How to open chase and upgrade SSD in switch alpha 12?

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Answers

  • Negima
    Negima Member Posts: 4 New User

    congrads on opening the device!

     

    Do you know if there is a hidden simcard slot?

     

    Thanks!

  • GiZerod
    GiZerod Member Posts: 7

    Tinkerer

    ok, let me try this again...

     

    Hi All-

     

    Sorry i've been in <LURK> mode for a while.  I'm sure you all can identify with getting so busy you can't catch your breath...

     

    My SA12 did NOT come with a 3G/4G cellular modem, and i did not see a SIM card slot - but that doesn't mean that it wasn't there.  I just wasn't looking for one.

     

    As to RAM upgrades - no RAM upgrades for the SA12, at least the version i have.  RAM is soldered down to the MB - as is the CPU.

     

    On the subject of TouchScreen Replacement - i'm not sure how feasible, or even possible that is.  From what i remember, the LCD screen was attached to the front plastic trim by a metal bracket.  The bracket had little holes through which plastic tabs protruding from the back of the trim ring were melted/welded down - making removal destructive and likely difficult to reverse.

     

    I've attached (or tried to) three more pictures i think will be the most helpful:

    The first shows the back of my SA12 laid open, exposing copper heat spreader and also showing the delicate ribbon cable that connects the keyboard docking points.  The red box shows the MicroSD slot.SA12-HeatSpreader&microSD-01.jpg

     

    The second shows the edge of the screen's trim ring (from the back) - illustrating how the screen bracket is bonded to the trim ring.  Red boxes indicate the points where the bracket is 'welded' to the plastic of the front trim ring.
    SA12-ScreenBracketConnection-01.jpg

     

    The third shows the guts of my SA12, with the back of the copper heat spreader (green), the soldered-down CPU (Red), the soldered-down RAM (Orange), and the SSD (Yellow).  I left this last one a bit bigger to show as much detail as possible...SA12-HeatSpreaderBack&MB-01.jpg

     

    Hope that helps everyone!

    </LURK> 

     

  • JCPENNI
    JCPENNI Member Posts: 1 New User

    @GiZerod, much appreicated for your detailed information.

     

    I have the i3 4gb model and have been having a hard time to open the back, is there anyone that can confirm if RAM is not upgradable for the i3 model?

     

    Thanks in advance! Smiley Happy

  • nashi2000
    nashi2000 Member Posts: 1 New User

    Hello,

     

    I opened my alpha switch which had died after sugary juice damage.  I was tring to salvage the SSD.  It seems something had burned inside not sure what exactly.

    I have now a new alpha switch because I just could not find anything else like it for the same price:  i5, 250 gb, 8 gib ram.  I went thru trying surface 3 lte, surface pro i3 64 gb 4gb ram but going thru performance issue even browsing pulled me back to the alpha switch. the i3 was fine but not as powerful with the limited ram and internal storage.

    Now I decided to crack open my old one using the guide on thi forum.  Thank you very much to Gerod for the instructions.

    I was able to salvage the SSD which I'm using with an enclosure now for other purposes.  Also it gave me first experience how to upgrade my new one in the future.....I'm posting in case any body have questions.  I can already respond..or if anybody need further picture I can get them and upload to help others....

    One thing I came across which I did not see mentioned in the previoius instructions is a little cable from the top right close to the speaker.  It came loose and anattached without me first noting where it's suppposed to be attached.  It's a mistery for now...I stopped investigating it but I can do more if neeeded.  I still have the old alpha unscrewed.  

    So pelase pay attention to that cable in case you open your alpha switch to make sure you know observe where it's attached so you can put it back on.  If and when I deciced to upgrade my new one I will pay attention to that coner before I pull the back part out.

    If anybody have other questions ..please ask.  GiZerod if you have some insight about that cable,please let me know.

    For those with questions I used a credit card to open mine...and some place where it was tight I used a hard shoe horn I've used in the past for other electronic.

  • TK421
    TK421 Member Posts: 4 New User
    GiZerod, Any chance you can re-post your Pictorial/Details on opening this device. Acer seems to have wiped it out as they did some sort of update on their page.

