeping it for a while so looking to future proof it.

 

[Johnatan56]

Hi guys

I am not a techie, but my 3 year old Dell i5 needs some new life.
I was given 2 options, a ssd or a nvme.
Nvme is slightly more expensive.
Mainly just want a faster computer especially for big excel docs.

Ciao

Nvme is nicer if you have the slot, since it can read/write at the same time and then the speed boost, the price difference is usually minimal enough that you should near always take it.
Are you sure you have an Nvme slot on the board?

 

[Meister-Man]

Nvme is nicer if you have the slot, since it can read/write at the same time and then the speed boost, the price difference is usually minimal enough that you should near always take it.
Are you sure you have an Nvme slot on the board?

They have unscrewed the back and had a look before they gave me the option of ssd or nvme.
So I'd assume it has the slot

 

[Johnatan56]

They have unscrewed the back and had a look before they gave me the option of ssd or nvme.
So I'd assume it has the slot

Depending on the price difference, you'd want to pick the Nvme option.

 

[ponder]

They have unscrewed the back and had a look before they gave me the option of ssd or nvme.

What did they quote?

What's the full dell model numer? dependin on the model you might get to keep the hard drive as extra storage next to a nvme...

 

[Willie Trombone]

What did they quote?

What's the full dell model numer? dependin on the model you might get to keep the hard drive as extra storage next to a nvme...

This is what I'd do if you can. Save the traditional hard drive for storage. That way you don't need a big NVME. 128/254 is plench for OS plus most apps. Data, desktop, etc. keep on traditional drive. NVME upgrade will be huge by comparison to the RAM, speed wise.

 

[Meister-Man]

Thanks all.
Will try do as suggested, if not will opt for just the nvme.
Should have it sorted next week after the long weekend, will report back

 

[CT_Biker]

Is this a laptop or a Desktop?

If its a laptop, grab an SSD and 16GB of ram. Doesnt really matter what the speed of the RAM is, you cannot change those settings anyway.

If its an older desktop that you got from an office clearance sale or something, check the wiring and motherboard for proprietary-ness and report back here, though a normal SSD should be an option, all you need is a power connector and SATA 2 cable.

 

[Meister-Man]

Is this a laptop or a Desktop?

If its a laptop, grab an SSD and 16GB of ram. Doesnt really matter what the speed of the RAM is, you cannot change those settings anyway.

If its an older desktop that you got from an office clearance sale or something, check the wiring and motherboard for proprietary-ness and report back here, though a normal SSD should be an option, all you need is a power connector and SATA 2 cable.

It's a laptop, a 7th gen Dell I5 (iirc)
Unlike others, you recommend the ssd and not the nvme, would you advise why?

 

[Pineapple Smurf]

i put an SSD into my work pc a month ago, its a 4th gen i3 with 4GB RAM
When i switch on computer screen says DELL and then moments later i am at the Log In screen and its logging me on automatically.
Im at the desktop with nothing running in background in about 20 seconds or less from hitting the power button

So a std cheap 240GB SSD is pretty good with Win10

 

[animal531]

i put an SSD into my work pc a month ago, its a 4th gen i3 with 4GB RAM
When i switch on computer screen says DELL and then moments later i am at the Log In screen and its logging me on automatically.
Im at the desktop with nothing running in background in about 20 seconds or less from hitting the power button

So a std cheap 240GB SSD is pretty good with Win10

Yeah a normal SSD is great, but you probably want to get a slightly bigger sized one (depending on the apps/games/whatever you install).

 

[Pineapple Smurf]

Yeah a normal SSD is great, but you probably want to get a slightly bigger sized one (depending on the apps/games/whatever you install).

i only have Windows 10 on it and over 100GB free space.
Everything else points to D:\ which is an old school 500GB drive Ive had for about 7 years or more

 

[animal531]

i only have Windows 10 on it and over 100GB free space.
Everything else points to D:\ which is an old school 500GB drive Ive had for about 7 years or more

Yeah, it works for you because you only play games from 1980
100Gb these days isn't all that much (and it's really nice to put games/apps on it as well).
I also have a 240Gb SSD on my work PC (as a developer). It takes a crapload of effort to not chow up all the free space.

 

[Pineapple Smurf]

Yeah, it works for you because you only play games from 1980
100Gb these days isn't all that much (and it's really nice to put games/apps on it as well).
I also have a 240Gb SSD on my work PC (as a developer). It takes a crapload of effort to not chow up all the free space.

Dig my old games, the biggest ones installed on D:\ is Skyrim, GTA V, X-Plane 11, Call of Duty 4, etc

 

[CT_Biker]

It's a laptop, a 7th gen Dell I5 (iirc)
Unlike others, you recommend the ssd and not the nvme, would you advise why?

I suggested an SSD over an NVMe because I do not know what hardware you have, and generally SSD's are drop in replacements for a HDD with less effort required.

 

[Meister-Man]

I suggested an SSD over an NVMe because I do not know what hardware you have, and generally SSD's are drop in replacements for a HDD with less effort required.

I'm not doing it myself or paying for installation so the "less effort" is not really a factor. Just a little more $ for the nvme, which based on my brief research and responses received so far nvme seems worth it.

 

[Hemps]

+1 for SSD upgrade then see, 8GB ram seems enough unless you running Virtual machines as well or opening many Excel spreadsheets.