Upgrading RAM, SSD and processor on HP Notebook - 15-da0803no

[WeirdAndOddish]

I want to upgrade my RAM, SSD and processor for my HP laptop, and I'm looking for what's compatible with it. I'm a student who does basic student stuff, but also game a little bit on the side and does a lot of music production.

I'm thinking 16x2 GB RAMM. Do I have to go for DDR4-2400, or can I go for say DDR4-2666?

I've heard rumors that the processor is soldered - is this true or can I change it? If so how do I find out what's compatible?

There seems to be an M.2 SSD in it already. Are there more slots, or do I have to transfer everything over to a external harddrive, buy a new SSD, and re-transfer everything back to it?

Specs:

• Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-8250U 
• RAM: 8 GB DDR4-2400
• SSD: 256 GB M.2 

I'm not that knowledgeable when it comes to computers, and I would hate to throw away loads of money on products I can't use with my PC. 

All help is welcomed! Thank you!

[Paul_Tikkanen · Accepted solution]

Hi:

The processor is an integral part of the motherboard and cannot be upgraded.

You can install DDR4-2666 MHz memory, but it is only going to run at a max speed of 2400 MHz, because that is as fast as your notebook's  Intel® Core™ i5-8250U processor can run the memory at.

Intel® Core™ i5-8250U Processor (6M Cache, up to 3.40 GHz)

The HP service manual indicates you can install up to 2 x 8 GB of memory, but you can probably install 2 x 16 GB if you wanted to.

You can do this to see how much memory your notebook can actually support...

1. In the search box, search for cmd and click Run as administrator. This will open the command prompt.

2. Once command prompt is opened, type wmic memphysical get maxcapacity and hit enter. There, it will show the maximum RAM capacity your PC's motherboard can support.

The capacity is shown as Kilobytes, so you have to convert it to Gigabytes by dividing the number provided in the report by 1,048,576.

Your notebook has a M.2 slot that supports both SATA and NVMe SSD's.

There is only one slot.

NVMe drives have faster sequential read/write speeds than SATA drives do.

Your notebook's specs page doesn't indicate what type of M.2 SSD is installed.

Below is the link to the service manual for your notebook.

You can do this to see how much memory your notebook can actually support...

1. In the search box, search for cmd and click Run as administrator. This will open the command prompt.

2. Once command prompt is opened, type wmic memphysical get maxcapacity and hit enter. There, it will show the maximum RAM capacity your PC's motherboard can support.

The capacity is shown as Kilobytes, so you have to convert it to Gigabytes by dividing the number provided in the report by 1,048,576.

They sell USB to SATA or NVMe enclosures you can buy.

Insert the replacement drive in the enclosure and clone the existing drive configuration to the new drive.

[WeirdAndOddish]

Holy **bleep** dude, thank you for such a good reply! Thanks 1.000.000 times!

[Paul_Tikkanen]

You're very welcome.