Is there such a thing as High-Speed memory for Sony SZ models?

hi there, i just placed an order for an SZ260 at Nice Electronics for a great deal ($2190).

as most of you know, it comes with two sticks of 512MB RAM (totalling 1 GB) but the salesperson talked me into getting one 1GB stick of High-Speed memory which he said would be way faster than the standard 1GB stick of RAM.

he told me that the memory that the SZ comes with is 90ns and the high-speed memory that they sell is 10ns and therefore the speed increase would be dramatic.

the problem is that this "high speed" memory is $399 and I've been searching all over the web trying to find it and it doesn't seem to exist.

I'm not super familiar with RAM (especially laptop RAM) so i'm not sure if i just got screwed.

I just got off the phone with him while they were closing for the night and he told me that he would put the order through tomorrow morning so i might still have some time to call off the memory so any help tonight would be greatly appreciated.

thx

 

if its for a modern sony, it shoudl be ddr2, most likely either 533 or 667mhz ram. the performance difference between the two is minimal due to different latencies. if u arent experienced enough to know if u need it, youll be fine with the cheap ram. it personally seems like hes scamming u, as ive never heard the speed in ns. and i dont know of any 1 gig stick thats worth 399

 

Your "salesperson" basically just told you that he had a great deal on a bridge in Brooklyn that he wants to sell to you.

First, the SZ has dual channel memory architecture so it actually performs better with two sticks of equal sized RAM as opposed to one large stick so two 512MB sticks will perform better than a single 1GB stick; this is why Sony configures the SZ this way.

In regards to DDR-2 RAM the "speed" numbers you mentioned are complete bunk and there will be no resulting speed increase from this magical "high-speed" RAM this jerk is trying to hose you with.

You will get a larger performance gain from taking your $399 and lighting it on fire as a sacrifice to the computer performance gods then you will ever get from this clip joint's magical fast RAM.

Finally be aware that "Nice Electronics" is just another "Ethernet" name for Marine Park Cameras/ParkDeals/ElectroDiscounts/MP SuperBUys, etc which are all infamous NYC bait-n-switch joints.

The only reason you got the computer for $2190 [which is only $100 less than Sony.com's price] is because you bought their overpriced RAM. The $100 they lost on the computer they made up three times over by selling you a $70 stick of RAM for $399.

This is a very famous/infamous electronics bait-n-switch tactic. If you had not agreed to buy the RAM at $399 [or some other over priced add-on like a warranty or spare battery] then you would never receive the computer.

They would tell you it is on back order, that they expect shipment soon, etc. After about a month or so of waiting you would eventually cancel your order, which is fine by them because they can't make any money selling you just the computer for $2190. Try calling up and canceling the RAM. Within a week someone will call you to "confirm the sale" and try to upsell you again. If you still don't buy extra high-priced items then you will find that the computer is not available for one reason or another.

*****

I hate to be the bearer of bad news but you got screwed. You just paid $2600 for a computer you could have bought from any SonyStyle store for $2299.

Were I you I would first call my credit card company and cancel the charge and then call "Nice" and cancel the order with them. They will give you a lot of guff but as long as your credit card company agrees to the credit then at least you will get your money back.

Good luck.

 

Likewise. I gather he's selling DDR2 533 or 667mhz as "high-speed memory." It's basically standard. Gotta love those spiels!

 

thanks! I've had a bad feeling about it myself all evening.

I can't seem to find a stick of 1GB anywhere on the web for more than $200 and it just doesn't make any sense. I bet some of these low price online retailers use this technique to compete with the larger retailers.

also, according to the Sony site, the only RAM i can get is PC2-4200 533mhz. The guy at "Nice Electronics" said that there are different speeds of PC2-4200 533mhz similar to Memory Sticks. Sounded weird to me but i've been wrong before.

 

thanks for the info UnpluggedontheFly.

btw, do you have the URL where i can find the SZ260 on SonyStyle for 2299? I can't seem to find it and i've been searching on the sonystyle site for about 30 minutes.

thx

 

There isn't a URL.

For whatever reason Sony has not updated their website and still only shows comparisons of all of the '100 Series Premium notebooks [SX160, 170, 180, etc.] and not the newer, updated 200 Series.

[learningcenter.sony.us/assets/Computers/Notebooks/SZ/SZspecs_a.html]

Of course the only real differences between the 100s and 200s is a 120GB vs. 100GB hard drive and the addition of Cingular WWAN on the 270 and 280.

You might try calling or just go into your local SonyStyle store where they should have them in stock.

 

Hey seattlejanzen (^_^)
If you live in Seattle try the Sony Style store in U-Village, they have most premium SZ models.
If I could do it again I'd go to a site like PORTABLEONE ( http://laptopsinc.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc) and get the cheapest premium SZ then upgrade myself. T2600 processors are around $200, 2GB RAM upgrade is about $140 on various sites then sell your old RAM & CPU.

And yeah, that salesperson was full of poop.

 

Where, used on eBay?

The lowest prices I have yet seen on the 2.16 Yonah's is still around $425-$450

 

I got mine from mhdempsey on eBay for $260, he had a bunch about a month ago. Claimed it was new, a few bidders went over $300. I've seen it for around $320-350 on a few sites other than eBay back when I was shopping for one, most sites were over 400.

 

thanks again everyone. I cancelled the order from "Nice" and i picked up one from www.techonweb.com for $2244. should be arriving tomorrow!