N3510 RAM

Really just a question about notebook RAM. Are RAM used in notebook the same ones as ones used in desktops? I know the N3510 uses DDR2 PC3200 RAM. If i wanted to upgrade the RAM, do i just purchase DDR2 PC3200 RAM? Or do i also have to look for other details as well?

Also, this machine comes with DDR2 400mhz RAM. Does anyone know if it will support 533mhz RAM? Cause i think the price difference between 400 and 533 is not much.

Thank You.

 

No, it's not the same stuff.

For a Notebook you must use 200 PIN SODIMM.

Also, the N3510 uses PC4200 DDR2, which is 533MHz....

 

The N3510 uses PC4200? The news to be..and a good one too. Several shops have told me that it used PC3200 RAM. They must have got the info from the website because I read on the Fujitsu website that it used PC3200 RAM. Must be a mistake then. Thanks!

 

According to fujitsu it is supposed to be DDR2 400MHz. ChaosBlizzard can you double check by opening the ram compartment or using some software such as WCPUID.
When I had mine I opened the Ram compartment to verify that I was missing a module, but I don't recall what the modules were labeled!
But systems compatible with DDR2 400, should also be compatible DDr2 533.

Orangeguy, just a note on SODIMMS, although both DDR and DDR2 are 200 pins they are not compatible with each others, physically because the slit between the pins is located at different locations, and because they operate at different voltages. Just like in desktops.
And just to make things more interesting some laptops use micro dimms (I am not sure about the name) such as the P7010.

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ETA Unknown: N6010 waiting for screen repair [ ]

 

Well, according to CPUZ this N3510 has PC3200 DDR2 installed.. However, the manual for this Laptop says it is suppose to use PC4200.

I noticed Fujitsu has issues with labeling their products memory speeds. Even the C2330 had the memory type listed wrong on the Fujitsu website, and it still is as far as I know.

There isn't any point in having a 533MHz bus if the memory is only PC3200 then. So in order for Fujitsu to have the legal right to call this a 533MHz bus it would have to be compatible with PC4200.

I might upgrade the RAM in this thing later on to see if I can't find out.

Perhaps someone can email/call Fujitsu and find out for sure?

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by ChaosBlizzard

 

Ok thanks for the info qwester and ChaosBlizzard. So this notebook would support DDR2 533 if i were to upgrade? I might want to upgrade to 1Gb ram when i buy this notebook so just want to make sure. Thanks.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by orangeguy

 

ok, thanks for your help qwester.

Now, a bit off topic, but i read that the N3510 with the tv tuner comes with Fujitsu Instant MyMedia. DOes this mean this model can play dvds without bootup? So the model without the tv tuner cannot play dvds without booting up?

 

My N3510 do not have a TV Tuner but I am able to view dvd without bookup. There is Instant Mymedia in my notebook and it is "another OS", as quoted by the sales person. Therefore the notebook has 2 OS and using Mymedia, you can view dvds and play cds.

My N3510 uses 1x 512Mb DDR2 RAM at 400MHz. Even though the manual said for 512Mb config, there should be 2x256Mb RAM but with 1 piece RAM, I have another slot for upgrade which is good.

 

The N3510 in general can watch DVDs or play music CDs without booting. I have the TV Tuner if that is relevant to you.

PS- If you only have one stick of 512MB then you aren't using dual channel memory... That's a huge performance hit right there.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by ChaosBlizzard
PS- If you only have one stick of 512MB then you aren't using dual channel memory... That's a huge performance hit right there.<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'></font id='quote'></blockquote id='quote'>
Not really. The difference is almost none existent!

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ETA Unknown: N6010 waiting for screen repair []

 

NOPE!
These are benchmarks of DDR2 533 in single and dual channel vs. DDR 333 and 266. We need not worry that the N3510 is 400 since chaosblizzard verified that they are 533.
http://www.tomshardware.com/mobile/20050119/sonoma_alviso-15.html

And this is Tom's conclusion and his reasoning behind the lack of difference!
http://www.tomshardware.com/mobile/20050119/sonoma_alviso-23.html

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ETA Unknown: N6010 waiting for screen repair [ ]

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by qwester

 

ok, seems like i was wrong. Indeed, dual channel does provide a higher bandwidth:

-Dual DDRII-533
8.5 GB/sec
-Single DDRII-533
4.2 GB/sec

But, the CPU is not able to take advantage of such a high bandwidth. The 533MHz FSB only has a bandwidth limted to 4.2 GB/sec. This case is when the system has a dedicated graphics card.

