Suggest a SSD and WiFi dongle for a old PC

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Hello friends,

My current home PC is quite old running on 2nd Gen Intel i3 CPU, but still going strong for normal day to day work like browsing internet and using MS Office etc., even for occasional light gaming.

It's running Windows 10 Home, which has become quite slow recently. So, thinking of to add a SSD to improve the performance. Also it will be moved to a different room where there is no network cable, so need to add a WiFi dongle for internet access.

Current config:

1. Processor Intel Core i3 2100
2. Motherboard MSI H67MA-E35 (B3)
3. Graphics Card Zotac GTX 750 Ti 2GB DDR5
4. Hard Disk Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 - 500GB
5. RAM GSkill F3-12800CL9S-4GBRL- 2 * 4GB
6. SMPS Seasonic S12II 430W
7. Cabinet NZXT Gamma

Please suggest the following:

1. A suitable SSD 240/250 GB
2. USB WiFi dongle

Thanks in advance!

go for Buy Online Crucial MX500 2.5″ 250GB SATA III 3D SSD CT250MX500SSD1 In India

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^^+1 Also buy ssd fast as ssd prices are going to increase this year so sooner you buy better it is.

*www.amazon.in/TP-Link-Archer-T2U-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B00K11UIV4 It looks a bit costly but it is worth it in the long term as nowadays buy only AC wifi products which supports both 2.4GHz & 5GHz as 2.4GHz band is getting congested because of many people using it.

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vidhubhushan said:
go for Buy Online Crucial MX500 2.5″ 250GB SATA III 3D SSD CT250MX500SSD1 In India

Great! Thank you!

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whitestar_999 said:
^^+1 Also buy ssd fast as ssd prices are going to increase this year so sooner you buy better it is.

*www.amazon.in/TP-Link-Archer-T2U-Wireless-Adapter/dp/B00K11UIV4 It looks a bit costly but it is worth it in the long term as nowadays buy only AC wifi products which supports both 2.4GHz & 5GHz as 2.4GHz band is getting congested because of many people using it.

Great! I'll order the SSD today only.
Also, though I have dual-band router, that room where I'm going to place the PC, doesn't get 5GHz signal. 2.4GHz signals are fine. Is it good to go for dual-band adapter or just 2.4 will do?
Thanks!

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edurgesh said:
Great! I'll order the SSD today only.
Also, though I have dual-band router, that room where I'm going to place the PC, doesn't get 5GHz signal. 2.4GHz signals are fine. Is it good to go for dual-band adapter or just 2.4 will do?
Thanks!

2.4GHz usb wifi adapter will also do but buy dual-band adapter anyway,it is like buying usb 3 pendrive when your old pc only have usb 2 ports.

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whitestar_999 said:
2.4GHz usb wifi adapter will also do but buy dual-band adapter anyway,it is like buying usb 3 pendrive when your old pc only have usb 2 ports.

Oh ok! dual-band will be definitely future proof.

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Placed the order for both!

WiFi adapter will come by tomorrow.
SSD maybe in 3-4 days; the order doesn't say anything.

Thanks a lot!

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Happy to help

You will soon see the benefits of ssd,the difference in performance will be like night & day.

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whitestar_999 said:
Happy to help You will soon see the benefits of ssd,the difference in performance will be like night & day.

Oh yes, SSD will make a lot of difference! My laptop has got a SSD (128 GB) as primary drive and it makes a real difference in performance!

Kingston A400 is cheap & will be more than sufficient, unless to plan to use the SSD in the future when you upgrade your rig, in that case, Crucial MX500 500GB is a better investment.

For WiFi dongle, anyone will do IMO. Try to get a wired connection.

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anupam_pb said:
Kingston A400 is cheap & will be more than sufficient, unless to plan to use the SSD in the future when you upgrade your rig, in that case, Crucial MX500 500GB is a better investment.

For WiFi dongle, anyone will do IMO. Try to get a wired connection.

Hi Anupam, yes that Kingston SSD is cheap (around 2800) but now I have already ordered the Crucial one; I don't think I've any choice. Yes new SSD will be definitely useful if I upgrade this PC in future, maybe in 1-2 years. I'm not sure if my current PC will go longer than that; it's already 9 years old!

I thought about the wired connection first, but not easily doable in that room. That's why going for wifi; it's already there.

Thanks!

edurgesh said:
Great! Thank you!

most welcome. i am using the same.

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Received both the items!

Now time to install the new SSD; since it's so small, wondering if it will fit in the regular HDD bay in the cabinet.

Also I'm planning to install fresh Windows 10 on SSD, then add the old HDD as second drive for data storage and format that to make it clean. Here I've few questions:

1. Anything specific to be done for SSD; any BIOS setting?
2. I guess, I need to install all the drivers again; right?
3. My old Windows 10 Home license will work on new SSD; it was a free upgrade from Windows 7 Home?

Thanks!

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edurgesh said:
Received both the items!

Now time to install the new SSD; since it's so small, wondering if it will fit in the regular HDD bay in the cabinet.

Also I'm planning to install fresh Windows 10 on SSD, then add the old HDD as second drive for data storage and format that to make it clean. Here I've few questions:

1. Anything specific to be done for SSD; any BIOS setting?
2. I guess, I need to install all the drivers again; right?
3. My old Windows 10 Home license will work on new SSD; it was a free upgrade from Windows 7 Home?

