R3-131T: Impossible to upgrade to Windows 10

lappy

I just bought a R3-131T-C90X laptop and wanted to upgrade it to Windows 10. It's advertised on the box, so I didn't think it was an issue. However, it only has 32GB storage, which narrows to 20GB out of the box, with only 14GB free despite uninstalling every piece of software the thing came with.

 

Basically, this makes it impossible to upgrade to Windows 10. No matter what I do, the upgrade tool tells me I need to have 20GB free, which simply cannot be done. It also doesn't give me the option to upgrade via external storage.

 

Are there any solutions, or a step-by-step guide on how to get out of this? I knew going in that I'd have limited space, but I'd heard that Windows 10 manages the OS footprint better, and yet here I am unable to even get it despite there being a sticker on the box and a booklet explaining how to upgrade. I guess no one at Acer really thought this through. 

 

EDIT: I'm also now noticing that what precious little space I have left seems to be dropping rapidly for no reason. I'm now down to 10GB free despite not doing anything besides turning it on a couple times. What is happening? 

Sharanji

Acer recommends loading BIOS version 1.06 or later prior to upgrading to Windows 10.

 

After upgrading BIOS, connect a USB flash drive, external hard drive, or SD card with enough free space to install the update. The drive you connect must be 8 GB or larger (16 GB is recommended). You will need to keep this drive available if you want to use the go back feature in Windows 10 to return to your original operating system.

 

Some models like the Aspire R3-131T  do not support using an SD card to install the update. You will need to use a USB flash drive when installing the Windows 10 update on these models.