So you want to breathe new life into your old Mac? Well, this is just for you.

Within this post are the exact steps I took to upgrade my Macbook Pro 2011 from it’s original
hard drive to a brand new 500GB Solid State Drive a.k.a SSD.

Here’s a quick 4 min video summary of the article & how fast photoshop opens for me!

Keep reading below for the complete guide!

Who should do it?

• Anyone with an iMac, Macbook, Macbook Pro, or certain Air models that still are using a regular hard drive.
• Anyone who has an older Mac and is experiencing slow boot times, slow app loading, and slow finder movement.
• Anyone who doesn’t want to buy a brand new Mac, but does want a faster computer.

Personally, I have a Macbook Pro 2011 with an i7 and 8 GB ram and my Mac still kicks ass. It’s speedy, powerful, and get’s the job done really well. So I don’t feel I need to upgrade yet, even though my Mac is 4 years old now. If I had any older of a computer, I would probably not spend the money to do this.

How much does it cost?

I spent $200 for the necessary parts, which I’ll break down below.

However, if that’s too much money, you should definitely consider a Hybrid Drive, which acts similar to an SSD, but is still a normal drive. They are much less expensive and will provide a noticeable boost over your old drive. I had the money, so I went for the SSD, which now have really good prices. If you can, go SSD.

What do I need to buy?

FIRST of all, you need to research the necessary components for your specific computer. This can be done at iFixIt.

Click here to open the iFixIt Guide Menu and find your computer. Then find the tutorial for Replacing the Hard Drive.

Bookmark this page for later, you’ll need it when you begin opening things up. (IMPORTANT: Before opening your laptop you need to determine if it will void your warranty, if you still have Apple Care. Click here to check on Apple’s site. I was outside of warranty, so it didn’t matter.)

Inside the iFixIt page you will need to check the size of your hard drive (probably 2.5 inch) and also any tools necessary to open your computer. You probably need something like a T6, 7, 8, 9, or 10 screwdriver. I needed a T6 and bought a set (see below)

You’ll also need an external enclosure and/or a USB to SATA cable. I went with an SSD optimized enclosure with good reviews. (See below)

Overall, you will need:

1. An appropriate size SSD (probably 2.5 inch)
2. An external drive enclosure (to transfer your data from the old drive)
3. A regular philips head screwdriver that is SMALL
4. A T6 or other T-size screwdriver

Here’s exactly what I bought:

1. Samsung 850 EVO 500GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD ($165)
2. Inateck 2.5 Inch External Enclosure Case Optimized for SSD ($17)
3. 16-piece Precision Screwdriver Set with both tiny Philips and T6 for my Macbook ($6)
4. I also bought the 2 year protection plan for the SSD for ($10)

Total for me came to $198. Not too bad compared to buying a new Macbook Pro for $1500+ when the one I have works really well still.

What do I do next?

Decide! First, go download this Free BlackMagic Disk Speed Test from the App Store. You’ll want to see how bad your drive is now, compared to what it’s about to be. For me, I had rather incredible results.

1. My old stock HD: 19 MB/s Write and 20 MB/s Read.
2. My new SSD: 467 MB/s Write and 508 MB/s Read

That’s about 25x faster!!! Holy ninja fast!!!

The SSD is literally 25x faster than my old drive.

How to transfer your data

You can make an exact copy of your drive with this Carbon Copy Free Trial.

Just watch this 3 min video of how to do it and you’re good to go. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYbkMsJsDLQ

Open up your enclosure, put the SSD into it, and plug it into the USB of your Mac. Then follow the instructions inside the video which tell you to format the drive first, then copy that data.

It took me about 6 hours to transfer 350GB to the SSD. I could still work while this took place, but I dared not work on files, save anything, or any of that. It was all web stuff only until the copy was complete.

How to install your SSD

Remember that iFixIt Guide bookmark? Well, open that page up on another device, computer, or phone so you can reference it. Otherwise print it out. You will want to see the steps. I just used my iPad while my Mac was on the operating table.

* Remember to unplug all power sources while working! *

First SSD boot

If you did everything correctly, then your Mac should just boot up! It takes a moment for everything to go the first time.

IMPORTANT Trim and Yosemite OS X: There’s one unique and strange downside to using a 3rd party SSD in a Mac running Yosemite. You will hear all about Trim and if you need it or not. In a nutshell, Trim helps organize data on your SSD when you delete old files and save new ones. Trim is how the OS talks with the SSD. Unfortunately, due to odd security restrictions, Apple does not play well with 3rd party SSD’s. The only way to enable Trim with a 3rd party SSD is to use a program like Trim Enabler. However, using this program opens up security vulnerabilities and interferes with OS X updates, therefore it’s not a viable solution. You can read all about Trim and OS X here on Trim Enabler’s site. I decided to leave trim off and many others have as well. We’ll need to wait until Apple allows 3rd parties to write SSD drivers.