    PLEASE, Please, please....
  • dhahne
    dhahne Member Posts: 5 New User
    Having a charging issue that from much reading sounds like a total disconnect of the battery may be needed hence my review of this post thread.  Removal of the screws is a snap but I cannot figure our how anyone is able to get a plastic pry tool or credit card between the screen frame and the body.  I can barely get the edge of a razor blade to slip in and that provides absolutely no leverage.  How have you done this without tearing up the casing?
  • efjay
    efjay Member Posts: 12

    Tinkerer

    nashi2000 said:

    Hello,

     

    I opened my alpha switch which had died after sugary juice damage.  I was tring to salvage the SSD.  It seems something had burned inside not sure what exactly.

    I have now a new alpha switch because I just could not find anything else like it for the same price:  i5, 250 gb, 8 gib ram.  I went thru trying surface 3 lte, surface pro i3 64 gb 4gb ram but going thru performance issue even browsing pulled me back to the alpha switch. the i3 was fine but not as powerful with the limited ram and internal storage.

    Now I decided to crack open my old one using the guide on thi forum.  Thank you very much to Gerod for the instructions.

    I was able to salvage the SSD which I'm using with an enclosure now for other purposes.  Also it gave me first experience how to upgrade my new one in the future.....I'm posting in case any body have questions.  I can already respond..or if anybody need further picture I can get them and upload to help others....

    One thing I came across which I did not see mentioned in the previoius instructions is a little cable from the top right close to the speaker.  It came loose and anattached without me first noting where it's suppposed to be attached.  It's a mistery for now...I stopped investigating it but I can do more if neeeded.  I still have the old alpha unscrewed.  

    So pelase pay attention to that cable in case you open your alpha switch to make sure you know observe where it's attached so you can put it back on.  If and when I deciced to upgrade my new one I will pay attention to that coner before I pull the back part out.

    If anybody have other questions ..please ask.  GiZerod if you have some insight about that cable,please let me know.

    For those with questions I used a credit card to open mine...and some place where it was tight I used a hard shoe horn I've used in the past for other electronic.

    Hi, I have a dead ASA12 I'm going to grab the drive from, what enclosure did you use for yours? Thanks. 
  • Zulucowboy
    Zulucowboy Member Posts: 10

    Tinkerer

    Thanks for the info, and looking forward to more!

     

    Quick question, how hard would it be to upgrade the RAM in the SA12? Is it soldered to the mainboard or removable? I got the i3/4gb version for work, and while most of the time it does the job admirably, it doesn't like some large spreadsheets or complicated pdfs...

    Ram is soldered on sorry.
  • davestarr2001
    davestarr2001 Member Posts: 1 New User
    Excellent guide many thanks.  I have not purchased one of these just yet...a lot of my decision hinges on this kind of stuff as eventually I will be wanting to replace the battery etc.

    I see the thermal copper cooling needs to be removed from the mainboard in order to upgrade the SSD.  This scares me a little due to making sure good connection again to the heat-sink and processor etc via thermal paste - With this in mind I try and opt for a bigger SSD from the outset.   However what is unavoidable is the requirement to swap the battery out at some point.  I presume to do this the thermal copper can stay in place ?- at the point of opening the casing is the battery is directly in front of you without further dismantling ?  Does the battery look easy to change ?

    Many thanks.
    Dave.
  • ndl318
    ndl318 Member Posts: 22 Networker
    do you think it is better to go to acer service and pay them some money for free of mind? I think it will cost 100 usd, but you dont risk breaking your 1000 usd device
  • switch
    switch Member Posts: 11

    Tinkerer

    Did anyone update the ssd firmware? In the release notes it says there is a slight performance improvement 
  • Floyd75
    Floyd75 Member Posts: 7

    Tinkerer

    GiZerod, if your are looking in selling your deffective Switch, let me know.
  • nuclear_bullet
    nuclear_bullet Member Posts: 4 New User
    GiZerod, THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!

    I did this awhile ago following your post, but I thought I drop in and let you know that I too have swapped out my SSD inside.