The case is different if the notebook usues an intergrated graphics solution. This means part of the memory is used to process on screen content. In this case, the higher badwidth of DDR2 dual channel would be more of a benefit.

 

Orangeguy, Mine is an asian set. I'm from singapore. It's the configuration offered for Singapore, Malaysia and a few other asian countries. But, my DDR2 is 400mhz RAM, not 533mhz.

Even after reading the posts, i'm still lost. So with this current notebook at 512MB DDR2, is it adviseable to add another 512MB DDR2 RAM?

 

Im in Asia too, but my spec here is 2x256mb.

Because the N3510 has a dedicated graphics solution, There is no real advantage in using dual channel. You wont notice the difference. Unless you need 1Gb of ram, i wouldnt suggest you get another 512mb just to take advantage of dual channel.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by orangeguy

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by orangeguy

 

qwester, are you saying for the N3510, it would be more efficient to upgrade to single channel DDR2 533 ram? then the 533Mhz from ram would match the CPU's 533MHz?

ao if i were to upgrade, it would be better to have 1x1Gb DDR2 533 instead of 2x512 DDR2 533? Or am i missing something?

 

ok, thanks for the advice. i think i might upgrade to 2x512 since its the cheaper option and i dont think i need more than 1gb of RAM in the near future.

 

Just out of topic a bit, ive been browsing through Fujitsu websites and brouches and fail to find any information that the N3510 has a mag alloy casing. I know i read it somehwere but now i forgot where. Its also weird that Fujitsu doesnt market the N3510 with a mag alloy casing.

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by orangeguy

 

yeh, brian did confirm it was mag alloy and so did i because i had read it somewhere! But im just puzzled that Fujitsu is not mentioning anything about it. But one thing im not sure is that, is it only the lid that is mag alloy or is it the whole case?

 

I just recently purchased a Lifebook 3510 from P1, and I'm looking to upgrade the RAM. After reading this topic, it appears that it doesn't make a difference whether the RAM is 400 Mhz or 533 Mhz, correct? Also, when I'm looking at different kinds of RAM, should I be purchasing DIMM or SODIMM? I thought I saw in a post that it must be SODIMM for a notebook, but my research leads me to believe that DIMM's will work as well. Correct me if I'm wrong.

By the way, my unit comes with 2x256 MB but I'm looking for at least 1 GB. Should I purchase 2x512 MB DDR2's or get 1x1GB DDR2 and put it in place of one of the 256's (total of 1280 MB), so that I can upgrade to 2GB's easier in the future by just replacing the other 256? Or would the affect the dual-channel ability negatively?

Mangelo

 

Dimms are for desktops, SODimms for laptops. They are phsically different (different shape, size, pins).
If you put 2 modules of different densities (ie capacity) dual channel is automatically disabled. I would recommend you go with 2x512 at 533MHz (just bec it is cheaper), but if you think that you might need 2 gigs in the future then get 1 gig 533MHz and use it alone without the 256MB module.
You need to at least match the speed of your CPU's FSB which is 533MHz. If you have a 256MB 400MHz and a 1G 533MHz you will run in single channel at the speed of the slowest which is 400MHz, so you might feel a negative speed impact. (I am assuming your laptop came with 2x256MB 400MHz as Fujitsu state on their site, if you got 533MHz modules, then disregard this!)

Conclusion, 2 options:
1- 1x1G 533MHz. (Assuming you now have 400MHz modules!)
2- 2x512MB 533MHz (you can get 400MHz since they will be running in dual channel and match up to the CPU's FSB, but 400MHz and 533MHz cost the same, so why do that !!!!)

Hope this helps!

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N6010: P4M 3.2G, 512MB Dual 333MHz, 60GB 7200RPM, ATI 9700M, 17" WXGA+
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<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by Mangelo

 

Thank you Qwester for the quick and thorough response. I have one more question then. Would a 2x512MB (533MHz) setup be equivalent in speed to a 1x1GB (533MHz) setup? Or would the former be faster due to the whole dual channel thing?

Mangelo