Dropbox Note: it will probably start indexing everything again, which looks like syncing, but it’s not. When I did this it said “Syncing 75,000 files” and I sort of freaked out. Nope, just let it do it’s thing. It’s only checking them all to see if they match the server.

Keychain Access: This will also change and you will need your old computer’s admin credentials I believe.

Afterparty

Now, you can put your old drive into the enclosure and you’ve got some extra backup space! You might want to use it for Time Machine too.

The most noticeable effects for me:

• Finder becomes instantly snappy again. Whether using shortcuts or loading 600 files in a folder, it’s like NOW.
• Opening my Macbook from sleep mode. I used to have to wait 15ish seconds for everything to be ready. Now it’s like BOOM.
• Booting. Yeah, it’s pretty wicked fast now. At least 3-4x faster than beforehand. My Mac was getting quite bogged down and old with all the productivity apps I’ve got installed. Sort of counter intuitive huh? Now it’s like SWISHHHH DONE!
• Opening Photoshop and MS Word. These beasts of apps now open in less than 3-5 seconds, where as they used to take at least 30-45 sec.
• Everything is just smoother, better, faster, stronger. Wow.

I hope you enjoy your newfound ninja reflexes!

If you have ANY questions, just leave a comment below. ALSO, if this guide helped you, then let me know so I can make more awesome stuff for you.

To being ninja-like,
– Tharyn
MacDojo Sensei

PS. If you want to get REALLY fast, then check out the brand new Mac Dojo Productivity Course for Yosemite. If you don’t know these tricks, the SSD won’t really matter lol. The mind is always sharper than the sword.

Links mentioned in the video

Alinof Timer Mac App Store Link

Here’s a cool short video about the basics of good posture at work.

Go here to learn more about the Pomodoro Technique for productivity

Not only am I going to list 25 incredibly useful tips, but I will briefly explain why they are optimal. I am a professional Mac Ninja trainer (more about what that means later).

My goal is for you to learn these tips, not just read them. So please, test out each of the tricks and shortcuts AS you read through. Practice makes perfect grasshopper.

General OS X System Tricks

1. Move between desktops / Spaces: Control + 1 or 2 or 3 etc or gesture 3 fingers left & right. Multiple desktops are important for organizing a lot of apps and programs. I usually have a work desktop, personal desktop, and music streaming desktop (so I can quickly swipe over to pause my music, rather than searching through endless browser tabs.)

2. Move between open Applications (Important: Everyone should use this all the time, rather than clicking the dock!): ⌘ + Tab

3. (*Little known tip*) Move between open windows of the same application: ⌘ + ~ (The key right above tab)

4. Show Date on Menu Bar: I don’t know how many times I have asked, what’s the day & date? This is a life saver. Unless you’re a savant and know what day july 15th, 2020 falls on, then you should enable this. Right Click your clock.

5. Disable caps lock key: No explanation needed. This key is a waste of your time. Disable it or change it’s function.

6. Instant Sticky Note: If you like Mac’s Stickies App, then you can instantly make a sticky of any selected text by pushing ⌘ + shift + Y. Good for remembering things, saving for later, etc. (I prefer real life stickies personally lol.)

Trackpad

7. Most people don’t realize you can right click with the track pad by gently tapping two fingers down at the same time. Try it if you’ve got a MacBook.

8. Gestures! They make life way easier. Can’t show them all to you in this post, but just go to System Preferences > Trackpad to see some mini video tutorials.

Text & Highlighting w/ Keyboard Tricks

9. Delete forward (right of cursor): fn + delete

10. Move to beginning or end of a line: ⌘ + Arrow left or right

11. Move top or bottom of text: ⌘ + Arrow up or down

12. Paste text without formatting: (This means that, if you copy big bold purple text, and paste into somewhere, it will strip off all the bold and purple formatting, only pasting the text itself.): ⌘ + Shift + V

Finder Tips

13. New Finder window: ⌘ + N

14. Preview any file you have selected in finder: Spacebar

15. Keyboard shortcut to delete selected file(s): ⌘ + delete

16.Push ⌘ + 3 to use the Column View: This is by far the best view for navigating through many nested folders and files. Make sure to breeze through them with the arrow keys.