    My model came with a 256GB SSD (Lite-On model), but I swapped it out for a WD Blue 512GB SSD M.2 SATA.  The capacity doubled as my primary really helped things out as I underestimated how much space I needed.

    However, one thing that I did not heed from your post, and I should have, is that I should've went A LOT slower when separating the frame from the back cover.  I managed to snap and crack the edge of the frame since you were absolutely dead-on your observation of it being very brittle.

    Aside the frame being a little chipped and cracked, my Switch 12 will keep ticking on!  I think the next time I will crack the case open is if the battery ever gives out.

    Thank you again for your wonderful post, it really helped me when I decided to take the plunge and replace the SSD.

    If anyone else has deeper pocket than me, you should go for an SSD that has 1TB instead.  You will never have to worry about running out space even when storing reasonable amount of media on it like pictures and music.
  • hedehede81
    hedehede81 Member Posts: 16 Troubleshooter
    Any similar instructions for Switch 3 or 5 hopefully? The chassis looks similar but I couldn't see the screw at the hinge. 
  • farvernugen
    farvernugen Member Posts: 1 New User
    GiZerod, most excellent post....helped me get my AS12 opened up so I could disconnect the battery...... reconnected, the no start issue is now resolved! I have a question for you, or anyone else that has upgraded the SSD..... what software did you use to transfer the system from the original SSD to the new one, and how exactly did you do this? I love this little computer, and would like to make it last!  Cheers, Scott
  • DBCAB
    DBCAB Member Posts: 3 New User
    GiZerod, most excellent post....helped me get my AS12 opened up so I could disconnect the battery...... reconnected, the no start issue is now resolved! I have a question for you, or anyone else that has upgraded the SSD..... what software did you use to transfer the system from the original SSD to the new one, and how exactly did you do this? I love this little computer, and would like to make it last!  Cheers, Scott
    Hi I know this is gonna seem an odd question to ask but how did you disconnect the battery Clip? I was just going to pull it right off, but it seems like its locked into place and I cant tell if its got clips I need to push back before pulling it off the board, I don't want to damage anything so I figured id ask if anyone knows if I can simply pull on the clip that attaches to the board to disconnect then reconnect the battery im having this exact same issue with my switch which was perfect until today.
  • DBCAB
    DBCAB Member Posts: 3 New User
    DBCAB said:
    GiZerod, most excellent post....helped me get my AS12 opened up so I could disconnect the battery...... reconnected, the no start issue is now resolved! I have a question for you, or anyone else that has upgraded the SSD..... what software did you use to transfer the system from the original SSD to the new one, and how exactly did you do this? I love this little computer, and would like to make it last!  Cheers, Scott
    Hi I know this is gonna seem an odd question to ask but how did you disconnect the battery Clip? I was just going to pull it right off, but it seems like its locked into place and I cant tell if its got clips I need to push back before pulling it off the board, I don't want to damage anything so I figured id ask if anyone knows if I can simply pull on the clip that attaches to the board to disconnect then reconnect the battery im having this exact same issue with my switch which was perfect until today.


    NM I got it apparently u pop it off in an upward motion and it pops right off I will come back and post my results.
  • DBCAB
    DBCAB Member Posts: 3 New User
    DBCAB said:
    DBCAB said:
    GiZerod, most excellent post....helped me get my AS12 opened up so I could disconnect the battery...... reconnected, the no start issue is now resolved! I have a question for you, or anyone else that has upgraded the SSD..... what software did you use to transfer the system from the original SSD to the new one, and how exactly did you do this? I love this little computer, and would like to make it last!  Cheers, Scott
    Hi I know this is gonna seem an odd question to ask but how did you disconnect the battery Clip? I was just going to pull it right off, but it seems like its locked into place and I cant tell if its got clips I need to push back before pulling it off the board, I don't want to damage anything so I figured id ask if anyone knows if I can simply pull on the clip that attaches to the board to disconnect then reconnect the battery im having this exact same issue with my switch which was perfect until today.


    NM I got it apparently u pop it off in an upward motion and it pops right off I will come back and post my results.

    Result Is Switch still will not turn on, Im assuming Battery is totally dead I will try replacing it ty for this thread on how to open it up correctly.