what ram would you recommend

[nikos101]

Friends, what ram would you recommend

http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/3435854/Corsair-VS2GSDSKIT667D2-Value-Select-Memory-2GB-SODIMM-200-pin-DDR2-667-MHz-PC2-5300-Dual-Channel-Kit/Product.html

http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/4-/3477790/Laptop-Memory-2GB-PC2-5300-DDR2-200pin-SODIMM/Product.html

[_Aerospace_Eng_]

Are you sure your laptop can handle the ddr2 one? What model laptop do you have? Model number too if possible.

[nikos101]

dell inspiron 1525

[oracleguy]

Well it does seem to use DDR2. However you might want to open the memory compartment up and see if there are two modules already there. It is quite possible it is running in pairs (dual channel) and as such you'd really want to replace the pair. Plus if you open it up, you can see what speed the memory is, it should hopefully say on the label.

[tomws]

Crucial.com has a downloadable scanner to help determine what's already installed and what you can use:

http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/index.aspx


FWIW, between the two options posted, I'd go with Corsair because of the name.

[_Aerospace_Eng_]

I would go with the corsair one as well. What operating system are you running and what bit is your laptop? 32 or 64?

[nikos101]

Vista, 32

[_Aerospace_Eng_]

How much ram is currently in your system? You won't be able to see a full 4GB of ram if you get two of those sticks.

http://blogs.msdn.com/hiltonl/archive/2007/04/13/the-3gb-not-4gb-ram-problem.aspx

[nikos101]

I have 2gb

2 x 1gb sticks

1x1gb + 1x2gb should be ok no?

[oracleguy]

I have 2gb

2 x 1gb sticks

1x1gb + 1x2gb should be ok no?

Well if your laptop is using dual channel mode, if you mismatch the RAM like that you'll lose performance since it will only be able to run in single channel mode.

[nikos101]

Good point

The memory modules are installed into matching banks, which are usually color coded on the motherboard (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motherboard). These separate channels allow each memory module access to the memory controller, increasing throughput bandwidth. It is not required that identical modules be used, but this is often recommended for best compatibility for dual channel operation.

[oracleguy]

And on Dell's website, look at the text in red lower down on the page: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&sku=A1458002

So when you order the memory you might want to consider replacing both. Like Aero said, without a 64-bit OS you won't get all of the 4GB but I'd imagine you'll probably get around 3-3.2GB of it. And you could always upgrade to a 64-bit version of Windows (assuming that laptop has a 64-bit processor).