Are 16GiB SODIMMs compatible with 4th gen Intel Core laptops?

Just bought a 16 GiB DDR3 SODIMM, but was disappointed when it didn't work in a HP laptop with Core I3 4030U. It boots but gets stuck on the Windows load screen. I could also boot into the HP system diagnostics to run their version of memtest86+, which would lock up.

The memory does work in another laptop (a Lenovo P40 with Core i6600U). So what could be wrong?

1. Wrong voltage? The eBay listing said DDR3 while the laptop requires DDR3L. But upon closer inspection, the sticker on the DIMM says "dual voltage (1.35V /1.5V)" Plus, it seems almost all Intel mobile CPUs don't even support 1.5V DDR3.

2. Capacity too big? According to the Intel ARK database, the Core I3 4030U supports a max of 16GiB. But does that mean the max for a single channel (the laptop only has a single DIMM slot) can be 16GiB or can it only be 8 GiB (16 GiB / 2 channels)? I looked at the 4th gen datasheet, https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...bile-u-y-processor-lines-vol-1-datasheet.html

and in table 4, the maximum compatible DIMM size listed is 8 GiB

But yet the BIOS does detect the RAM as 16 GiB. If it wasn't supported, I was expecting some kind of error at boot. Also strangely, for the laptop that worked, I checked the corresponding Intel datasheet and it didn't list 16GiB DDR3L DIMMs as compatible. It did list 16GiB DDR4 DIMMs as compatible.

 

I've read that the 4th gen IMC cannot handle them, but 5th gen can.

 

You're right, there was a disclaimer in allizwell2k10's page about needing 5th gen or later.

 

it does work in bios and HP diagnostics tool, correct? that means that it should actually work. have u tried booting off a live linux distro on a usb stick? or maybe just do a fresh windows install, it might still work

if it werent compatible, it shouldnt even be able to boot into bios!

 

@UncleJoe no chance on Earth and no way in hell will 16GB module work in a Haswell or older machine - except one particular (MSI IIRC) desktop board with some BIOS voodoo.