I would like to upgrade a Toshiba Satellite C55-A5300 laptop so it can be as useful as it can be nowadays.
I haven’t needed to use much software for a few years now, and I’m not able to gauge whether a maxed out upgrade of this laptop would be up to running the latest versions of MS Office and Acrobat smoothly. Maybe even run some Photoshop and Lightroom?
I want to install the best CPU that will work optimally within the parameters of this laptop, including the laptop’s cooling capabilities. I ultimately want improved performance, but I want the performance to be as smooth as possible.
From what I gather the Pentium 2030M is the best processor this motherboard will accept. Am I on the right track?
I also plan to fully upgrade the memory and the hard disk speed with respective upgrades. What is the max memory per RAM slot (2 total)? What is the fastest speed of RAM I can use?
Copied from the Toshiba spec sheet:
Processor and Graphics
Intel® Celeron® Processor 1037U o (2M Cache, 1.80GHz)
Mobile Intel® NM70 Express Chipset
Mobile Intel® HD graphics with shared graphics memory Memory
Memory
Configured with 4GB DDR3 1333MHz (max 16GB) 2 main memory slots. One
slot is occupiedStorage Drive
500GB (5400 RPM) Serial ATA hard disk drive
Power
45W (19V 2.37A) 100-240V/50-60Hz AC Adapter
Best Answer
You need a better CPU but the CPU is soldered to the motherboard and is not replaceable; you should add more memory; and an upgrade of the hard disk drive to an SSD drive.
So it is not economical at all to upgrade this machine. Parts will cost more than its overall value.
So if your questions is: Is it worth the upgrade? No, not in my opinion.
Best course of action: Use it until you can replace it with a faster and more modern machine with Windows 10 Pro pre-installed.