The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    RAM Upgrade - Necessary?

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by darkwhite, May 31, 2010.

  1. darkwhite

    darkwhite Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    32
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Hey guys

    I am planning to buy a laptop with 3 GB of RAM. Iwill be using mostly for movies,songs and light gaming. Should i upgrade to one more GB of RAM? Or can i manage with 3gb itself? Please advice. Thanks in advance.
     
    darkwhite, May 31, 2010
    #1
  2. jtcady

    jtcady Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    3
    Messages:
    271
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    You can manage but if its not too much of a price jump I would go with the 4GB since that is the max you would need unless you do intensive tasks that require more.
     
    jtcady, May 31, 2010
    #2
  3. benbeck08

    benbeck08 CCNA/A+ In Progress

    Reputations:
    172
    Messages:
    901
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    3gb will be plenty im sure
     
    benbeck08, May 31, 2010
    #3
  4. Trottel

    Trottel Notebook Virtuoso

    Reputations:
    828
    Messages:
    2,303
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    0
    3GB will be plenty for your tasks. Watching movies and listening to music isn't known for hogging ram, and you will make do just fine with 3GB for gaming.

    If you leave lots of windows open all the time and switch between different programs you keep loaded in system memory all at once, then 4GB would make a difference.
     
    Trottel, Jun 1, 2010
    #4
  5. benbeck08

    benbeck08 CCNA/A+ In Progress

    Reputations:
    172
    Messages:
    901
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Agreed. And if you ever do decide to upgrade, it wont cost you too much.
     
    benbeck08, Jun 1, 2010
    #5
  6. woofer00

    woofer00 Wanderer

    Reputations:
    726
    Messages:
    1,086
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    on my machine Windows 7 with all the aero bells and whistles, no gadgets, and just firefox and skype running eats up about 1.4 gb. It's pretty hard to load up enough in RAM to hit the 3gb or 4gb mark.
     
    woofer00, Jun 1, 2010
    #6
  7. TANWare

    TANWare Just This Side of Senile, I think. Super Moderator

    Reputations:
    2,548
    Messages:
    9,585
    Likes Received:
    4,997
    Trophy Points:
    431
    is the OS 32 or 64 bit? if it is 32 bit then you are limited to 3GB ram access to start with. If 64 bit you can use well over 4GB. 4GB in equal sized sticks will also yeild syncronous rather than asycronous dual channel ram.
     
    TANWare, Jun 1, 2010
    #7
  8. benbeck08

    benbeck08 CCNA/A+ In Progress

    Reputations:
    172
    Messages:
    901
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    good point there. most systems ship with 64 bit now but there some 32 bit os's around still
     
    benbeck08, Jun 1, 2010
    #8
  9. CokeCanNinja

    CokeCanNinja Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    18
    Messages:
    285
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    3GB is fine. I'm useing a computer that only has 512MB of RAM!! :eek: :eek: :eek: But it's Windows XP, and I'm only using it for web surfing.
     
    CokeCanNinja, Jun 1, 2010
    #9
  10. benbeck08

    benbeck08 CCNA/A+ In Progress

    Reputations:
    172
    Messages:
    901
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Ouch! 512 is brutal
     
    benbeck08, Jun 1, 2010
    #10
  11. darkwhite

    darkwhite Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    32
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    The OS is Windows 7 64bit basic. Currently, it comes with two sticks (one a 2gb and another 1gb respectively). So when i upgrade, i am thinking of replacing it with a single 4b stick, so the upgrade price is little more. Just want to know is it okey to go with a 3gb ram laptop or should i be looking for 4gb ones. In India, we have to choose different models and configuring options are not available for Sony. I just want to know is 3gb will be good enough for daily tasks? When you say more demanding tasks which ones you are referring to other than gaming. Hate to be ignorant.

    Anyways thanks guys for the replies. Cheers.
     
    darkwhite, Jun 1, 2010
    #11
  12. benbeck08

    benbeck08 CCNA/A+ In Progress

    Reputations:
    172
    Messages:
    901
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    3gb will be plenty for everyday tasks. 4gb sodimms are pretty darn expensive imo
     
    benbeck08, Jun 1, 2010
    #12
  13. darkwhite

    darkwhite Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    32
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    15
    Okey Thanks guys. Then let me go ahead with my purchase with 3gb. If needed, Let me upgrade to one more gigz of memory. Thanks all for the info
     
    darkwhite, Jun 1, 2010
    #13
  14. noamgat

    noamgat Notebook Enthusiast

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    19
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Just a general question - is there any specific vendor of RAM that is considered better than the others? I'm considering between Kingson Valueram, Samsung and Corsair Value Select (all are 2GB sticks).

    Does it make a difference?
     
    noamgat, Jun 1, 2010
    #14
  15. woofer00

    woofer00 Wanderer

    Reputations:
    726
    Messages:
    1,086
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    55
    You may hit some compatibility walls with between RAM and laptop brands. It's not clear cut across the board, but it is consistent within the pairing. I forget the precise reason why it happens. I've rarely ever had an issue trying to get Corsair, Crucial, Kingston, PNY, Mushkin, or OCZ memory to work. The rest I rarely if ever touch, so I wouldn't necessarily rule those out.
     
    woofer00, Jun 1, 2010
    #15
  16. DEagleson

    DEagleson Gamer extraordinaire

    Reputations:
    2,529
    Messages:
    3,107
    Likes Received:
    30
    Trophy Points:
    116
    Never had any problems with Kingston myself, that includes the value line too.
     
    DEagleson, Jun 1, 2010
    #16
  17. PapaSmurf69

    PapaSmurf69 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    25
    Messages:
    216
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    The only time I've run into problems with Kingston Value Ram has been on some Toshiba's. Other than that they have worked okay for me. I do prefer the Kingston KTT as they tend to be less problematic than the KVR due to tighter timing tolerances.
     
    PapaSmurf69, Jun 1, 2010
    #17