Replacing internal MacBook HD

[ThomasShaped]

Hi everyone,

I'm pretty new to this forum so sorry if this is in the wrong place or whatever. I'm currently looking to replace my MacBook's internal HD. I only have a 60GB HD as that's all I could afford at the time (and I was desperate for my mac<3) but now I have a lot of Music and I need an upgrade.

What's the best way to go about upgrading the internal HD? I'd rather not do it myself as I'm not very hands on with computer insides and I'd also rather it's not too expensive as I'm 15 and still living off my parents moneys (and I have to pay them back for this)

Please don't recommend an external HD either as I'd like it to be portable without me having to carry around the HD and power cables/connector cables etc.

What would be the easiest way?

 

[CrzyCanuck72]

replacing the HD on a MacBook is very easy, it just requires the right screwdriver (a Torx T8 - can be bought at Radio Shack)

the easiest way is to buy a new HD and an external HD enclosure. Put the new HD in the enclosure and use Carbon Copy Cloner to clone your old HD to the new one. Take the new HD out of the enclosure and the old HD out of the MacBook and swap them. Put the old HD in the enclosure, and you have a bigger HD in your MacBook and a nice portable external HD.

 

[Jaffa Cake]

It's a very simple upgrade to perform – I did it a few evenings ago myself and it took all of three minutes to do. You can download a full set of instructions to guide you through the process.

As I say, it's a very simple thing to do but if you're nervous about opening up your Mac like this then perhaps the best thing I can think to suggest would be to get the upgrade done for you at an Apple authorised service place – if there's one nearby then perhaps you could give them a call and see how much they'd charge to do it for you?

 

[ThomasShaped]

Thanks very much for the help

The instructions look really simple so I'll probably just do this myself. (I thought i was going to have to take off the keyboard or something!)

Thanks again!

 

[Jaffa Cake]

No problem at all – just have a good read of the instructions before hand and make sure you've got all the necessary tools. And as CrzyCanuck72 suggests, Carbon Copy Cloner is a great way to transfer all your valuable stuff onto your new, spacious drive. It's well worth taking a look at.

Good luck!

 

[heySparky]

replacing the HD on a MacBook is very easy, it just requires the right screwdriver (a Torx T8 - can be bought at Radio Shack)

You will also need a #00 phillips screw driver. If you don't get the right size, you will likely strip out the heads of the screws holding the metal cover over the RAM and the HD. Even with the right sized screwdriver, I had a difficult time getting the screws out.

The easiest way is to buy a new HD and an external HD enclosure. Put the new HD in the enclosure and use Carbon Copy Cloner to clone your old HD to the new one. Take the new HD out of the enclosure and the old HD out of the MacBook and swap them. Put the old HD in the enclosure, and you have a bigger HD in your MacBook and a nice portable external HD.

That is almost exactly what I did, but I used the freeware version of SuperDuper.

Another Tutorial is at iFixit.com.

 

[CrzyCanuck72]

You will also need a #00 phillips screw driver. If you don't get the right size, you will likely strip out the heads of the screws holding the metal cover over the RAM and the HD. Even with the right sized screwdriver, I had a difficult time getting the screws out.

chances are the Torx T8 screwdriver you need will come as part of a screwdriver set, in which case the Phillips screwdriver may also be included. It was included in my set.