Envy 15 Solid State Drive Installation

tstanley

Honorable
Aug 1, 2013
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10,520
Hey guys I am likely ordering an HP Envy 15t-j000 quad edition. It will have the Intel i7-4700mq processor (Haswell), 8GB RAM, and a 750GB HDD. However, as my title suggests, my plans for this device are to immediately switch the HDD for a 128GB Samsung 840 Pro series SSD. Save me the warnings about how little space that is, don't worry I have thought all of that through. Also, I know for some reason HP gets a bad rep around here, but I am ordering from them because of their student deals and good customization options. All I need to know is, if the computer comes with Windows 8 64-bit and Office Home and Student pre-installed, how exactly should I go about mirroring/cloning the HDD to transfer the OS and programs to my new SSD? I may just re-install Windows 8 using the product key I am given onto the SSD (versus trying to mirror that), but then what about Microsoft Office? Is it as simple as just copying everything to my SSD, installing all of the drivers listed on HP's support website, and then switching it with the HDD? Or should I get some sort of program to help me? Please give me any advice you can, I can't seem to find any information about this online when it comes to just switching over the basics which come with a new computer. Thank you for the help,

-TS
 
Solution
Fixed it! The cheap OKGear USB 3.0 - SATA3 connector I bought just doesn't have the firmware to work with the 840 Pro. It works with all the other hard drives I tried though (but no solid state drives). I picked up a hard drive enclosure with USB 3.0 and SATA3 capability and it worked fine. Everything went as planned, and the results are fantastic. The Samsung Data Migration tool worked perfectly, and all the problems just disappeared. Couldn't have been easier. The Envy is very fast, boot times are as fast as you can type in your password or swipe your finger (seriously, it's 10 seconds or faster). Highly recommend this upgrade!

seriousgamer

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Sep 26, 2012
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Sorry but this doesn't have anything to do with the question. Can you tell me what resolution and GPU the laptop will have and how much you will pay for it, I need to get something in the next 10-15days for school. Thank You :)
 

steveowashere

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Aug 1, 2013
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Actually, the 840 Pro comes with some software and to 'clone' your hard drive. All you do is plug in your SDD into an Sata to USB adaptor and plug that into your computer, then run the Samsung software and it will copy everything from your laptop to your new SSD. You won't have to install anything.
However you'll have to buy the adaptor. They aren't expensive.

(something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Kingwin-Adapter-Solid-State-Drives/dp/B0064VP73E/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1375345297&sr=8-10&keywords=sata+to+usb+adapter )

But if you buy one of the Retail Samsung 840 SDDs (Not Pro version) it comes with the adaptor.
 

tstanley

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Aug 1, 2013
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Yeah sure the screen is 15.6" with 1080x1920 resolution. I left the graphics card stock, so it is the Intel 4600HD graphics driver which is built into the i7 chip. I figured this should be a solid graphics chip, as the older 4000HD was decent and this one is an improvement. I don't game though, so I didn't spend the extra $70 on the Nvidia GeForce with 2GB of dedicated video memory. The final price for the config, with backlit keyboard, bluetooth, windows 8 64-bit, and office home and student pre-installed, is $933. Without the office home and student, it was something like $860. I also chose to make the RAM 1-Dimm for $10 extra so I could expand it later (only $10, but I figured I'd mention all the options haha).

Also, thanks for the reply. So it really is as simple as installing that software Samsung includes onto the HDD, plugging in the SSD to the USB drive, and letting the program clone everything? Then just taking out the HDD and pugging the SSD into its place in the 2.5" bay? Thanks for the link too I'll be needing one of those haha
 

steveowashere

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Aug 1, 2013
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Not a problem, Yes the drive either comes with some software, or you can download it from the samsung support site (it's called 'data migration tool'). Pretty much you got it exactly, let it clone and work it's magic and then swap drives. Also there was some extra software you can run after you install the SDD. It 'optimizes Windows to run on a SDD" It can also be found on the Samsung support site. That's called "Magician Software"
Best of luck with your new laptop, let us know how it goes.
 

tstanley

Honorable
Aug 1, 2013
4
0
10,520
So I have everything I need now, the Envy 15 came as promised and I have the SSD as well. I am using an OKGear SATA3-USB3.0 cable. Upon plugging in the SSD for the first time to one of my USB slots, it shows up (after a minute or two) as "Generic ATA/ATAPI Device USB Device" in Computer Management->Device Manager. In addition, the Samsung Magician software doesn't recognize that there is a Samsung SSD connected and neither does the Data Migration tool which was included. It simply claims there is no Samsung storage device connected to the computer. I'm going insane....this is supposed to be the easy part of the SSD swap! How could it just....not work? I am running Windows 8 so AHCI should be enabled by default. Is my SSD faulty? Maybe the cable (although the lights in it are both on)? Should I take the plunge and install the SSD into the hard drive slot and try to copy everything without the Samsung tools onto the HDD (maybe use a trial of Acronis)? I am at a loss until I can call Samsung customer support on Monday, and I want to get this done ASAP. Anyone have any recommendations/suggestions? Thanks in advance
 

tstanley

Honorable
Aug 1, 2013
4
0
10,520
Fixed it! The cheap OKGear USB 3.0 - SATA3 connector I bought just doesn't have the firmware to work with the 840 Pro. It works with all the other hard drives I tried though (but no solid state drives). I picked up a hard drive enclosure with USB 3.0 and SATA3 capability and it worked fine. Everything went as planned, and the results are fantastic. The Samsung Data Migration tool worked perfectly, and all the problems just disappeared. Couldn't have been easier. The Envy is very fast, boot times are as fast as you can type in your password or swipe your finger (seriously, it's 10 seconds or faster). Highly recommend this upgrade!
 
Solution