Acer Upgrade And Start Again....?

[james24]

I have this acer which I recently broke the top half of (screen etc)

http://support.acer.com/acerpanam/notebook/0000/Acer/Aspire4720Z/Aspire4720Zsp2.shtml

I was quoted 4000 to get it replaced. Is that about right... it seems ok.

The comp has been running slow recently and was thinking of buying a new hard drive as Ive formatted it three times already and it needs it again I think with the amount of crap I downloaded. Can I add some more ram or something to make it a bit better of a computer, I am rubbish with hardware stuff.

Any suggestions what I could do...?

It will be mostly used for dreamweaver and fireworks although Im thinking of moving these tow programs onto my mac and installing windows on there but Im not sure yet.

Cheers guys

[rakman]

That's a good price to replace the screen.

From the link, it looks to be a decent machine for your purposes.

You don't say how much memory you currently have, the link you supplied shows it can hold 2GB via 2 x 1 GB modules. More memory is better, especially for Windows or lots of graphics or keeping lots of programs open.

The machine uses shared memory for the graphics which takes away from o/s usable memory, 8MB to 350MB.

If the hard disk is giving you problems, then replace it. Reformatting shouldn't be that necessary.

You don't say how big your hard drive is, but there are good options to consider. If you don't need a huge disk, consider SSD (solid state disk), unless you're only going to keep it for a year or so.

As always, shop around, prices vary..

[lopburi3]

A new model at about 15k would be running at about twice the speed (FSB) and offer more potential and larger HD but if you have legal operating system the new one would cost more for that. But to me Windows 7 and faster system would likely be worth while for a repaired system that has become slow. One thing you would want is 2GB of RAM even if you have to do directly to service center to get it. And with a new system you would have the option to go to 64 bit and that would open much higher upgrade paths.

But as previous post says it does seem a reasonable repair price if that is the path you want to take - be sure to have the full 2GB of RAM if less now.

[BB1950]

The comp has been running slow recently and was thinking of buying a new hard drive as Ive formatted it three times already and it needs it again I think with the amount of crap I downloaded. Can I add some more ram or something to make it a bit better of a computer, I am rubbish with hardware stuff.

Sounds to me like you should be doing disk cleanups and defragmenting rather than reformatting. IMO, if the drive is more than 60% full, I would consider a larger drive.

CCleaner works very well for doing the cleanups. The built-in Windows defragmenter works well enough for defragmenting. If you do a lot of downloads and deleting files,. you should perform these tasks often.

[james24]

Cheers guys

As the screen is broke now Im not sure how I would find out how much ram I have etc.

I havent changed, replaced anything since I bought it.

Is there anyway to open it up and look inside...?

The hardrive is 150gb

[lopburi3]

There will be a cover on the back of keyboard unit that can open and expose the RAM. They are marked and am quite sure it will be 1GB or less. There is normally room for two sets of RAM to be attached. Most new units at low end of range will have 320GB drives now so everything would likely be about double of what you now have. But suspect you might be happy with unit if you increase the RAM. You can buy USB external drives to hold downloads/data under 3,000 baht for 1TB or more storage.

[james24]

There will be a cover on the back of keyboard unit that can open and expose the RAM. They are marked and am quite sure it will be 1GB or less. There is normally room for two sets of RAM to be attached. Most new units at low end of range will have 320GB drives now so everything would likely be about double of what you now have. But suspect you might be happy with unit if you increase the RAM. You can buy USB external drives to hold downloads/data under 3,000 baht for 1TB or more storage.

Thanks mate, Ill have a look tonight when Ive got my tools.

How much is a gig of ram for this type of machine, are the rams in Thailand any good or are they copies from somewhere...?

As you can see I dont really know what Im talking about lol

[lopburi3]

The RAM (memory) is imported and the same as available anywhere else. If you visit ACER service they will do or you can do yourself (or better have it done with the replacement screen). I expect 1GB would run about 1k or a bit more and often it can be added to whatever you now have and the 1GB should make a big difference when doing more than one thing. Also take advise from BB1950 to keep hard drive clean.

Remember when making the decision that your computer now is several generations old and HD has seen a lot of use it seems and they do fail. If you want to replace screen/RAM/HD it might make sense to buy a new unit which will be faster out of the box and likely last longer.

[james24]

The RAM (memory) is imported and the same as available anywhere else. If you visit ACER service they will do or you can do yourself (or better have it done with the replacement screen). I expect 1GB would run about 1k or a bit more and often it can be added to whatever you now have and the 1GB should make a big difference when doing more than one thing. Also take advise from BB1950 to keep hard drive clean.

Remember when making the decision that your computer now is several generations old and HD has seen a lot of use it seems and they do fail. If you want to replace screen/RAM/HD it might make sense to buy a new unit which will be faster out of the box and likely last longer.

mmm this is true.

I'm not sure how much a new hard drive is but if it is as much as a new screen I might buy a new one.

Apparently Acer screens are not known for reliability so it might be an idea

[james24]

Hi guys

You were right it only has 1gb of ram inside. The brand is Nanya and it is 2rx8 if that makes any sense...any good....?

If I were to buy more ram for it would it make sense to buy the same brand again as I've heard twin ram chips work better with each other that with different ones...?

As for hd I think Ill go for a fresh xp install unless anyone advises a 32 bit windows 7 instead...?

[BB1950]

Hi guys

You were right it only has 1gb of ram inside. The brand is Nanya and it is 2rx8 if that makes any sense...any good....?

If I were to buy more ram for it would it make sense to buy the same brand again as I've heard twin ram chips work better with each other that with different ones...?

As for hd I think Ill go for a fresh xp install unless anyone advises a 32 bit windows 7 instead...?

IMHO:

Once you use Windows 7, you won't want to consider XP again.

Windows 7 is quicker, more intuitive, more secure than XP, and has a lot more eye candy.

1 gb of ram is not adequate for Windows 7. Minimum of 2 gb.

You would have to check to see if Windows 7 drivers are available your Acer. It is an older computer, there may not be any. Since it is broken you can't run Microsoft's Windows 7 Upgrade Advisor, so you would have to check Acer's website.

If you were to consider upgrading to Windows 7 in the near future, you might be better off buying a new computer (faster processor, more ram, larger hard drive, and better video adapter) as lopburi3 suggested.

If you installed Windows 7 on your broken Acer, you would also have to buy the retail versions of Window 7 (which are more expensive), as the OEM version can't be transfered to another computer. Whereas with the retail versions of Windows 7 could be installed on a new computer.

[james24]

Cheers guys I think Ill stick with xp until I get a new computer.

Any advice/review on the nanya ram...?

[lopburi3]

Do not believe Acer has problems with RAM (Toshiba is known for such issues) and any seller will test/guarantee the RAM you purchase so it should not be an issue. I don't know the name but ACER I expect has many suppliers. Just look for a low price and have them install for you.

If you have not been doing defrag and using CCleaner you might find using them will help your speed issues and not have to re-install everything.

You can buy both USB powered 2.5" external drives for data or brick powered units 3.5". If using at home for movies/tv and such the 3.5" will be better value for storage capacity. It is a bit slow making transfers of huge data files on USB but for use in programs and viewing they are fine.