Bios and memory upgrade

I have a Samsung Sens M55 laptop that was bought in Korea in 2006 and it has 1024 MB of memory installed. If I try to upgrade to 3 GB, the system will not boot and I suspect I need to upgrade the Bios. I have searched the Samsung Download site and the Internet for the correct firmware, but in vain... Can anyone please advise me on a) whether the Bios is the problem and b) if so, where I can find an appropriate upgrade? The following information might be helpful - many thanks:

DMI
------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DMI BIOS
--------
vendor Phoenix Technologies LTD
version 04SE
date 08/21/2006


DMI System Information
----------------------
manufacturer SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
product SM55S
version 04SE

DMI Baseboard
-------------
vendor SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
model SM55S
revision unknown

DMI System Enclosure
--------------------
manufacturer SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS CO., LTD.
chassis type 1X
chassis serial None


DMI Processor
-------------
manufacturer Intel
model Intel(R) Core(TM)2 CPU T7
clock speed 1992.0 MHz


DMI Port Connector
------------------
designation J19 (internal)
designation COM 1 (external)
port type Serial Port 16550A
connector 9 Pin Dual Inline (pin 10 cut)
connector DB-9 male


DMI Port Connector
------------------
designation J23 (internal)
designation Parallel (external)
port type Parallel Port ECP/EPP
connector 25 Pin Dual Inline (pin 26 cut)
connector DB-25 female


DMI Port Connector
------------------
designation J12 (internal)
designation PS/2 Mouse (external)
port type Keyboard Port
connector Circular DIN-8 male


DMI Extension Slot
------------------
designation CARDBUS 0
type PCMCIA
width 32 bits


DMI Physical Memory Array
-------------------------
location Motherboard
usage System Memory
correction None
max capacity 3072 MBytes
max# of devices 2


DMI Memory Device
-----------------
designation M1
format SODIMM
type DDR


DMI Memory Device
-----------------
designation M2
format SODIMM
type DDR
total width 64 bits
data width 64 bits
size 1024 MBytes

 

Just for further information, the RAM that came installed on the M55 has JetRam J12Q3AB-6 T0652PF chips. I am trying to upgrade with a 2 GB Transcend ddr2-667 memory card (JM667QSU-2G).

Any thoughts gratefully received!

 

Does it boot with just the 2GB module?

Does it boot with two identical 2GB modules?

Does it boot with two identical 1GB modules?

Does it boot with two identical 1GB modules from another manufacturer (try as many different variables as you can...).

Although it may state 3GB Max RAM, it may very well be limited/locked to the same type of RAM as shipped?

Since this is a ~2007 model notebook, support may very well have been dropped for it. Did it get replaced by a newer/similar model? If yes, then check for the BIOS updates availabe for that machine - and double check if it may be applicable to yours.

Good luck.

 

Thank you. I didn't try the 2GB card on its own because I got dire warnings when booting after adding the 2 GB card to the existing 1 GB and was apprehensive about trying anything else. However, at your suggestion I replaced the 1 GB card with the 2GB one and the laptop booted just fine. Probably the 2 cards don't work together as you suggest, so I'll buy another Transcend 2 GB card and see how that goes. Many thanks again.

 

Are you sure that the machine will support more than 2Gb of ram? It's a possibility.

 

Yes, it is a possibility that it would only support 2GB of RAM, but given the fairly current manufacturing date (less than 3 years old), I would be surprised if it doesn't support at least 4GB (even if the O/S doesn't use it all).

If it does only take 2GB RAM, I would personally return the 2GB stick and replace it with 2 x 1GB modules (I'm assuming that your notebook supports dual channel...).

Glad that the 2GB module worked for you, hope that 4GB is a possibility too.

Cheers!