Thanks!

You need to order something like *www.onlyssd.com/buy/2-5-to-3-5-ssd-hdd-mounting-bracket/

1. Nothing but just to be sure check that bios setting for hdd/sata controller is set to AHCI.

2. Only if you fresh install windows which is recommended anyway in this case.

3. Yes,changing/upgrading hdd should have no effect on windows activation.

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whitestar_999 said:
You need to order something like *www.onlyssd.com/buy/2-5-to-3-5-ssd-hdd-mounting-bracket/

1. Nothing but just to be sure check that bios setting for hdd/sata controller is set to AHCI.

2. Only if you fresh install windows which is recommended anyway in this case.

3. Yes,changing/upgrading hdd should have no effect on windows activation.

Great! I'll order that SSD mount.
Thanks for the prompt reply!

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edurgesh said:
Great! I'll order that SSD mount.
Thanks for the prompt reply!

No problem

also see this post of mine,may come in handy.
General Purpose Computer Build - 30000 Approx.

you can check ssd mounting bracket in the local market also. before that check in the cabinet if there is an option to install it in standard hdd bay.

If you are fine with Jugaad, you can just use an Electrical tape (or insulating tape)

Stormbringer said:
If you are fine with Jugaad, you can just use an Electrical tape (or insulating tape)

a local assembler told me that we use 2 screws and it works fine

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Yes there is a 2.5" bay on the bottom of cabinet.
NZXT Gamma Case Review - Page 4 of 7 - Hardware Secrets

whitestar_999 said:
Yes there is a 2.5" bay on the bottom of cabinet.
NZXT Gamma Case Review - Page 4 of 7 - Hardware Secrets

great. nothing extra required then.

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Great! Looks like I'm all set to install the new SSD; nothing else to be bought!
I've not yet opened the cabinet; probably will do on weekend.

Thanks a ton @whitestar_999 and @vidhubhushan !!

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Post an update here after it is done

edurgesh said:
Great! Looks like I'm all set to install the new SSD; nothing else to be bought!
I've not yet opened the cabinet; probably will do on weekend.

Thanks a ton @whitestar_999 and @vidhubhushan !!

most welcome friend

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whitestar_999 said:
Post an update here after it is done

Sure, I'll do that!

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Finally I added the new SSD in my PC and installed Windows 10 afresh! Windows is running so much smoothly now! Haven't connected the old HDD yet. Also could not create the local accounts; had to use Microsoft email ids, and now they ask for too much information.

Still need help in few areas:

1. Couldn't figure it out how to fix the SSD in that 2.5" bay; not even two holes are matching with SSD holes. Also the screws I've got with cabinet, don't fit in the SSD; currently it's just placed inside the cabinet. Looks like something needs to be purchased to fix it securely, or just leave it like that?
2. My current MS Office version is too old (2007), any easy way to get a newer version w/o spending money?

Thanks!

It is possible to create local accounts.
1. If holes in both don't match, then look for ssd bracket in local market or order from onlyssd.
2. Try local market though 2007 is also ok.

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edurgesh said:
Finally I added the new SSD in my PC and installed Windows 10 afresh! Windows is running so much smoothly now! Haven't connected the old HDD yet. Also could not create the local accounts; had to use Microsoft email ids, and now they ask for too much information.

Still need help in few areas:

1. Couldn't figure it out how to fix the SSD in that 2.5" bay; not even two holes are matching with SSD holes. Also the screws I've got with cabinet, don't fit in the SSD; currently it's just placed inside the cabinet. Looks like something needs to be purchased to fix it securely, or just leave it like that?
2. My current MS Office version is too old (2007), any easy way to get a newer version w/o spending money?

Thanks!

Disconnect lan/wifi during win 10 installation process to skip ms account screen & after that use control panel--user acc settings to switch to local acc for future login.

1. check this video,may be you need to change the ssd orientation.
*www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz7BT5y4Hh0

2. check pm.

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vidhubhushan said:
It is possible to create local accounts.
1. If holes in both don't match, then look for ssd bracket in local market or order from onlyssd.
2. Try local market though 2007 is also ok.

Thanks my friend!

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whitestar_999 said:
Disconnect lan/wifi during win 10 installation process to skip ms account screen & after that use control panel--user acc settings to switch to local acc for future login.

1. check this video,may be you need to change the ssd orientation.

*www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz7BT5y4Hh0
2. check pm.

Thanks a lot!
I checked that video and it looks like they have used some tray/plate to fix the SSD. Anyway, I'll get the screws first to fix it.

edurgesh said:
Thanks my friend!

most welcome dost

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Hello friends, being unable to fit the SSD properly in the cabinet, finally bought the SSD mount suggested by @whitestar_999 ! Now it's fitting perfectly inside the 2.5" bay in the cabinet, all screwed up well! (In a good sense

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The PC is moved to it's new place and running well, but unfortunately it's not connecting to wifi even on 2.4 GHz band due to poor signals. The arrangement is such that if we move the PC around, it will mess up the whole room layout. Now I need to do some cable arrangement for internet.

Thanks a lot for your valuable suggestions friends!!

nice to know things are working now

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Any issues in future,just ask here.

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whitestar_999 said:
Any issues in future,just ask here.

Of course! I've been a member of this forum for a long time, though not very active.
Thanks for the help and support you guys provide!