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Laptop hardware component & upgrades: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD
How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD
by thegreatfixer - 8/29/05 2:09 PMHi all i have a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A that now is out of warranty and the HD is going south, and now too small, I need to upgrade to a bigger (80gb) HD and I want to do it myself (I have opened several Laptops)
I am looking for take a-part info like Dell gives for its Laptops.
thank you
thegreatfixer
How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD
by usnvet - 10/21/05 1:29 AM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by thegreatfixerI may be able to help you in a few days. I have a friend bringing his PCG-TR3A to me for a hard drive replacement. His drive has crashed, and will need to be replaced. My friend is traveling now, so I can't ask him to give me information off of the drive. I do know that the Sony TR2A uses a Toshiba MK4004GAH 40GB 4,200rpm hard drive. This is a 1.8'' drive, not the standard 2.5'' that is found in most notebooks. The odd thing about 1.8'' drives is that there are 3 different designs.
One is the Toshiba, which has the connector located on the end of the drive. That of course is much narrower than the standard 2.5'' IDE connector. The Toshiba has a 50 pin connector that actually has the same size and pitch between pins as a PCMCIA card. The drive also has a set of sockets, rather than the pins that you would see on a typical 2.5'' notebook drive.
The other 2 are made by Hitachi. They make one that has the IDE connector located on the wide side of the drive. This connector looks like it's the same size as a standard 2.5'' drive. The other version of the Hitachi has a ZIF connector on the bottom of the drive.
If you will help me out by telling me what model of hard drive is in your PCG-TR3A, I'll let you know how to do the repalcement.
Here are a few links showing the 3 different drive formats.
http://www.tomshardware.com/storage/20050323/
http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/c4k60/c4k60_eis.htm
http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/c4k40/c4k40eis.htm
thank you
by thegreatfixer - 10/27/05 6:15 AM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by usnvethi there and thank you usnvet
i was asking for a friend who does not remember the details but told me it was easy
thank you for responding
thegreatfixer
how to replace bottom cover of Sony Vaio PCG-TR1A?
by hatailor - 6/27/09 9:06 AM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by usnvetThis model came out 5 years ago but is the same size as today's netbooks and has CD rom +movable camera. So I hate throwing it away for more modern netbooks. But the plastic bottom is cracked. I bought it used from ebay, but I am not sure what to remove for its replacement. Should I just remove all the screws? Do some of them perhaps hold something that should ot be moved? Your advice will be appreciated.
Also, if I find a 60 gig drive can I put it inside the TR1A? previous posts were for the 3A.
thank you very much!
Replacing the PCG-TR3A hard drive
by hardware-guy - 6/11/08 12:45 PM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by thegreatfixerI found your post asking for information on how to replace the hard drive for a Sony PCG-TR3A while I was trying to figure out how to do so on one I have. After exhaustive searches on the internet I found nothing so I figured I would give it a try anyways. Here is how I did it.
First, remove all the screws from the bottom of the laptop. Anywhere you see an arrow pointing to one of the mounting screw holes. This also includes two under rubber feet and one inside the RAM cover. I count 13 screws total. 5 short and 8 long, that is if I did not lose any while flipping the unit. Once all the screws are out flip the unit over so it is right side up and gently pull up the whole plastic piece including the keyboard to reveal two ribbon connectors. You will have to pull both of these out to get the entire top off.
At the lower half will be the hard drive covered by a black plastic shroud. Remove the one retaining screw and the ribbon cable and there you go. When you shop for the replacement hard drive, go for the 60 Gig Hitachi 1.8" with the oddly placed connector. It is also called Type F drive.
Good Luck.
Looking for the right drive ...
by Hans Luijten - 6/20/08 11:31 AM In reply to: Replacing the PCG-TR3A hard drive by hardware-guyI'm trying to do exactly that what you guys are trying to do.
I'm still a little confused about which type of connector I need (since the "type F" is not typically mentioned with online stores ...
Could anyone mention a product number? Or post a link with a picture?
PCG-TR3A Hard drive
by hardware-guy - 6/20/08 2:05 PM In reply to: Looking for the right drive ... by Hans LuijtenThere are two drives that I have found are installed in these computers from the factory. One, which is what I have, is the Hitachi 40 Gig. I am trying to upgrade mine with a 60 Gig though. The drives that Hitachi produces in this size which is 1.8", one with a ZIF connector (used in Ipods) and the IDE model. The IDE model is the one you want to purchase for the Sony PCG-TR3A. You can try to find a 60 Gig but they are hard to find. If you look it up on the Hitachi website you will see a model C4K60. When you go to websites to order this drive they will sell you the ZIF model and not the IDE so be sure to aask the sales people. I just bought one and got it shipped only to realize it is the wrong one.