17. Rename files: Most people don’t realize hitting “Enter / Return” key for any selected file actually opens the Rename editor. Very useful to know when renaming lots of files (a common task). Push enter again to stop editing.

18. Use color labels: They rock for organizing. You can even Sort by the colors. Select any file(s) and right click, change label color.

Chrome

Yes, Chrome dominates. Safari users can still try some of these tips, but it’s best if you just switch over to the dark side.

19. Open recently closed tab: ⌘ +  Shift + T (Useful when closing things by accident.)

20. Close tab: ⌘ + W (Super useful instead of tying to snipe those little ‘x’ circles of tabs.)

21. Fast Short Link any webpage in Chrome. This little Chrome Extension will add an option in your right-click context menu to copy a short-link of the current webpage to your clipboard. Install. Visit webpage. Right click. Get short-link. Paste anywhere. Boom! The utility of this plugin speaks for itself. Now you can rick-roll people twice as fast and often. (Do people still rick roll? I’m getting old…)

Must Have Mac Apps

22. CloudApp
Free: http://getcloudapp.com/

Cloud App is a faster way to share images, links, music, videos and files. My favorite use is sharing images quickly. Especially screenshots. All you need to do is drag the image file on to the top menu bar icon, drop it, and BOOM, the short link to that image is pasted automagically to your clipboard for sharing. I usually proceed to Skype my friends the link.

23. Memory Clean
Free: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/memory-clean/id451444120?mt=12

Memory is a super simple app. It looks like this. The number simply tells me how much available memory my Mac currently has. I love it because I can tell when I start having too many things going at once. If you exceed your memory, everything starts going super slow. It can also run a memory cleaner to free up “inactive” memory.

24. Skitch
Free: http://evernote.com/skitch/

Skitch is a neat little screenshot annotations creator. It’s fast, intuitive, and very useful. Take screenshots of anything and add your own arrows, highlights, notes, text or anything else over the screenshot to explain something. Can be used just to point out something to a friend. Show bugs on your website to the designer. Even make up your own memes and post on reddit lol. There are endless possibilities!

25. Prey
Free: http://preyproject.com/

Prey protects your Macbook. If ever it should get stolen, you will be able to take screenshots, locate, and send messages to the thief, without his ever knowing. Super ninja! The basic functions are all completely free. It’s a MUST-HAVE for anyone with a Macbook.

About me

My name’s Tharyn and I am a Mac Ninja. I show people how they can take their Mac productivity to lightning speed, saving hours of time, and having more fun working with their Mac.

Sign up to get blog updates about new Mac productivity tips as they arrive.

If you’ve got some awesome tricks, shortcuts, or OSX settings enhancements, then share them in the comments below.

To being Ninja-Fast,
Tharyn

Watch this premium full-length lesson from inside the Mac Shortcuts Pro course. You’ll learn the fastest way to navigate around your Mac. Enjoy!

Cheers,

Tharyn

1. Turn off notifications

They are so annoying and pop up anyone comes online or offline or changes status. Just go to the settings menu, notifications, and then turn them off.

2. Understanding your status (Red / Yellow / Green / Invisible)

Learn to really take advantage of the 4 possible states that you can be in on Skype. People generally respect them, plus there are other benefits to them as well.

Red, or Do Not Disturb, will turn off all notifications, sounds, and dock pings. This is helpful if you want to be online, but stay focused on your work.

Yellow, aka Away, indicates that you’re computer is running and online, but you’re not there. Then people won’t take it personal when you don’t instantly respond.

Invisible is for ninjas. Are you a ninja?

Offline is just completely disconnected. I use this for my super productive “writing mode” so that I have zero temptation to get distracted talking to people.

3. How to send people contacts

If ever someone asks you for the Skype user name of someone you presently have as a contact, then you can easily send it to them with a nifty 2 click process.

Click on the conversation of whom you want to send contacts. Then click the big + circle button in the top right corner, and choose “Send Contacts.” Boom!

4. Increase your font size

If you’re having and reading a lot of conversations on Skype, then I highly encourage you to increase the text size from the default. From inside the chat window, push ⌘+ or ⌘- to make the text bigger or smaller. It’s much easier on your eyes.

5. Use favorites

People often forget you can add people to favorites so their name never disappears from the sidebar. This is a real time saver when messaging the same people over and over again. Skype is a bit clunky, and searching for contacts every time is a waste of your precious time.

To favorite, just click into the contact, and then push this little star symbol next to their name so it’s filled in.

After you favorite, they will always show up in the sidebar, like this…

There you have it! Skype is way cooler now. If you know of any more cool tricks with Skype, post them in the comments below.

Cheers!
Tharyn