RAM upgrade on the SONY Vaio SZ series

Hi, dear all
I am an european buyer want to buy a SONY Vaio SZ laptop in Germany, the specific machine I preferred only contains 512M RAM, so i woud like to upgrade it myself after i get the computer. For the compatible reason, can anybody tell me what the manufacturer of the RAM on your SZ laptop? Thanks a lot.

 

Nanya .

 

Two Nanya 200 pin sodimm 533mhz 512MB DD2 pc2-4200 is what came in my sz-120p. I've just ordered two 1GB 667 200 pin pc2-5300 sticks, but I'm hearing that the SZ series may not benefit from anything faster than 533 which is a bummer. The FSB is 667, don't know why they wouldn't support the faster memory ??

 

I downloaded the Sony Manual, and it give instructions for upgrading the RAM in the slot that lies underneath the laptop under the two screwed plate.

However, I can't seem to find instructions at all for how to upgrade the other RAM slot that is presumably under the keyboard. Does anyone know how to upgrade the RAM in this slot??

 

Your SZ came with 1GB as 2x512s? Wonder if that's a US thing then - I took the cover off my SZ1VP (UK model) the other night to find just a single 1GB 533MHz DIMM and a spare empty slot.

Chris

 

Yeah, it depends on the model of the laptop.

 

There are no extra slots under the keyboard... I took both of the 512MB DIMMS out and replaced with two 1GB PC2-4200 DDR2 (533MHz) PNY RAM from CompUSA... Both slots are located on the bottom as stated previously. They made a noticeable difference immediately...

Don

 

Someone saying that they have 667MHz RAM running at full speed in their SZ:
http://www.notebookforums.com/showpost.php?p=1881003

 

I checked the linked above but I can't see any proof of his SZ running the RAM @667. Mine is running @533 as what the SZ's specs said. Check the CPU-Z screen dump below.

 

Thanks for the replys and discussions. So it seems the SZ has a nice compatible feature.

 

I ran some config utilities (CPUID, Everest, etc.) and the 1 GB of RAM that came with my SZ-120/p was shown as 533MHz just as the Sony specs stated.

I just finished installing 2 GB of Gigaram (two 1GB sticks) rated as 667MHz (PC2-5300). I ran the utilities again and they show the new RAM running at 667MHz "memory speed" (in addition to the 667 FSB speed). So it appears that my SZ does support the faster speed. Don't know where the idea that Sony had somehow limited the memory speed to 533 came from? They shipped 533 RAM with my unit, but the 667 RAM seems to work fine at its rated speed.

Cheers,

Tony

 

Is there a noticable difference with the higher speed? I read on another forum the 533 running in dual channel is about as fast as you can get in almost all circumstances.

 

Hi Bossy,

I suspect they are correct, that there is little detectable difference. In my Photoshop CS2 timing tests, the new RAM isn't noticeably different. I haven't had a chance to really see how it works as far as working with multiple edits, etc. Opening Photoshop, the timings are about the same. Timings for converting a large RAW file from a Canon 1DsMKII to a 16 bit TIF file using Adobe Camera RAW were about same (approx 12 seconds). In my particular case, I think I will see a real benefit in my photo editing due to the 2GB vs 1GB of RAM, but I doubt that the difference between their speeds (667 vs 533) will make any difference. Wish I'd had a good way of benchmarking before I swapped the RAM out, but I didn't. Subjectively though, I can't honestly say I've detected any noticeable difference.

Tony

 

Thanks! I know when I got this 160, I said I was going top of the line on everything and was ready to pull the trigger on 667 memory. The cosy differential between good 533 and 667 was enough that I did a little research before buying. Good to know I didn't make a mistake.
I do know the machine has been flawless and quick with the 2x1GB I put in it.