Computer Upgrades

Memory - RAM - Random Access Memory. RAM is by far the easiest and most productive of upgrades to do. RAM is your computer's short-term memory, which it uses to store the information that you are working on. Adding memory will allow your applications to open faster and helps the feel of your operating system. There are a great number of different types of memory (EDO, PC100, PC133, DDR2300, DDR3300 etc.) - please call or email for pricing and availability. If you are unsure as to what you need please check with our sales team to ensure that you get the right sort.

Hard Drives - Internal Storage - The longer that you own a machine, usually the more files and information you build up. It won't be long until that drive will be full. Adding an additional hard drive will allow you to store much more data. A large number of PC desktops will have space to run multiple hard drives (which would appear as a D: drive along side C:) and they are very inexpensive to add. IDE hard drives work on a Master and Slave system, whereby two devices may attach to each connector, one is a master and one is a slave device - your new drive will need to be set to the right setting. If you are unsure please ask us before purchase.

Connectivity - Connectivity is the means by which devices connect to your computer. These are used for a great number of purposes - from printers, scanners and mice to external storage and optical writers. IT OZ supplies a wide range of upgrade cards which can increase your connectivity. Here is a brief summary:

• FireWire - FireWire is a high speed connection used by many external devices. Mostly it is used for the import/export of digital video and connection of high speed storage devices - more information is available in our search! bar on the top left of this page. FireWire can be added very cheaply into a free PCI slot, and is a user upgradeable part. Once you have FireWire you can add external hard drives, external CD/DVD writers and many other devices to enhance your computer.
• USB - USB is stands for Universal Serial Bus and has two revisions. USB 1 is used for the connection of printers, scanners and mice, it has a slow connection speed (ideal though for these devices), the majority of new peripherals are USB - so a cheap USB card can expand the connectivity of your machine considerably. USB 2.0 is the second revision of the USB connection it has a much faster connection rate and, like FireWire, can be used for a wide variety of storage and optical devices. USB 2.0 is backwards compatible with USB 1, so a USB 1 device will work on USB 2 - and the other way around, albeit at a slow speed - as always if you have any questions, please let us know.
• IDE - IDE is the most common internal device connectivity, it is used for CD writers, hard drives and removable media. In larger PC desktops it is possible to run out of IDE connectors on the motherboard, but still have space for more devices, in these cases an additional IDE PCI card can help by giving you extra connections.
• SCSI - SCSI stands for Small Computer Systems Interface and is used for connection of hard drives and CD drives internally, and scanners and some specialist equipment externally. SCSI is a fairly difficult connectivity to master, and requires a great deal of thought beforehand - it can provide the fastest internal transfer speeds but at a cost (SCSI hard drives can be up to 6 times more expensive than their IDE equivalents ). A lot of high end scanners also use SCSI to get the fastest throughput. We strongly recommend checking  before making your purchasing decision.

Optical Drives - Internal and External Optical devices - CD writers, DVD writers and Combo drives are available. These can fit either internally to your machine, or externally (see above for connectivity) these devices allow archiving and additional storage, and the ability to write your own CDs and DVDs. We have a wide range of such devices.

Graphics Cards - The graphics card is the device which your system uses to display on its monitor's. These are quite easily replaced with a faster, better card which allows greater resolutions and increases speed in things like games and other 3D graphics applications. Second Chance PC only sell new graphics cards for the Mac, but PC ones can be easily purchased elsewhere. There are two types; AGP and PCI - the former is a newer technology and can handle cards with up to 256MB of memory, allowing the fastest possible output (it is worth noting that if you have a slow processor then these make less of an impression). The latter are an older type of connection, there are PCI graphics cards that you can buy, but they are of a lower spec than those available for the AGP slot.

Processors - The CPU - This is the central processing unit of your computer. It acts on your data and gives the result. These can in some cases be upgraded, but are generally more complicated, as there are a number of manufacturers and many types of connection type. Second chance PC does not currently offer PC processor upgrades, and generally we would only advise you to go down this route if you are confident you have enough knowledge in this area to choose and install one yourself.

Return to top

PowerMacs

Apple desktops computers have had a varied history and have covered a wide range of components - although the situation is considerably less complicated that with PC components.

These are comprehensive reports based on our customers' enquiries. If you have any more questions please don't hesitate to contact us.

Apple iMacs / eMacs

These great all in one computers from Apple revolutionised the apple brand, and have sold in the millions. As they have an all in one design, there are limitations on what can be upgraded. Please call our technical team so that we can guide you with your upgrade.

Return to top

Laptops have much less upgradeable components than desktop computers, the reason for this is that since laptops are designed with space in mind, each component may be specific to your individual laptop. Hence for this reason the processor, the graphics card and the motherboard cannot be upgraded, nor any other bits changed. Saying this there are still options left for you to upgrade your PC laptop you can upgrade connectivity, storage and RAM.

Memory - RAM - Random Access Memory. RAM is by far the easiest and most productive of upgrades to do. RAM is your computer's short-term memory, which it uses to store the information that you are working on. Adding memory will allow your applications to open faster, and helps the feel of your operating system. There are a great number of different types of memory (EDO, PC100, PC133, DDR2300, DDR3300 etc) - please call or email for pricing and availability. If you are unsure as to what you need, please check with our sales team to ensure that you get the right sort.

