RAM Upgrade Dilemma...

My Inspiron 1300 with its 512MB RAM has been running as slow as a snail so I've been thinking of upgrading it to 2GB.

The problem, however, is that with the price Dell's charging of 1GB equates to that of 4GB from Crucial and that's obviously ridiculous. So I contacted Dell support regarding upgrading RAM from a third party and how that would affect my warranty, since it won't expire until 2010. Apparently if I upgrade without Dell my warranty would become void as they claimed that they won't be responsible for any performance issues arising as a result of the new RAM.

At the moment I won't be planning on getting a new laptop for a while, so I'd like to keep my warranty; but on the other hand I've been increasingly frustrated by how slow this old fossil sometimes gets (even a clean install didn't help, if at all). So do you think I should go ahead with the upgrade?

 

Ah, don't listen to them. They just want you to service in your notebook, charge $xx amount of dollars for the modules, and then give you a big slap on the face afterwards.

It's fairly easy to install RAM on a notebook. I believe Dell includes (or has online) a tutorial on how to remove memory from your specific model.

BTW, check Newegg or Frys.com for good RAM deals.

 

Yeah that's exactly what I thought. What's cheap about Dell is that the RAM they're offering only has a warranty on par with that of my laptop ie until 2010, whereas Crucial offers lifetime warranty for the exact same thing!

But then I'd be giving up 2 years' worth of "excellent" support from Dell and I plan on sticking with this sucker at least until my warranty expires, just in case if something does happen to my lappy along the way like if a repair/replacement is needed etc.

And thanks for the links BTW. Unfortunately I live in the UK so from what little I know Crucial seems to have the best available deals on RAM over here.

 

Buying/Installing new RAM will not void your warranty. Just keep your old sticks if you do upgrade in case you need your laptop serviced, which in that case you can just pop them back in.

 

Upgraed the RAM if anything happens replace the RAM with the RAM you bought from Dell and send it in.

Edit: dang Smooth Tofu beat me to it

 

Lol I was thinking about that, too! So they don't have any way of finding out whether I've made the switch then? Or a log file of sorts in the system they can look into?

 

No - and I do find it kinda funny that they give you instructions on how to upgrade your memory yourself, but then tell you that you can only use their memory!

 

You're warranty is good even if you upgrade your memory. What they "should" have clarified is that they will not cover your upgraded memory if anything happens to it (most memory you purchase today have lifetime manufacturer warranty). You can definitely just stick back the old memory should you need to have them service the laptop in the future. Just like modifying a car, everyone always asks if the car warranty would be void if they installed an aftermarket spring to lower the stance/height of the vehicle. As long as it does not affect the engine, the warranty stands valid.

 

Yep...They cant void your warranty by just installing some ram since consumers(in the US) are protected under the Magnuson-Moss Act(Great read + talks about memory in the last couple of paragraphs).

Though, if you physically damage your computer while performing the upgrade(very unlikely), the warranty will be void unless you purchased an CompleteCare Accidental Damage plan.

Also check support.dell.com for a service guide on how to locate and install memory in your system.

 

I thought that upgrading the RAM didn't void the waranty guess I was rigth!

 

Thanks very much for the help guys. I just checked the Dell site and their community forum and they have pretty much reached the same conclusion that upgrading RAM won't void the warranty, just that the new RAM won't be covered, which is fair enough IMO.

So I guess I'll be off to joining the masses and give my lappy a much needed and long overdue boost.

 

Received my 2GB RAM yesterday and installed them. Man is my baby fast or what!!!