I want to upgrade my Dell, possible?

[Zamecnik]

I have a Dell Inspiron 8200, 1.6 ghz, 256 RAM, 30 gig hard drive. i'd like to upgrade the RAM to 512 DDR and the 30 gig to 50. Does anyone know if thats even possible? I've heard that Dell isn't very upgrade friendly. Any advice you could give would be great. Thanks!

 

[Zwelgje]

Upgrading RAM is easy as hell, I could do it so nobody should have a problem with that. Don't know about extra HDD, maybe put a new one in maybe you can insert an extra one. I'll leave that to the experts to answer.

 

[Turner]

Yeah, Z be right about the memory. It's easy as snot to put in.

Have you tried calling dell, or a dell authorized dealer, to see about getting a hdd for your model? Shouldn't be that difficult. You'd think they'd use all the same type of drives for their laptops.

 

[funxus]

I spent a week this summer upgrading dells at my work. I htink the model was Opt... something (Optiflex?).

The hard drives weren't too hard, just connect it to the plugs (one wide cable, and one smaller for power) and screw it in when you see it's working.

We had some problems with RAM though. The brand they had bought for them (Viking Components, probably scandinavian) wasn't compatible with them. So, before buying them, make sure that the memory is compatible or the computer won't start. Maybe you could ask on their homepage's forum, or search for it there.

Good luck.

 

[nihilistic]

RAM should be easy. HD shouldn't be difficult either.

You can visit the Inspiron Forum for some more informed help.

 

[Speedo]

I'm pretty sure you void your warranty if you do it yourself and/or don't use Dell approved components. If you want to keep the warranty, talk to Dell- they usually offer upgrade components. You'll probably pay more though. Otherwise both upgrades are pretty easy to do.

 

[hbdragon88]

The question is, does Dell19 approve of being upgraded?

 

[JonathanValjean]

It's certainly possible, however, one of the things that some computer enthusiasts don't like about Dell is the fact that their machines often come with some proprietary components that you can only buy from them. Don't get me wrong, Dell makes an excellent product, and can be upgraded, it's just that you may have to go to them for some of your upgrades.

 

[shirleyrocks]

I've personally owned two Dells in a row now (I currently own a Dimension 8250) and I make upgrades regularly. Adding additional RAM and upgrading your hard drive (or adding new sound or video cards, etc) will be no problem whatsoever, I guarantee you. I *think* most of the 'Dell is not upgrade friendly' rumors somehow revolve around motherboard upgrades and has something to do with how they're physically constructed. I've never done this with one of my Dells however so I don't have personal knowledge of what the actual problem might be.

But the bottom line...you'll have no problems with the upgrades you'd like to make.

 

[damunzy]

Originally posted by funxus
I spent a week this summer upgrading dells at my work. I htink the model was Opt... something (Optiflex?).

Optiplex - we have some of those at work...one of which I am using (it is really sad).

As to upgrading a Dell. About the only thing they use that is proprietary any more would be the motherboards and cases w/power supply. Best thing would be to take the advice and call Dell and tell them you want to upgrade. They will tell you what you can upgrade that system to and then you can buy the stuff elsewhere for cheaper - although Dell does have some decent prices some times and their return policy is pretty liberal.....

On the voiding of the warranty...that has gone out of style. Most OEMs don't do that anymore even if you have upgraded the system - to be safe remove anything that you added to your system before sending it in for repair.

 

[Lefty Scaevola]

I just added ram to 2 old dells, no problem at all if there a slots avialable, I expect it would not even be a problem to take out an existing ram card and replace it with a large one. Instead of a installed 2nd hard disk, you might get an external one.