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Laptop RAM question

Hitman HartHitman Hart
edited June 2007 in Technology
Okay, currently I have 512 megs of memory in my computer, and according to what I could find looking it up, it's between 2 256 meg sticks. If I want to put a 1 gig stick in there, is this any good? When I looked at the things available on Bestbuy.com, it looked like it was the fastest available, but I admittedly don't know a whole lot about RAM. Can someone help me?

Comments

  • AprecheApreche
    Get the cheapest RAM that will work and fit in your laptop.
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    OK, so this being 400 megahertz and the others being 333 won't make a difference I'll notice then?
  • HMTKSteveHMTKSteve
    What sort of RAM is your old RAM? I might want to purchase it from you as my laptop only has 256MB RAM right now.
  • ProfPanglossProfPangloss
    I'm not a genius when it comes to things like this, but I think that running different speed RAM at the same time is NOT a good idea. Check with someone else first, though.
  • AprecheApreche
    edited June 2007
    OK, so this being 400 megahertz and the others being 333 won't make a difference I'll notice then?
    Ok. Make sure the speed is the fastest speed your laptop will accept. Also, make sure every stick is the same speed.
    Post edited by Apreche on
  • mkg12mkg12
    edited June 2007
    I thought the faster stick of RAM will just clock itself down to match the slower one. Like, if you have a 533mhz stick of ram and a 667MHz stick of ram, then the 667MHz stick will just clock down to 533MHz, correct?
    Post edited by mkg12 on
  • AprecheApreche

    I thought the faster stick of RAM will just clock itself down to match the slower one. Like, if you have a 533mhz stick of ram and a 667MHz stick of ram, then the 667MHz stick will just clock down to 533MHz, correct?

    In theory yes. In reality, who knows?
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    This is the info Best Buy comes up with when I look up my computer model, does that help any?
  • OmnutiaOmnutia
    edited June 2007
    I have an HP laptop which is surprisingly good for the £500 I paid for it (educational discount) and would like to know if upping it to 2gb would be worth it for GIMP?
    Also, if I can get a single 2gb stick for £10 more than the two 1gb sticks then I can keep the 512 stick already in and maybe get a second 2gb stick later on to swap out the 512. Would it be worth it for the knock on speed of having most of the memory have only one pipe instead of two pipes on each 1gb stick?
    Post edited by Omnutia on
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    I run GIMP(Windows version) just fine on 512, I would say you wouldn't need more than a gig. Photoshop hates my current ram though
  • AprecheApreche
    How much memory an image editing program needs depends mostly on the size and complexity of the images you edit.
  • OmnutiaOmnutia
    I run the Linux version of GIMP and while it isn't slow if you try to switch to another program the lag is noticeable.
    How much would extra ram help when it comes to having lots of programs open on Linux?
    Also like to run strategy games in windows though I don't notice the HDD spinning too much so would more ram improve performance or cause a bottleneck?
  • AprecheApreche
    I run the Linux version of GIMP and while it isn't slow if you try to switch to another program the lag is noticeable.
    How much would extra ram help when it comes to having lots of programs open on Linux?
    Also like to run strategy games in windows though I don't notice the HDD spinning too much so would more ram improve performance or cause a bottleneck?
    Take a look at how much RAM you are using. Put a system status monitor in your toolbar. If the RAM meter fills up, you would be helped a lot by getting more.
  • OmnutiaOmnutia
    RAM seems to be up about 75% with a few programs open (F-Spot, FF, Gimp and others) and Linux is using quite a bit of Swap which it usually doesn't unless it needs to; Unlike Windows which uses it when it feels like.
  • ZeehatZeehat
    Thisis the info Best Buy comes up with when I look up my computer model, does that help any?
    Don't buy RAM from Best Buy. You can get it cheaper from other stores. Newegg, is probably even cheaper.
  • supachimsupachim
    Faster RAM will normally clock down to the slower RAM, but there are some finicky RAM chips out there. Ideally, you want to match the RAM with speed and size, but it is not required by any means, unless you're running dual channel RAM. The main difference between expensive and cheap RAM is the number of RAM sticks that fail out of a production run. The more popular brands do better testing and have a lower failure rate.

    Be careful with buying really big sticks of RAM. Some laptops will not support 2gb sticks - just make sure you look it up first - Hitman, this applies to your laptop. The max your system will read is 2gb. Now this could mean two things, the motherboard may only support up to 2gb total, so it may not matter whether you have a single 2gb stick or 2 1gb sticks. HOWEVER, it may also mean that each RAM slot will only recognize up to a 1gb stick (it's hard to know until you try).

    When you're dealing with images, video or any kind of editing, the amount of RAM it takes for good performance will all depend on how much info you're working with. For video editing, I would have no less than 2gb (more for professional video editing) and for professional image editing, I'd have no less than 2gb (at least in Windows). But for most home uses, 1gb is plenty for image editing.
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    Thisis the info Best Buy comes up with when I look up my computer model, does that help any?
    Don't buy RAM from Best Buy. You can get it cheaper from other stores. Newegg, is probably even cheaper.
    Ah, but I work at Best Buy, so I get a discount, that's why I'm using them.
  • mkg12mkg12
    edited June 2007
    Thisis the info Best Buy comes up with when I look up my computer model, does that help any?Don't buy RAM from Best Buy. You can get it cheaper from other stores. Newegg, is probably even cheaper. Ah, but I work at Best Buy, so I get a discount, that's why I'm using them.


    I just checked prices on Newegg.com and Bestbuy.com. If your discount isn't around 50% off, then just use Newegg. You can check the prices for yourself. The prices at Best Buy are that much higher. Even with your discount, the prices are still much higher.
    Post edited by mkg12 on
  • Hitman HartHitman Hart
    Oh, I plan to check before I buy, right now I'm looking to see what's out there.
  • OmnutiaOmnutia
    edited June 2007
    Well being Albianic [sr?] (that sounds so much better than Engl-ish) my ram will come from CCL computers who are very good for raw components.

    Maybe Ebuyer then. The rams half the price.
    Post edited by Omnutia on
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