Upgrading Laptop Memory - Questions

[JimGoose]

My laptop currently has 512 mb of DDR 2 533 "infineon" memory and i'd like to upgrade it with a 1gb stick.

Since the current memory is already a generic brand with 4-4-4-12(tras) timing, should i just go with a stick of cheap generic memory? The price difference from generic to say OCZ is like 30-40 bucks, and i figure if i get OCZ it won't matter, since the ram will default to lowest common speed of memory installed right?

i don't really do any gaming, so i don't think the better timings would make a difference for me. i can certainly notice my laptop struggling, with a 5,400 rpm hitachi HD and 2ghz single core turion, i think more ram would be the fix and maybe down the road i can swap the processor for a dual core.

thanks in advanced

 

[Guest]

I went from 512mb to 2g in my laptop and it was sweet.

HUGE difference, since most laptops run a lot more processes. (ie: touchpad, battery monitors, etc...)

The extra RAM is great.

Also it may extend your battery life too since more stuff can load into RAM instead of so many disk read and writes.

The RAM type shouldn't matter.

 

[deusex]

If your system cost less than 600$ right now, I suggest you wait and buy a new laptop with core duo/core 2 duo

 

[Mondoman]

In theory, it's just the specs that matter. In practice, the cheaper "generic" modules are more likely to have compatibility and/or intermittent problems. As long as you buy from a vendor who guarantees compatibility with your model notebook, you should be fine.

 

[JimGoose]

Well I noticed the "Kingmax" brand notebook modules of DDR 2 667 1gb here is about 10 bucks more than generic. I suppose I will go with that, atleast kingmax is a brand right? so the 667 stick will downclock to 533 and all will be well. I will ask them (canadacomputers.com) about RMA regarding compatibility issues i might have with the different speeds.

thanks for the advice