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4. Laptop Upgrading

Laptops, by their nature, are not widely upgradable, generally an upgrade to the memory (RAM) or hard disk should be possible with most laptops, but modern systems come with such large memory and hard disk sizes its unlikely you will need to upgrade anyway.

As most items on your laptop cannot be upgraded, I will focus here on the items that usually can be upgraded so you know what is possible should you need something more from your system.

Memory (RAM) Upgrades

The amount of memory (RAM) in your system is usually upgradable, at least up to a point. A laptop (in fact any PC) can only have a finite amount of memory, therefore if, when you bought the system, the memory installed was at the maximum the system can take then there is obviously no scope for improvement.

If however, your system has some capacity remaining for adding extra memory then you'll be pleased to know its relatively cheap to add. Most modern laptops have at least 512mb RAM installed, and many have over 1024mb (1GB). As with most things relating to PCs, the higher the number, the better your system will perform, and memory is no exception.

Upgrading laptop memory is usually a very painless procedure requiring nothing more than a small screwdriver to open the memory cover underneath the laptop, once you've opened the cover the memory itself simply unclips from its housing for easy replacement. Obviously some other essential items to your memory upgrade would be the memory itself and your laptops manual to point you in the right direction of what to do (turning the power off and removing the battery being the most important).

Most modern laptops take 2 sticks of memory, and each one can normally be of various capacities, you could for example have 1x256mb and 1x512mb sticks to give you a total of 768mb.

You should consult your laptops manual or manufacturer for the maximum amount of memory your system can take, the memory type (there are different types and you must use the correct one) and instructions on how to fit it. Once you know the type a quick internet search should throw up some keen prices for the memory your after.

Hard Disk Upgrades

Another component that can usually be upgraded (or replaced in case of failure) is the hard disk.

Unfortunately, upgrading the hard disk is not as simple as upgrading the memory (RAM), and unless you have the skills yourself, this task should normally be placed into the hands of a professional (or at least a friend with sufficient knowledge).

Again you should consult your laptops handbook on the specification of its hard disk and the procedure for replacement if you choose to go ahead and attempt the upgrade your self.

Anything else I can upgrade?

Well, no, or at least not easily. In theory you can upgrade the processor or graphics card along with various other items, but in reality its a non starter. Replacing these items is a serious undertaking and would require specialist knowledge and competent skill, in short, its best avoided.

Conclusion

You can upgrade the memory, you can upgrade the hard disk, you cant upgrade anything else (not technically correct but a good ethos to go by).

This is one of the few areas where laptops fall behind when put against their desktop brothers, as desktops are much easier to upgrade all ares of the system, not just memory and hard disk.

However with modern laptops being so powerful, its likely the only elements you may need to upgrade during the lifetime of the laptop are indeed the memory and hard disk, so its no great loss and definitely not a reason to avoid laptops.