How did it go?
by brgal - 7/14/08 6:34 PM In reply to: PCG-TR3A Hard drive by hardware-guyHi Hardware-guy. My TR3A's hard drive just died and I am about to start the replacement process. Thanks for posting the detailed information about how to open the thing and for the warnings about the connectors. What drive did you finally purchase? I feel like I may as well upgrade since I am doing this anyway. Would appreciate benefiting from anything else you learned. THANKS!
The hard drive I chose
by hardware-guy - 7/15/08 5:53 AM In reply to: How did it go? by brgalThe hard drive that I purchased for the individual is the 40G Hitachi HTC426040G9AT00. Fairly easy to replace. The website I got it from is impactcomputers.com and they show 120 in stock. The 60G is very difficult to find so dont waste your time. The hard drive came in 3 days via ground. Let me know if you need any other help. My only other suggestion is not to mess with the fan on the processor unless you really have to or have nothing to lose. Replacing the fan is not fun and significantly lowers the successful completion ratio if you catch my drift.
Good luck.
Thanks!!
by brgal - 7/16/08 9:43 AM In reply to: The hard drive I chose by hardware-guyThank you for the information. I'll be ordering that today. I hope you were able to get yours up and running. Your "drift" didn't sound too good. I found some good technical information on the drive on the Hitachi website in the technical library. They have some basic installation guidance and a very detailed guide on partitioning and formatting. I will be very careful and hope for success.
Thanks again!
doubt
by guigama - 10/17/08 11:06 AM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by thegreatfixerdoes anybody know if is it possible to put a hard drive bigger than 60Gb in a sony vaio pcg-tr3a?
I have found a toshiba mk-1011GAH 100Gb and another one 80Gb of toshiba MK-8007GAH
thank you
The usual limit is 120GB.
by R. Proffitt
- 10/17/08 11:34 AM
In reply to: doubt by guigama
The reason is the OS supplied with the laptop. So I'll stand at 120GB until I see more detail.
Is motherboard replacement for TR3a just as easy as HDD repl
by wstt - 12/10/08 7:31 AM In reply to: How to open a Sony VAIO PCG-TR3A Laptop to replace the HD by thegreatfixerAre there any instructions here for replacing the motherboard and is it just as easy as replacing the hard drive? (I used some step by step photo instructions I found online, once to replace the hard drive. Do you recommend / or not recommend replacing the motherboard? I searched the web site but can't find any instructions for motherboard replacement.
Are there any things to be careful of or I need to watch out for? (Likemaking sure the motherboard is compatible with my current hard driveconnector) I was thinking of purchasing a replacement motherboard from ebay unless anyone advises against it.
My laptop has been great but recently it had a hard time booting up from being cold. Once it was running, it ran fine and I could restart it over and over with no problems. However, when I would start from it being off for the night, it would freeze during the boot, over and over until it warmed up. I realized I could just hit F8 during boot up and wait and until it could sit on that boot option screen for about 5 minutes without freezing and once it could last 5 minutes without freezing I new I could then start it up. If it did freeze, I would just hold down the power button and try again with F8.
Now it's completely dead and won’t even come one, or show the battery charging. Someone told me that replacing the motherboard would fix it. Has anyone encountered anything like this and does anyone have any tips or things I should know before buying a replacement motherboard?
I love the size of it to take with me when I travel, so I'd love to get it up and running again.
Thanks for any help here.
Given the cost of that board.
by R. Proffitt - 12/10/08 8:06 AM
In reply to: Is motherboard replacement for TR3a just as easy as HDD repl by wstt
You find it just as cheap to replace the machine or put your hard disk into that other TR3a you found.
Unlike desktops the boards are not interchangeable.
Bob
motherboard replacement
by wstt - 12/10/08 8:21 AM In reply to: Given the cost of that board. by R. Proffitt
A replacement motherboard is only like $200 (sony wants $900) and used TR3a's go for like $600 on ebay. If I get a new machine, I'd rather just get a new PC but the new T series are like $2000.
Thanks for the advice though. I just thought the motherboard fills up the whole case and the case attached to the motherboard so I was hoping I could just put a new motherboard in the case I already have.
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