On upgrading an AO522-BZ499 Netbook

First of maybe a few tech posts. Some of you that know me are probably surprised my first posts weren't that geeky to start from. Anyway, I decided to do this one because there isn't that many posts on the web regarding that specific model. I'll skip the tech spec saying this is a great little netbook powerful enough to play 1080p videos (the monitor is only 720p, but it has full 1080p output through HDMI out) and good battery autonomy (around 6-7 hours).

The major downside to this computer are that it has only 1GB or RAM of which 256MB is taken by the GPU; given that it runs Windows 7 Starter, that doesn't leave lots of headroom. I therefore decided to upgrade it to 4GB of RAM (not much pricier than 2GB so why not!). Since Windows 7 Starter only supports 2GB or RAM, I also decided to upgrade it to Windows 7 Home Premium (got a deal on the Anytime Upgrade ... 20$).

So, for anyone interested in the procedure, here is how it went.

Step 1 - Removing the keyboard
In order to remove the back panel of the AO522, you need to remove screws that are located behind the keyboard, so lets remove it. To do so, you need to first unclip 4-5 little plastic clips on top of the keyboard (see picture below).

If you have a small solid plastic tool to do the work, good idea to use it as you have less risk of scratching the surface ... I used a small metal flat screwdriver; damaged the surface a bit, but it is barely visible and could probably be hidden with a black Sharpie pen. When you push the clips back, you might want to gently pull the keys up so the clip won't pop right back into place.

Once you do it with all the clips, they keyboard won't pop right out, you could try to pry it a bit as some online video suggest, but I have an easier solution. Remove the battery at the back, there will be a square opening on the right (see picture below), if you take the eraser side of a pencil and push, the keyboard should just pop.

Step 2 - Popping the back panel
Once the keyboard pops, you could remove it completely by unplugging the ribbon, but it isn't necessary. Once you have access to the back of the keyboard, you will see 4 screws marked with the number "1" (circled in red in the picture below). Unscrew them, then push with a thin object in the whole next to the HDD (marked with a star in the picture below). I would also like to point-out the dent in the back of the keyboard (red arrow in the picture below), that is where I pushed on the keyboard with a screwdriver instead of a pencil eraser (and why I suggest a pencil eraser); the material is very delicate, reminds me of BBQ grade aluminum foil. Damaging it a bit doesn't seem to cause any problem at all; it didn't pierce through, just dented it, but you could have done the same with the tip of your nail as well.

Step 3 - Now we change the RAM
To change the RAM, just stick-out the 2 little metal "arms" on each side of the DIMM, the memory should pop right up and you can remove it. Place the new module in and push back down. You might have to move the "arms" to fit it back in.

 

Step 4 - Check and close the netbook

Now, before closing everything, make sure the netbook boots and detects the memory by going into the (very limited) BIOS and in Windows.

Now you can close everything; put the back panel in place, re-screw it, put the keyboard back. You are now done!!!

Step 5 - Upgrading to Windows 7 Home Premium

The upgrade to Windows 7 Home Premium is supposed to be pain free and it is ... sort of. Simply bring-up the Anytime Upgrade application (type it in the start menu), enter the key found in you upgrade box and follow the steps; easy. When I did it, I got an error message telling me the upgrade failed, crap! Then I rebooted, but by doing so it finished the installation and everything got upgraded like that. I don't know what failed, but it gave me a scare there; might have been because I already had SP 1 installed.

Yup, the upgrade is just that, a piece of cardboard with a code on it.

Conclusion

The process was rather trouble-free and now my netbook is much snappier than before, the Windows Performance Index for the memory when a whole 0.9 point up. For those wondering which RAM module I used, it's a G.Skill F3-10600CL9S-4GBSQ.