Questions about adding a SSD

[billubakra]

Hi,

I want to add an ssd to the hp pavilion ab522tx laptop. I have a 2.5" ssd. Also got the 9.5mm caddy, found the information about the caddy size here https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Hardware-and-Upgrade-Questions/SSD-upgrade-in-hp-pavilion-15-...

Have a few questions-

1. The main slot where hdd is fixed is sata iii and the dvd drive is sata i in this laptop, correct?

2. Are these arguments in favor of ssd in caddy right?

a. HDD need much better heat dissipation compared to ssd & its original slot in the laptop is designed keeping this in mind but in a caddy placed inside dvd drive slot one can rest assured that heat dissipation for hdd there will be less. For same reason there will always be more chances of more intense physical shocks being experienced by a hdd in a dvd drive slot caddy compared to its original slot.

b. Some laptops have some sort of power saving feature enabled on dvd drive sata port which is hard wired into laptop bios & cannot be changed or even visible(only way to know this is by seeing weird & random hdd errors & crashes while accessing something on hdd). This is no issue for a ssd which has much faster read write speeds as well as zero “spin up” waiting period but for a hdd this is disastrous & will result in data corruption as well as negative impact on its health over a long term.

c. The HDD will be already old, it will likely have bad sectors and other health issues

d. Any data you access (write/read doesn’t matter) from HDD will be slow even if you access via SSD. Unless you badly need to extend the storage, do not go for caddy and add a lagging variable to the relatively fast machine.

I have no problem using the ssd in the caddy, I only need it with Windows installed for faster booting etc. but the problem is that if the dvd is be sata i so it's performance will be reduced 😞 I personally don't want to take out the hdd out of the main slot but the sata i in dvd drive will defeat the purpose of a ssd.

Please help.

@Huffer  @banhien 

Thanks

Edit- Hi @Paul_Tikkanen I am tagging you here because of this post

You're very welcome.

Yes, a SATA 3 SSD should run at the full SATA 3 speed because your notebook's drive controller supports SATA 3 (6.0 GB/S) speeds.

According to the specs for the drive model you posted it is indeed SATA II.

Amazon.com: Toshiba MQ01ABD100 - hard drive - 1 TB - SATA-300 (HDKBB96) - : Electronics

I wonder why HP installed a slower speed drive than what could have been supported?

Posted here https://h30434.www3.hp.com/t5/Notebook-Hardware-and-Upgrade-Questions/which-ssd-should-I-purchase-fo...

In the hp ab522tx laptop, is the ODD using Sata i? And anything for my queries posted above?

[Huffer]

I think I'm on record as mostly agreeing with what you say. An SSD in a DVD caddy will work, but it will be crippled in speed. Mechanically it will likely have no problems except these caddies can be sketchy and they tend to have a high DOA rate from what we have seen here. The hard drive would perform almost as well and you can test it before you use it to see if it passes diagnostics. Good luck. 

[billubakra]

Thank you. 2 queries-

1. In the hp ab522tx laptop, has HP mentioned anywhere whether the ODD is sata i or sata iii? This will clear all doubts.

2. Do you agree with the following points

a. HDD need much better heat dissipation compared to ssd & its original slot in the laptop is designed keeping this in mind but in a caddy placed inside dvd drive slot one can rest assured that heat dissipation for hdd there will be less. For same reason there will always be more chances of more intense physical shocks being experienced by a hdd in a dvd drive slot caddy compared to its original slot.

b. Some laptops have some sort of power saving feature enabled on dvd drive sata port which is hard wired into laptop bios & cannot be changed or even visible(only way to know this is by seeing weird & random hdd errors & crashes while accessing something on hdd). This is no issue for a ssd which has much faster read write speeds as well as zero “spin up” waiting period but for a hdd this is disastrous & will result in data corruption as well as negative impact on its health over a long term.