Memory Upgrade on a Dell M1710

[Tim186]

I want to upgrade the memory on the above laptop to either 2 or 4 GB, at present i have a 1 GB module installed but doesnt quite cut it when using it with flash/photoshop/premier pro etc, render times are quite slow. is it worth getting 4GB and also can someone recommend a place to get some descent sticks of memory

Thanks

Tim

 

[lostandwandering]

What OS are you using? A 32-bit OS will only recognize 3.25-3.5gb of it. If you have a 64-bit OS it will recognize the full 4gb. If you are using XP 2gb will probably be fine, if Vista you may want to consider 3. Do you know what RAM your system uses?

 

[theworminator]

Well, according to Newegg, it'll cost you around 100 dollars for two 2 gig sticks: http/www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134578

I'd say that if you can afford it, you'll notice a increased with response time in general, and it certainly will make a difference with photoshop and other rendering programs. But remember that it will still be cpu bound, so don't expect your render times to quadruple (or maybe even double) along with your ram.

 

[theworminator]

Yes, listen to LostAndWandering

 

[Tim186]

Thanks for your replies, its got 2x 512mb 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) so the plan is either to get one stick of 2GB or 2x2GB sticks or 1x "GB and 1x 1GB. At the mo i am running XP but plan to go back to vista

I thought maybe these http/www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=331437 and http/www.komplett.co.uk/k/ki.aspx?sku=318078 as i am from the UK so need to buy from here, are the value ones ok, do they do the sam job or is better to go for the normal ones if you can call it that

 

[lostandwandering]

Yeah, those will work. The "normal" DIMMs usually offer better heat spreaders and are slightly higher quality, but all that really equates to is the ability to achieve higher and more stable overclocks. If you don't plan on messing with your clock settings (doubt you can anyway) just get the value RAM.