is it possible to upgrade ram of Dell studio 17?

Hi,

I just came with an idea of buying a cheaper laptop and if needed I upgrade the ram later.
But I'm not sure if its possible.

Does anyone here know if the ram of Dell Studio 17 can be upgraded?

The ram is currently 2x2048mb DDR3 1333.

I really appreciate any help on this as I have to make a decision to cancel an order.

Thanks a lot
Sina

 

sina,

Yes, you can put up to 8GB of RAM in a current Studio 17.

If you 'upgrade' from 4GB of RAM, remember that you will remove both sticks and replace them with 2x 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM modules. Sell the old ones (after you've verified the new ones are working properly by testing with multiple instances of MEMTEST over night).

 

Yes, just about any laptop out there will support the process of upgrading RAM.

 

put 4 GB (2X2 GB RAM kit )... 4GB ram sticks to make 8GB will be super expensive and not worth it...

 

unless you're running multiple VM's its very unlikely you'll need anything more than 4gb. it will just sit idle, it wont make anything faster. you're much better off investing in an SSD where you'll see an instant and noticable performance increase.

4gb sticks are much more expensive than 2gb sticks. especially DDR3 ram sticks.

 

Well, the thing is that I'm considering buying them in 1-2 years.
So, at that time I think 8gb and even maybe 16gb sticks are out....

So, considering time, what do you guys think?

 

Don't buy on 'if only's', but for things you know are a certainty.

Even if 8GB and/or 16GB sticks come out - no guarantee that they'll work (reliably) in a system you're purchasing today - let alone be more cost effective.

 

well, considering the max capacity of ram (4gb) has been around for for a few years already, and likely to be the max for the next few years, i dont think anything will change. ram technology changes, i.e DDR2>DDR3, so in 2 years time, who knows, maybe we'll be using DDR5, like they use GDDR5 in some ATI graphics cards.


ask again in 1-2 years before you want to purchase.


but to answer your question, yes, it will be upgradable. Whether we'll be still using DDR3 in a few years time? no idea.

also, there is no way of telling if the BIOS will support anything more than 8gb

 

No, bios will only support 8gb.

My config in mind is 4+4 probably next 1-2 years when ddr5 rams are coming out (like few months back ddr3 rams coming out and ddr2 prices dropping!)

And I'm just considering worst case. I might not even need 6gb of ram! I just want to make a decision based on this.... a hard one probably...

 

sina6002,

Don't forget that prices have been going up (for RAM) since the summer. There is no indication we'll ever have as good an opportunity to buy RAM at such good prices as summer 2009.

Also, you may not need 6GB of RAM - I don't know - but what I do know is that an i7 with 4GB of RAM running Win 7 x64 is not a balanced system.

What am I saying? Am I pushing for the more expensive option? No.

I'm saying that maybe, you might have done all right with a lower configuration than the one you have (for a lot lower cost). At least for the 2 year time frame you're thinking of keeping this computer.

One additional data point to consider.

 

regardless of cost and the economics of the situation, unless the OP is gonna do something really heavy duty with the computer, there is no way he/she is even gonna come close to reaching the limit.

i'm a power user myself, and unless im running VM's, my ram usage on win 7 is just over 2 gigs.

i think one needs to ask the OP what his usage is going to be, what tasks are going to be performed on the computer before making a reco.

 

afhstingray,

He already told us what he'll do with his computer in the other thread.

This is not about reaching any limit, its about making a sound decision for maximizing the $$$ spent and the outcome that is needed/required.

As a self-proclaimed power user, what do you use your computer for?

When I start my work environment on my desktop or my notebook (both 8GB) I am already at almost 6GB usage or more (on the desktop) - this is without any 'data' being imported into any programs yet.

I find it hard to see how a 'power user' can only use 2GB of RAM and still be a power user?