Hard Drives - Internal Storage - The longer that you own a machine, usually the more files and information you build up. It won't be long until that drive will be full. With laptops you will only have space for one internal drive, which is currently running your system. It is possible to replace this one with a larger one - this is possible but should be carried out by an authorised repair centre unless you are confident you can do this yourself. One thing to note, of course, is that you will need to transfer your data across to the new drive. This too is a service we can provide too, see our repairs page for pricing. Another option is to use an external hard drive, usually with either FireWire or USB 2.0 connectivity . You may need to upgrade the connectivity of your laptop if you do not have these ports as standard.

Connectivity - Connectivity is the means by which devices connect to your computer. These are used for a great number of purposes - from printers, scanners and mice to external storage and optical writers. Laptops usually have a PCMCIA slot (also called a "Cardbus", "PC Card" or "Credit Card" slot), this can be used for adding additional connection types. IT OZ will supply a wide range of PCMCIA upgrade cards.
Here is a brief summary:

• FireWire - FireWire is a high speed connectivity for connecting external devices to your computer. Mostly used for the import / export of Digital Information and connection of high speed devices -  FireWire can be added very cheaply into a free PCMCIA slot and is a user upgradeable part. Once you have FireWire you can add external hard drives, external CD writers and many other devices to enhance your computer. External storage and devices have the same benefits as internal ones, but have the advantage of being swappable between computers and are great for backup.
• USB - USB stands for Universal Serial Bus and has two revisions. USB 1 is used for the connection of printers, scanners and mice. It has a slow connection speed, which is perfectly acceptable for these sort of devices. The majority of new peripherals are USB - so a $75 USB PCMCIA card can expand the connectivity an older laptop considerably. USB 2.0 is the second revision of the USB connection, it has a much faster data transfer rate and can be used for a wide variety of storage and optical devices. USB 2.0 is backwards compatible with USB 1, so a USB 1 device will work on USB 2.0 - and the other way around, albeit at the slow speed of normal USB. As always, if you have any questions please let us know.
• SCSI - SCSI stands for Small Computer Systems Interface, and is used for connecting of scanners and some specialist equipment externally. SCSI is a fairly difficult connectivity to master and requires a great deal of thought beforehand. A lot of professional equipment uses SCSI to get the fastest throughput possible. We strongly recommend checking  before making your purchasing decision.

Optical Drives - External Optical devices - CD writers, DVD writers and Combo drives are available. These can fit externally (see above for connectivity). These devices allow archiving and additional storage, and the ability to write your own CDs and DVDs. We have a wide range of such devices. Upgrading your PC laptop's internal optical mechanism is generally not possible, for more information you would need to contact the manufacturer.

Return to top

Apple Laptops have a little more scope for upgrade ability than their PC counterparts, in some cases the processor and/or internal CD drive can be upgraded.

Hard Drives - Internal Storage - The longer that you own a machine, usually the more files and information you build up. It won't be long until that drive will be full. With most Mac laptops you will only have space for one internal drive (some G3 PowerBooks can take an extra hard drive in the expansion bay), which is currently running your system. It is possible to replace this one with a larger one - this is possible but should be carried out by a trained engineer unless you are confident you can do it yourself. One thing to note, of course, is, if you are replacing your main drive, you will need to transfer your data across. This is a service we can do, see our repairs page. Another option is to use external storage - information on this can be found and although you may need to upgrade your laptop's connectivity.

Connectivity - Connectivity is the means by which devices connect to your computer. These are used for a great number of purposes - from printers, scanners and mice to external storage and optical writers. Second Chance PC supply a wide range of upgrade cards which can increase your connectivity.
Here is a brief summary:

• FireWire - FireWire is a high speed connectivity for connecting external devices to your computer. Mostly used for the import / export of Digital Information and connection of high speed devices - more information is available. FireWire can be added very cheaply into a free PCMCIA slot and is a user upgradeable part. Once you have FireWire you can add external hard drives, external CD writers and many other devices to enhance your computer. External storage and devices have the same benefits as internal ones, but have the advantage of being swappable between computers and are great for backup. Please note that you need at least MacOS 8.6 (OS9 highly recommended) to use FireWire.
• USB - USB stands for Universal Serial Bus and has two revisions. USB 1 is used for the connection of printers, scanners and mice. It has a slow connection speed, which is perfectly acceptable for these sort of devices. The majority of new peripherals are USB - so a low-cost USB PCMCIA card can expand the connectivity an older laptop considerably. You should note that Mac laptops older than the G3 Wallstreet cannot use USB cards. USB 2.0 is the second revision of the USB connection, it has a much faster data transfer rate and can be used for a wide variety of storage and optical devices. USB 2.0 is backwards compatible with USB 1, so a USB 1 device will work on USB 2.0 - and the other way around, albeit at the slow speed of normal USB. As always, if you have any questions please let us know. Please note that USB 2.0 requires OS X to work.
• SCSI - SCSI stands for Small Computer Systems Interface, and is used for connecting of scanners and some specialist equipment externally. SCSI is a fairly difficult connectivity to master and requires a great deal of thought beforehand. A lot of professional equipment uses SCSI to get the fastest throughput possible. We strongly recommend checking before making your purchasing decision.

Optical Drives - CD writers, DVD writers and Combo drives are available. These can fit externally (see above for connectivity) these devices allow archiving and additional storage and the ability to write your own DVDs. We have a wide range of such devices. Upgrading your laptop's internal Optical is possible for some models, but we suggest contacting one of our sales reps for more details.

Return to top