T61p aftermarket RAM and HDD?

Anyone have experience upgrading the RAM and HDD in a T61p? I would love to know your experience with it.

 

I bought the cheapest options, e.g. 1GB 1DIMM and 80GB HDD and I plan to upgrade. I don't expect any problems.

 

You can use most any brand/size DDR2 SODIMM RAM and SATA HDD.

 

Bought my T61 with the standard 1GB, stuck a Crucial 1GB in the second slot.

Since a friend of mine bought 2 2GB modules, and then found out his gen1 MacBook Pro only goes to 2GB, I'll be trading my two 1GB's and some cash next week for them to go to 4GB. I expect that to go equally smoothly.

 

How many slots does the T61 have for RAM? Is it true that the T61 is can maxes out at 3GB of RAM? I only ask because I am considering a 64-bit OS.

 

It has two slots like most if not all notebooks.

It should be able to see/use 4GB w/ 64bit OS since its a "santa rosa" laptop

 

I believe the T60 maxes at 3GB. The T61 can go to 4GB.

Make sure all your drivers and applications are compatible with a 64-bit OS before making the switch.

 

I hear you about making sure everything is compatible. I am in the process of learning more about the whole 64-bit thing and I will definitely make sure everything is compatible. Honestly, I'm only considering 64-bit since the industry is gradually shifting to a 64-bit world.

Thanks for this information.

 

Note also that should you have any (admittedly really ancient) 16-bit apps, they won't run --you'd have to run XP or Vista32 in a virtual machine via VirtualPC or VMWare to use them. I have this ancient resume-writing program I still use circa Windows 3.1 days. I print my resumes to PDF so I can do anything with them, but the product made easier work of resume' setup than Word ever has, and I'm reluctant to part with it. It wouldn't run on a 64-bit OS.

One final drawback to Vista64: drivers must be signed to operate. This means that beta/experimental/hacked drivers may be an issue under Vista64 if you were hoping to podge something to get an odd piece of hardware to work. There may be a way to defeat this if you know what you're doing, but I haven't looked into it too deeply.

I think Windows 7, when released, will be the first OS likely to give people the ability to consistently go the 64-bit route. I'd love to go 64 now, but I think that it isn't worth the potential pitfalls.

 

I hear you. I'm always looking ahead and all I keep hearing is that 32-bit will be obsolete in a little while and everything is shifting to exclusively 64-bit. That's really my main motivation for wanting to go that route. I don't want to be stuck with a 32-bit operating system with no tech support or viable applications. I don't know. Maybe I'm just being a bit "noid" about the whole situation. Here's a question I have for you, Lonewolf. What if I do a dual-boot? Can I run one of the operating systems in 32-bit and the other in 64-bit?

 

You can dual-boot.

32-bit operating systems will not be obsolete for some time. The earliest would be when Windows 7 is released (2009 or 2010) and AFAIK, it's still rumored that Microsoft is struggling with the decision of whether to go 64-bit-only or offer a 32-bit path. 32-bit will not disappear during the Vista days, nor will app compatibility; you have nothing to fear.

 

For HDD aftermarket upgrade, I recommend Hitachi 7k200 series...either 160gb or 200gb. Runs quiet ( not totally silent but quiet) and cool for a 7200rpm drive.

 

Thank you again, Lonewolf. You have been incredibly informative to and patient with me. I thank you very much for taking the time to answer my questions.