HP laptop, i7-6700HQ Skylake CPU, with intel HD 530 IGP - RAM questions.

Just bought a new HP laptop, i7-6700HQ CPU, with intel HD 530 IGP (15.6", 1920x1080 IPS) - currently running with Samsung 840 Pro 256GB SSD, & 1 TB WD spinner for secondary storage.

My question is about RAM speeds - particularly as they would affect the on-board intel 530 IGP performance. I am told that the intel HD 530 IGP is roughly equal to the nVidia 920M discrete GPU (provided that it has access to the fastest, highest-performing RAM). I realize, of course, that this is *not by any stretch* a gaming laptop - and it never will be - but still, I'd like to get max performance out of it, just the same.

I currently have 16 GB of Crucial Ballistix DDR3-1600 CL9 RAM installed. For the sake of faster/better intel 530 IGP performance, should I bother with "upgrading" to 16 GB of DDR4-2133 CL13 RAM? I can get Kingston or Crucial 8 GB sticks at $39 each (all CL13 stuff, can't find any CL11 or faster) off Amazon, and re-use the DDR3 in another laptop (Sandy Bridge i5-2410M), which will run it just fine at 1333 MHz, CL8 speed.

In other words, is DDR4-21333 CL13 > DDR3-1600 CL9?

Thanks in advance,

-Trev

 

You may have difficulty in persuading a 260 pin DDR4 SODIMM module to fit into a 204 pin DDR3 SODIMM slot. Does HP provide the notebook with two sets of RAM slots?

If you can get the DDR4 modules into your notebook then DDR4 2133 MHz RAM is 25-30% faster than DDR3 1600 MHz. You can check if any of the detailed Intel 530 benchmark results at notebookcheck are for computers using DDR3 RAM.

John

 

My question is this: Is DDR4-2133 at CL13 ("CAS 13") going to be appreciably faster than DDR3-1600 at CL9 ("CAS 9")? They're both 204 pinout, obviously. I was not aware of any 260 pin SODIMMs for laptops.

 

All of the laptop RAM being discussed here is 204 pin. 204 pin DDR4 laptop memory has been out for quite some time.

 

Can I have a link to a 204 pin DDR4 SODIMM? To my knowledge they are 260 pin as indicated here.

I am a little surprised that HP would combine a quad core CPU with the older, slower, DDR3 memory.

John

 

Thanks, John, for your quick replies -

I was wrong, you are right - 260 pin. I can't keep up anymore! But yeah, HP put a single 8GB stick of PC3L-12800 @ CL11 memory in it - even worse, it was of course running in single channel mode (second memory socket was empty).

 

I guess we're talking about "UniDIMM" technology? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UniDIMM , which can handle both DDR3- and DDR4 -

 

Thanks for that link.

Unless you have evidence that HP has embraced the UniDIMM standard then you are stuck with DDR3L.

John

 

Indeed.. Best DDR3 RAM is the 2133MHz category.. I have some Kingston Hyper X RAM and it's pretty good.. IGP performance wise, I'd expect about 5-10% improvement in IGP performance with 2133MHz RAM...

 

Sorry for a noob question, do we have any benefit when having RAM higher than 1600 while the system / CPU / Bus has already maxed out at 1600?

 

The IGP performance is improved with faster RAM in general.. Now not all CPU controllers can withstand faster RAM but if it can handle 2133MHz RAM, decent 10% bump in IGP performance is possible... IGP being the intel integrated graphics..

 

This was discussed Sep last year, not just HP either.

 

Were there any test ddr3 2133mhz vs ddr4 2133mhz with Skylake?