Once the SSD is replaced, without installing Windows 8 on it you won't be able to use your tablet. There are also some precautions you should take. In order to successfully complete this operation, you will need some tools:Ī soft towel, folded over once and placed on a secure, flat surface. With your mSATA SSD purchased, you'll be ready to start. While the wisdom of this isn't quite clear, it is probably an attempt to enable an introductory price for the hardware for interested customers who don't want to pay full whack. Many Windows 8 tablets ship with 64 GB configurations. However doing this would present me with several problems, some of which I could predict (such as how to install Windows 8 when I was done) to a minor issue that resulted in some drastic action.
Without the advantage of an SD card slot on my Acer Iconia W7 series tablet, opening the device and replacing the mSATA SSD card with a high capacity replacement was really the only option, short of buying a new computer. The mSATA SSD is essentially a tiny card, upon which several storage modules are mounted, was now too small for my purposes. With less than 4 GB of storage remaining on my Windows 8 tablet – and the majority of useful applications, cloud storage and games installed on my external USB 3.0 drive – I decided that it was time to upgrade the tiny 64 GB mSATA SSD.
