Is motherboard compatible with both 667Mhz and 800Mhz memories?

[thisusernameisnotavailaLOL]

Hi,

I own a Dell Inspiron Mini 1012. I decided to upgrade switching (only 1 socket in the motherboard for RAM) its RAM from 1 GB to 2BG. Crucial's compatibility test offered me 2 different tipes of 2GB DDR2 Rams for this computer: One running at 667Mhz and the other at 800Mhz. Are they both compatible with my computer?

I looked my computer's specs at pcworld: http://www.pcworld.com/product/1263442/dell-inspiron-mini-10-1012-netbook.html
As you can see, it indicates that the original ram is 800MHz (DDR2-800/PC2-6400), so I decided to order a 800MHz new RAM from crucial instead of the 667MHz one, thinking that the 800 would be compatible and the 667 one would not.

2 days after my order I decided to double check (yes, I know I should have done that before). I went to CNet to look at the specs to compare to the pcworld ones: http://www.cnet.com/products/dell-inspiron-mini-im1012-687obk/specs/
To my suprise, it says the opposite of PCworld!! CNet says that the memory coming from the factory is a 667MHz memory!

So I decided to check the Dell's manual to see who was right: http://www.dell.com/support/home/us/en/19/product-support/product/inspiron-mini1012/manuals. I opened the one called (Inspiron Mini 1012 Comprehensive Specifications)
Well, this only made my doubts worse. It states that the RAM coming from factory is 800MHz but it operates at 667MHz!!!

So which one should I choose, the 800MHz one or the 667MHz one? What implications could have choosing the wrong one?


As you can see I'm not an expert so please, if you could shed some light, I would really appreciate!!



Thank you!


Edit: Also, why would crucial sell the 800MHz RAM for the same price as the 667 MHz RAM if the 800 one is not compatible?

Edit 2: Most important of all, will choosing the wrong RAM damage my computer? This is the problems that bothers me the most...

 

[Ryan_78]

No, no you got it wrong, the 667 MHz is bus speed of the CPU. Your laptop actually does support 800 MHz ram

 

[thisusernameisnotavailaLOL]

No, no you got it wrong, the 667 MHz is bus speed of the CPU. Your laptop actually does support 800 MHz ram

Ok, I've seen that in the cnet specs. Thank you!!

But what does the dell manual mean when it says that RAM is 800MHz but it operates at 667MHz? Is the motherboard capping the ram from the factory?

And, does the bus speed of the CPU (667MHz) have something to do with the speed at which the ram can send info to the processor?

Thanks you very much!!