Medion Akoya E1210 - Anyone upgraded the MEMORY ?

quoia

Just wondered if anyone has got one of these and put more memory in it ?

Mine is the one that Sainsbury's had/have to offer. (Medion MD 96736)
I'm not certain if the ones at Aldi or elsewhere were /are identical.

Searching the net is a bit contradictory.

1) A few places suggest it is an MSI Wind clone - which has 2 slots and you just pop in a 2nd ram module.

2) Others confirm the MSI Wind connection but also that there is ONLY 1 slot in the Medion - so the memory upgrade is to REPLACE the existing 1gb module with a larger one.

3) Some suggest that the maximum memory size is 2gb
3a) although this could be based on 2 slots containing 1gb each - 1gb being the maximum that a slot can accomodate.

4) If 3a) is true and there is only 1 slot then maximum memory could be limited to 1gb.

So can anyone help please ?

It does appear that there is NOT a little cover or similar that you just unclip to reveal memory and/or slots to perform any upgrade.
I think I read somewhere that it's 8 to 10 screws and remove the entire bottom to gain access to the 1 (or 2?) memory slots.
Don't want to do this if it's a pointless exercise.

Cheers
Q

Leopard

I own an MSI Wind 100.

When I last looked into the matter, some months ago, the situation in regard to the Medion Akoya E1210 was still that your (2) and (3) apply.

Both the Advent 4211 and the Medion Akoya E1210 are based on the Wind 100 but, whereas the Advent is effectively a clone with a different cosmetic appearance, the specification of the Akoya is slightly different.

The maximum amount of RAM that any of them can address is 2 GB.

The Wind and the Advent both have 1 GB of RAM, hard-wired to the motherboard, plus a vacant slot into which another 1 GB can be added.

The Akoya has/had a single slot, not hard-wired, and comes/came with its 1 GB of RAM installed in that. To upgrade it to (its maximum of) 2 GB, you have/had to remove the 1 GB stick from the RAM slot (in the conventional manner) and replace it with a single 2 GB stick.

(Some Akoya upgraders then sell, on eBay, the 1 GB that came out to owners of a Wind or an Advent who want one to put in their second slot, in order to max their own, differently-configured, machines. )

The main difference between the three netbooks, however, is that the Wind and the Advent both have Bluetooth built-in but the Akoya doesn't/didn't.

On the other hand, the Akoya has/had 802.11n wi-fi (albeit only on 2.4 GHz), whereas the Wind and the Advent have/had only 802.11b/g.

If that situation has now changed, I'm unaware of it. I don't think it has.

Opening up all three is very simple. You just lie it face down (closed!), base upwards, on a soft towel, remove the battery, and then undo about 8 screws with a narrow cross-head screwdriver. Store these screws safely in an eggcup or a ramekin.

Earth yourself and then gently prise the base off the computer.

Directly in front of you, and immediately to hand, you will then see the RAM slot - also, the wi-fi card and the hard drive. All are easily accessible.

If you wish to put a larger-capacity hard drive into it and/or upgrade its wi-fi to 5 GHz as well, this is therefore an ideal moment to do it.

Once finished, simply replace the base, replace the screws, slot the battery back in and you're through.

I performed this triple-upgrade in about half-an hour, working slowly, gently and carefully.

They're all supplied with Windows XP but they run better and faster on Mac OS 10.5.7. You need to be aware that doing that is a breach of the Mac OS X End-User License Agreement. And there's no safe hack for Snow Leopard (yet).

If you wish to add Bluetooth to an Akoya, you have/had to buy a Bluetooth module with a USB plug on it.

All of it is very easy if you just take sensible precautions.

Good luck! (But you shouldn't need any. )

quoia

Thanks very much for this.

A VERY comprehensive reply with just what I need.

Only thing now is where to get the memory from ?

Know of any special offers anyone ?

LEOPARD, what did you get and where from ?

Cheers.

Thanks again Q

Leopard

quoia wrote: »

LEOPARD, what did you get and where from ?

I upgraded my Wind's RAM by adding to it a 1 GB stick that came out of a MacBook Pro which previously I had upgraded from 2 GB (2 x 1 GB) to 4 GB (2 x 2 GB). Fortunately for me, they use the same type of RAM so that was a nice saving!

What you'd need, therefore, is one of these - two of which I put into the ProBook. Personally, I would buy it from Crucial (and did) but others may commend to you cheaper alternatives.

I wish they'd been only 20 quid from Crucial when I bought mine!

Leopard

Just to give you confidence, here's what you see when you remove the base of an Akoya E1210. The RAM module is sitting right there in front of you (it's the thing with the bar-code label across it).

Don't use brute force to remove the base; prise it off gently (using, if absolutely necessary, a rigid, wide, thin knife - not a screwdriver). Start at the battery end and release the plastic retaining catches one-by-one, working gradually backwards, towards you, until the base just lifts off.


PS. Naughty, but nice.

Humphrey10

just a thought - wouldn't doing this void the warranty?

Leopard

A major row erupted over that and MSI relented on it in regard to upgrading the RAM. I don't know Samsung's stance.

Apple (and I checked it) will honour its warranty if you upgrade your RAM and/or your hard drive, provided that you do no clumsy damage to any other component in the process.

If a seal takes the form of a sticky label, you can usually remove and replace it intact by blasting it with hot air from a ladies' hairdryer and then prising it loose with a thin, pointed knife. :cool:

quoia

Leopard wrote: »

I upgraded my Wind's RAM by adding to it a 1 GB stick that came out of a MacBook Pro which previously I had upgraded from 2 GB (2 x 1 GB) to 4 GB (2 x 2 GB). Fortunately for me, they use the same type of RAM so that was a nice saving!

What you'd need, therefore, is one of these - two of which I put into the ProBook. Personally, I would buy it from Crucial (and did) but others may commend to you cheaper alternatives.

I wish they'd been only 20 quid from Crucial when I bought mine!

Thanks again - great info & very helpful.

As for price - not quite 20 quid (hate to think what you paid) but actually £21.99 + vat = £25.29

However I'm going to try 7dayshop for one of theirs at just £14.99 delivered
(saving another 15p :rotfl: for going via Quidco)

http://www.7dayshop.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=777_11&products_id=103275

quoia

quoia wrote: »

................

However I'm going to try 7dayshop for one of theirs at just £14.99 delivered
(saving another 15p :rotfl: for going via Quidco)

.................

Even better, already tracked at Quidco and not at the 1% (ie 15p) as advertised and expected.

Somehow it's 2% - so 30p saved AND not forgetting the 1% cashback on the credit card I used

makes my 2gb just £14.54

Plenty of good reviews on its compatability and usage so it should work

barginunter

I got the same as the above - works fine.

quoia

2gb memory from 7dayshop arrived a couple of days ago.

Only just found time to fit it.

1 screwdriver, 9 screws, 10 minutes, DONE !

Seems to work as it should, and so much FASTER