Acer ASPIRE 5 A515-51G-53MR 2018, absolute best compatible upgrades, help needed

FrankMoore

Boutght a Acer ASPIRE 5 A515-51G-53MR with 256gb oem ssd, in 2018, 8gb ram, wasn't too into it, switched to a macbook.

Recently I learned it is highly upgradeable, so I'm interested again.

Going to buy a 120hz matte display, but as a project I want to max it out, what is the best nvme, ssd, and ram that I can get for the mobo? (the size doesn't matter of ssds so much as the speed), I will probably use 1tb or even 500gb (I don't have that much cash) but would like to know if it supports larger.

https://www.crucial.com/compatible-upgrade-for/acer/aspire-a515-51g
has compatible products, but so many different ram types, don't know which is fastest, and most are out of stock, and there are probably other options besides crucial.

Also, relevant questions, is it always 4gb soldered on with this model, so I take out 4gb second slot and put in 16 for 20gb?

I put the nvme instead of current ssd? Add other 2.5 7mm ssd to other slot?

If I take out main drive how do I migrate it back with activated license and apps, clone it to a external hhd and clone back?

thanks for any replies.

JackE

You have 4GB soldered DDR4 module so 20GB is max with a 16GB DDR4 replaceable module. Your mainboard bus speed is limited to 933MHz or 1066MHz which means that any DDR4 module with speed of 1866MHz or greater should work fine but will be limited to 1866MHz or 2133MHz double-data rate. So shop by price not module speed. Yes it should support nvme but only if the m.2 socket has a single M-key bump. You should check this before ordering since some mainboards shipped with two key bumps (B+M) which means only a SATA3 card will fit. If the 2.5" HDD/SSD socket is free, yes you can add a 2.5" 7mm SSD. The Windows license is no longer kept on the HDD or SSD as it is embedded on a mainboard chip. Most if not all crucial stuff is top-shelf and very competitive with budget brands. Their 2400MHz modules is more than fast enough for your machine as it will operate at either 1866 or 2133 limited by your mainboard bus. Jack E/NJ

 

JackE

You have 4GB soldered DDR4 module so 20GB is max with a 16GB DDR4 replaceable module. Your mainboard bus speed is limited to 933MHz or 1066MHz which means that any DDR4 module with speed of 1866MHz or greater should work fine but will be limited to 1866MHz or 2133MHz double-data rate. So shop by price not module speed. Yes it should support nvme but only if the m.2 socket has a single M-key bump. You should check this before ordering since some mainboards shipped with two key bumps (B+M) which means only a SATA3 card will fit. If the 2.5" HDD/SSD socket is free, yes you can add a 2.5" 7mm SSD. The Windows license is no longer kept on the HDD or SSD as it is embedded on a mainboard chip. Most if not all crucial stuff is top-shelf and very competitive with budget brands. Their 2400MHz modules is more than fast enough for your machine as it will operate at either 1866 or 2133 limited by your mainboard bus. Jack E/NJ

 

FrankMoore

thanks Jack for the detailed explanation.

JackE

Good luck and have fun with your upgrades!   Jack E/NJ