sony vaio s13p 640m 2gig vs 1 gig for 1080p + ram question

I have two questions before I purchase the s13p

1). Is it worth it for me to spend the extra $50 to get the 2gig version? I don't plan on playing many games, but when I do I will be playing on a 1080p 23" screen. Will the extra 1 gig help with textures, etc? Or is 1 gig seriously enough? I'm not playing Bf3, I'm playing mostly mmorpgs, or diablo 3 style games


2). What kind of aftermarket ram will work in this computer, and is it easy to install? I know it can be expanded from 4 gigs to 12 gigs; but if I put an 8 gig stick in, instead of a 4 gig, would it not be running at "dual-channel" speeds?

THanks!

 

The answers you seek are here: http://forum.notebookreview.com/son...fficial-2012-sony-s-series-owners-thread.html

 

Comments like this are unhelpful and pernicious. They recommend reading over 150 pages of forum banter, when a simple 1 paragraph response would have sufficed and received "rep" points; which is, from my understanding, the whole reason that the forums have implemented the "rep" device to begin with.

If I had originally posted a comment, wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that I've done my due diligence by researching existing forums, yet perhaps I was still unable to find a suitable answer to my distinctive needs. Hence, why I decided to originate an inquiry for assistance.

Any additional real advice will be greatly appreciated.

 

okay, let me tell you one thing. I will post a thorough review soon on this forum, so if you have any questions, you will just have to watch my video or read through the review

for your question,

I would say the higher the resolution, the more Video Ram it needs. For 50$, I think it's worth it so you can easily "future proof" your gaming needs at high resolutions.


by the way, as long as it's ddr3 laptop ram, supported by intel motherboards, it will work for sure. It's super easy to exchange. It will support dual channel because intel developped ansynchronous dual channel ram a long time ago. so yeah it will be dual channel on 4gb + 8gb

 

1. 1 GB VRAM is more than enough. I play BF3 with everything at medium settings (and BF3 is the most VRAM intensive game at the moment, it surpasses Metro 2033) and I have not ever seen VRAM usage go above 450 MB. Besides the DDR3 640M LE is bottlenecked by the memory bus anyway.

2. I purchased the following and installed it over the weekend: Newegg.com - Crucial 4GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model CT51264BF1339

Ran MEMTEST as well. No issues at all. Sony by default uses 1.35v RAM. I tried out a 1.5v stick and that worked fine too, but I forgot to check if it runs in dual-channel mode or not.

 

1) I really don't think the 2gb version is necessary. Mainly because the 640m LE isn't powerful enough to play recent games at max settings (at least at 1080p), and that's when the extra 1gb would be helpful (with all the high res tetxtures that is). With the 640m LE, games like Diablo 3 would probably be fine at 1080p if the settings were set to medium and low. I know that the 640m LE on the Vaio's have a BIOS MOD that overclock them significantly, and boost the performance to pretty much GDDR3 650m levels, so then you could probably play at medium or medium high settings. But all in all, I don't think it is worth it to pay an extra 50 for the 2gb version. The extra 50 would be much better spent on a SSD.

2) As for the RAM, I would just see what brand they used in your laptop when you get it, and just buy that same brand and model, just an 8gb version. I always think of using two different types of RAM as using two different batteries. Not really recommended, but it will probably work.

Hope this helps!

 

Wow, Great thanks for the prompt and insightful responses.

So it seems that the 1gig extra wouldn't make a difference at all if I'm playing games like diablo or guild wars; as they are nowhere near as graphically orientated than BF3.

So any "lap-top 1333mhz ram" will work? Are there any PIN sizing issues or are they all 240pin, or will 204 pin work? etc... FOr example what is the difference between PC3 10660, PC3 10600, or PC3 10666? Those all seem different on new egg. So how do I know which will work? THey are all 1333mhz

 

240 pin will not work. 240 pin is how many pins are on the RAM module and must match the pin count on the motherboard. Laptops these days use 204, so that's what you need

As for the difference between PC3 10600, 10660, 10666... there really isn't one. Its just marketing. 10600=10660=10666.

 

I'm assume you mixed them up. becuase if you look at the other poster he said he purchased a 204pin ram that worked and when I go on new egg 99% of the laptop ram are 204pin.

Can anyone check for me?

 

Blargh! Yes, I did mix them up That's what I get for not reading over my post before posting... 204 WILL work!!! lol I must have been thinking about desktop RAM. I think most desktops use 240pin. Well, regardless, 204 is the right stuff!

 

yup! ram is doing dual-channels even i stick in an 8GB kingston value ram

 

To be more complete:

You should take the SO-DIMM DDR3 PC3-106xx (1333MHz) and CAS latency 9 (or lower, but it won't run faster).
The soldered memory is from Samsung, but really... any good other brand will do fine. Taking faster memory doesn't speed up: it sticks to the lowest memory settings and the internal is using 1333MHz/CAS9.
I've Corsair (ValueRAM, 8 GB DDR3-1333) and running fine.

About the low-voltage: you can ignore this more expensive memory - it is not required. And you won't see any battery improvements when taking low voltage memory modules, since their consumption is nothing compared to other components.

 

DUDE!

If you plan on playing while plugging in an external monitor and extending displays, get the 2gb VRAM. Please! I had a hd6550m on my old laptop, and the video ram was maxed out while i played at 1080p stacraft 2 on my right and watching youtube on the left panel.

Sure 1GB ram is enough for every games at 1080p, since we would need gddr5. But if you want multiple displays, go for the extra gig, its the only good decision.

 

I think 1 gig will be fine because I don't plan on using dual monitors. I just plan on turning off the laptop display. Too late already ordered with 1 !