XPS 1210 memory and HDD upgrades

Hi all,

I just purchased an XPS 1210 from Dell with two components that I intend to upgrade as soon as I receive it:
- 1GB Shared Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 667MHz (2 Dimms)
- 80GB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM).
This is because the upgrade from 1GB to 2 costs $150, whereas 2GB of new RAM costs < $100 according to Newegg. I had a similar issue with the hard drive upgrade. I'm worried about purchasing the wrong sort of RAM, though; I notice that Newegg sells the following types:
- DDR2 533 (PC2 4200)
- DDR2 667 (PC2 5300)
- DDR2 667 (PC2 5400)
- DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
First of all, which types of RAM will work with my system? Will anything but the 667s work? If so, how much faster are the 800s in your experience?

Also, how much of a difference does Cas latency make in system performance? I can choose between 4 and 5, but I'm a bit iffy on choosing 4 b/c the only 1GB sticks on Newegg with 4 have no reviews.

Thanks for your input!

 

I did this as well. although for me the 120gig was free so I just stuck with that. Any so-dimm dd2 chip with 667 will work. This is called PC5300 or PC5400 and the best place to buy some is Outpost.com The 533 will work as well.

 

PC2-5300 and PC2-5400 are the same thing just manufacturers round differently. DDR2-400(PC2-4200/4300) will also work. Dont get DD2-800 ram since it expensive and it will downclock to 667/533mhz(depending on your FSB)

You wont notice the difference between 533mhz ram with CL of 4 and 667mhz ran with CL rating of 5 unless you do benchmarks so just get the cheapest ram with a lifetime warranty

Look at the Hot Ram deals thread for great prices.

 

just bought the gskill 667 5300 stik from newegg, <$50.

ive had one stick of this stuff for about 1yr, its great ( i paid 100$ a year ago for just one stick, more than 60% decrease in price since).

the best options for SATA HD's for me that im been looking at are the
7200.2 Seagate 160GB from Tigerdirect ($170)
7k200 Hitachi 200GB from Mwave (230)

both the lowest prices i can find.