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Are you running out of room on that notebook's hard drive? Hitachi Global Storage Technologies have released an 'upgrade kit' that just might be the answer you're looking for. It wouldn't surprise me to see other manufacturer's offer similar kits in future.

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The includes a Hitachi Travelstar hard drive, an upgrade CD which has the on it to enable you to transfer your existing drive contents to the new drive, and a USB 2.0 external hard drive enclosure (together with necessary cables) to enable you to reuse your original hard drive as external storage. An installation guide is also included.

Should your original hard drive have 'hidden' drive partitions which include system tools, recovery data and so on these will be replicated when the drive is cloned. At default settings the software installation tool will resize partitions to retain the percentage size they occupied on the original drive, but 'Expert' settings in the software allow you to retain the original partition size.

The kit is designed to work with USB 2.0. If your notebook PC only provides USB 1.1 the kit and software will still work, but you will be restricted to the slower data transfer speed of that standard.


Well done, Hitachi. Replacement hard drives, external drive cases, drive cloning software and the like can all be purchased elsewhere separately of course, but including the lot in a 'bundle' ready to use is a great idea, and should prove attractive to anyone who is capable of following the instructions to open their notebook up and change the drive over!

They will be made available in 40, 60, 80 and 100Gb. Read more in this .

Now excuse me. My notebook hard drive is getting a bit cramped for space. I'm off to place an order!

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by william_stam

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Good spot, — and good points from and . Before buying an upgrade for any notebook, run a short compatibility check specific to your model: confirm it takes a 2.5" drive (and note the allowed thickness), verify the disk interface the machine uses, and check firmware/BIOS limits for very large disks. Grab the laptop service manual or maintenance sheet so you know how the bay is secured and which screws to remove.

Plan the migration before you open the case. Make a full backup and create recovery media, record OS/product keys and device drivers, then decide whether to clone the current disk or perform a fresh OS install. Cloning is faster and preserves settings, but a clean install usually gives a tidier, more reliable system. If you clone, use software that preserves correct partition alignment and can handle differences in target size.

After the swap, confirm the new drive is detected in BIOS, then run filesystem and drive-health checks (chkdsk / vendor diagnostics or SMART tools). Update storage drivers and verify the OS shows the expected capacity; be prepared to restore the original drive quickly if the machine won’t boot so you can troubleshoot without data loss.

Final cautions: opening a notebook can affect warranty — check first. Use anti-static precautions, keep track of tiny screws and brackets, and don’t force connectors. If you’re not confident with disassembly or firmware issues, a local shop will do the swap safely and cheaply. With the right prep this is one of the highest-value upgrades for extending an older notebook’s usefulness.

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Member Avatar for Danny

Very cool idea. I will likely be buying several of these for old notebooks I have.

Member Avatar for william_stam

only 100gb? i already have a 100gb hdrive i need atleast a 160. cool idea tho. full marks to hitachi

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