Any performance improvement if I upgrade my RAM - 2GB to 4GB?

[IntelUser2000]

It will make a difference. Going from 0.10 to 0.12 is a 20% improvement you know.

 

[jhansman]

At the risk of oversimplifying, it's better to have and not need it than the other way round. I built my new system with 8 gigs of RAM and have never wished I put the $$ somewhere else. At the time I wasn't doing much more than browsing. Now I am running Photoshop CS4, playing COD and other demanding games, so all is good!

 

[toyota]

At the risk of oversimplifying, it's better to have and not need it than the other way round. I built my new system with 8 gigs of RAM and have never wished I put the $$ somewhere else. At the time I wasn't doing much more than browsing. Now I am running Photoshop CS4, playing COD and other demanding games, so all is good!

well thats nice and all but ram isnt free so theres no need in wasting money on a single core P4 comp that only does basic tasks and plays older games. if he is doing anything much more than that then having 2gb of ram is the least of his concerns.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Upgrading a single-core P4 beyond 2GB is a waste. DDR isn't cheap. (Memory in general isn't cheap anymore.)

Edit: My bad, it seems he has DDR2?

 

[Viperoni]

I bet you'd see more performance out of getting a SSD than adding another 2gb of ram, though the SSD would be at least double the cost of the ram.

 

[OBLAMA2009]

its more cost effective to put your money in a new machine. with ram prices what they are, now its better to buy it through a pc maker

 

[mfenn]

its more cost effective to put your money in a new machine. with ram prices what they are, now its better to buy it through a pc maker

Yep, even the bottom of the barrel $260 Dell Inspiron is going to be worlds faster than what he has now. Better to put the money towards a new computer than waste it upgrading an old P4.

 

[lifeblood]

All other things being equal, I hold to what I said. If the programs your running now cause your PC to be near or exceeding 2Gb of RAM, then get more. But, the posts above reminded me, all things are not equal. The the cost of DDR is unreasonable at the moment while a new low end PC is quite cheap. Given that, I would agree with them and say forget the RAM and get a new PC.

 

[mchammer187]

Upgrading a single-core P4 beyond 2GB is a waste. DDR isn't cheap. (Memory in general isn't cheap anymore.)

2GB of DDR2 is like 39 bucks

 

[F1N3ST]

Wow, I'm using about 2GB right now doing nothing , except a virus scan, chrome, AIM and Steam are running..

 

[CraigRT]

Wow, I'm using about 2GB right now doing nothing , except a virus scan, chrome, AIM and Steam are running..

That sounds possibly excessive..

 

[toyota]

That sounds possibly excessive..

not to mention that if he had a P4 like the op then he wouldnt be able to do anything else useful while the virus scan was running anyway.

btw I ride a Cannondale too...

 

[F1N3ST]

61 Processes

Maybe there is something wrong...

 

[TJCS]

I just upgraded a machine (E4500, 2GB DDR400) for my dad to Windows 7 64-bit, and it is running very well. My dad only use his PC for office documents, web browsing, playing video/pictures, and listening to music. I am also running the machine with all the native aero effects.

According to CPU Mark, your CPU is behind the E4500 quite a bit, and my dad's PC performance feels pretty close to the borderline when I try to run multiple programs simultaneously. I think if you want to avoid a sluggish W7 64-bit machine, it might be a good idea to look into a new budget PC. DDR1 is expensive unless you can find deals for them and it's not worth upgrading with the system you have.

 

[jae]

Dont spend your money on something that old. Programs get larger and more advance, requiring more power. The boost isnt going to be noticeable because your working with a P4. Its time to build something newer, because your already behind.

 

[zagood]

Don't throw too much money at it, get an additional 1gb instead. You'll save $15-$20 and get the same boost. In my mind, $25 for a decent upgrade is acceptable, $40-$50 on an old system like that is a little much.

Grab any one of these and you'll be fine. Just make sure it's a dual-channel kit (2x512mb). Might be able to find a used set much cheaper, probably around $15 shipped.

If you're looking for a budget upgrade, be on the lookout for deals like this:
http://newspaperads.mercurynews.com/ROP/ads.aspx?advid=32664&adid=8898477&subid=28337123&type=

You'd actually need to replace your ram anyway (your ram is too slow for that chip) but just another option.

 

[endervalentine]

Thanks for the replies guys. I know the computer is pretty old, but the main reason I'm hesitant to upgrade is I'm actually waiting for starcraft 2 to come out before upgrading.

I don't really play any games right now, just your typical web surfing, picasa and some photoshop (yes, my own legit copy) every now and then.

I guess since I won't get that big of an improvement and I don't really have a reason to upgrade aside from some lag, I can hold off ... although if I'm waiting for starcraft 2 to come out it might be a few yrs out

 

[GlacierFreeze]

My philosophy is you can't have too much RAM, especially with OSes that take advantage of unused RAM like Vista-64 and 7-64.

 

[Maximilian]

Thanks for the replies guys. I know the computer is pretty old, but the main reason I'm hesitant to upgrade is I'm actually waiting for starcraft 2 to come out before upgrading.

I don't really play any games right now, just your typical web surfing, picasa and some photoshop (yes, my own legit copy) every now and then.

I guess since I won't get that big of an improvement and I don't really have a reason to upgrade aside from some lag, I can hold off ... although if I'm waiting for starcraft 2 to come out it might be a few yrs out

Very good choice! Although blizz are now taking in peoples system specs for the hopefully soon starcraft II beta test, so it shouldnt be too far away.

 

[endervalentine]

Very good choice! Although blizz are now taking in peoples system specs for the hopefully soon starcraft II beta test, so it shouldnt be too far away.

hehe, they've been saying it shouldn't be too far away for the longest time ... I'm still sitting on my sc2 beta key since blizzcon of '08! Well, at least they're working on it vs releasing crap.

 

[mchammer187]

Thanks for the replies guys. I know the computer is pretty old, but the main reason I'm hesitant to upgrade is I'm actually waiting for starcraft 2 to come out before upgrading.

I don't really play any games right now, just your typical web surfing, picasa and some photoshop (yes, my own legit copy) every now and then.

I guess since I won't get that big of an improvement and I don't really have a reason to upgrade aside from some lag, I can hold off ... although if I'm waiting for starcraft 2 to come out it might be a few yrs out

I've been waiting to upgrade for SC2 as well though my computer isn't quite as old

it has been about 3 years since I've built it but I have upgraded it quite a bit

E6600->Q6600

2GB -> 8GB RAM

SSD

I definitely am going to wait for SC2 to come out though before build a new computer