Many laptops, especially older ones, still have a CD / DVD / BR optical drive that we normally use rather little. In this article we are going to show you how you can take advantage of this unit to add more storage to your laptop by installing a hard drive or even an SSD there if you prefer less capacity but more performance.
That optical drives are in decline is a fact, and proof of this is that fewer and fewer laptops incorporate them, and in fact even desktop PC cases often come without 5.25 ″ bays to install this type of units. However, if you have a laptop that still incorporates one of these, below we are going to show you how you can replace it with a hard drive to expand its storage capacity.
As a note, this might not work for all laptops as it depends on how the optical drive is mounted. Make sure it is compatible with your specific model before buying anything and launching yourself to follow this tutorial.
Necessary materials
Since optical drives in laptops use the same SATA interface as 2.5-inch SSDs and hard drives, you only need a mere adapter that you can buy at any online store for very little money.
In addition to this adapter, of course you will need a hard disk or SSD in 2.5 ″ format and, as a general rule, it will have to be 7 / 9.5 mm thick at most (something that today is the standard ). Capacity and type is up to you, but make sure it is that thick and its interface is SATA 3.
Finally, you will only need a star screwdriver (Philips) of which we all have at home.
How to swap your laptop’s optical drive for a hard drive or SSD
Once you have all the materials, the first step is to remove the optical drive from the laptop. In the vast majority of laptop models you will not need to open or disassemble it to be able to do so, since the usual thing is that there are simply one or two screws at the bottom of the device that, simply removing them and pulling the unit, will allow us to remove it.
The next step is to insert your hard drive or SSD into the adapter. As a general rule, you will simply have to fit it, without the need for screws, and you simply have to make sure that the SATA connector of the disk or SSD fits perfectly into the adapter. Simple instructions for this are usually included in the adapter itself.
Now, if your laptop’s optical drive had an external cover so that it looks perfect on the outside, you will have to remove it and mount it on the adapter. Usually it has standard anchors and you will not have problems. Once that is done, simply insert the adapter into your laptop’s optical drive slot making sure you do it the right way.
Now simply replace the screw you removed at the beginning, before removing the optical drive, and voila. If you’ve done the whole thing right, the next time you turn on your laptop it should detect the new hard drive or SSD as just another drive in the computer, and you can use it as normal.