HELP! Upgrading RAM

I didn't realize I could upgrade RAMs of the laptop.
I'm planning to buy a T60.

So I might buy a T60 with a 1GB ram.. and I plan to buy a separate 4GB stick and upgrade it..

1. Will it work with Lenovo?
2. Will it be cheaper?
3. Do I still need to format Windows Vista? Or is it plug nad play?
4. Is this advisable?

 

i recently upgraded my RAM on my acer aspire. I had originally 512mb of Hynix RAM, then i bought a 1gb of Kingston, now i have 1.5gb RAM.

Make sure when you buy the RAM, its the exact same speed as your original, otherwise your original will clockdown itself to the slower speed RAM, therefore decreasing your overall system performance. (e.g. the original RAM might be PC4200 @ 533mhz, so you would want to buy another stick that is PC4200 @ 533mhz; if you bought one that was 400mhz, then both your sticks will be running at 400mhz)

This was the first time i have upgraded RAM on a laptop, and it was surprisingly easy. You just have to put the new RAM in the slot at about a 30-45 degree angle then push it into the slot, then push it down into clips to keep it in place, it took 5-10mins to do.

 

You can't yet buy notebook RAM in 4GB sticks. However, the price of 2GB modules has plummeted since the start of this year.

Recent / current notebooks use DDR2 SODIMM which comes in 533MHz (PC4200) and 667MHz (PC5200 or 5300) flavours.

There is no significant price difference and, if necessary for compatibility with existing RAM, the faster RAM will be run at slower speed.

Upgrading RAM is a simple task which is now described in most user guides. The RAM is usually under a cover on the bottom of the computer.

So, to answer your questions:

1. Will it work with Lenovo?
Yes (I'm sure Lenovo uses standard modules - check the manual).

2. Will it be cheaper?
Most computer manufacturers charge excessive prices for upgrading the basic spec at the time of manufacture. I'm sure this is where they make most of their profits.

3. Do I still need to format Windows Vista? Or is it plug nad play?
Vista won't worry how much RAM there is as long as there is some. Change the RAM and restart the computer.

4. Is this advisable?
Yes, and hard disk upgrades aren't that difficult either (depending on how accessible the HDD is).

John

 

not all RAM upgrades are easy, some laptops have only one stick visible and the other is hidden by something that will need removing first.

why would you buy a 4GB stick? Is there such a thing for laptops? plus make sure your machine accepts 4GB sticks and supports 4GB memory.

also if you have a 32bit version of Vista, then you will only get about 3.25GB of system RAM, only 64bit supports the full 4GB and up

 

Ok ok, I'll just upgrade to maybe 3GB.

Follow up questions guys!
1. So does this mean that I can buy any brand of ram, and its plug and play? Or Do i need any new motherboards, whatever, when I upgrade ram?
2. No more eformatting?

 

1. Normally, it's plug and play. I've swapped quite a few modules over the years. Recently I had a small issue of needing to put the slower module in the first slot. Definitely no new motherboards.

2. Definitely no reformatting or reinstalling Windows.

John

 

yes all RAM should be plug and play, the system BIOS detects the new settings on boot-up and recalobrates the system (not that you would know that this was happening).

No you should not need to buy any more upgrades to make it work, especially not a motherboard, you cant replace that on laptops.