Laptop ram upgrade

[AsianriceX]

I just acquired a pretty decent Fujitsu Lifebook from my friend and the only thing that's severely lacking is the amount of ram. It's a PIII 800MHz with 128MB of ram built in and according to Fujitsu's website, it can only support a max of 256MB of ram total, so my upgrade option is limited to a 128MB stick of PC100/133.

Now, I wonder if that limitation is just an arbitrary amount because 128MB sticks were the only ones available at the time the spec sheet was written, or if it's a hardware issue where it simply can't address more than 256MB of ram.

I'd love to snag a 512MB stick and make this laptop a little more liveable, but I don't want to risk it. Has anyone actually gone against the manufacturer's specs and added more ram than the maximum limit?

 

[stevty2889]

It's mostly likely a chipset limitation. If you put in more than the max, it wouldn't recognize it, or be able to address the extra memory, so you won't be able to go more than 256mb.

 

[AsianriceX]

Damn, well I guess on the upside, the upgrade will be a little cheaper.

 

[AsianriceX]

Ok, new question. If I bought a 256MB module instead of the 128MB (It's only 8 bucks more), what are the chances that the laptop won't recognize the module, recognize it and only address 128MB of it, or give me a pleasant surprise by detecting the whole module and giving me a total 384MB of ram?

 

[Zucarita9000]

For only 8 bucks, I'd say go ahead and see what happens

 

[RadiclDreamer]

Chances are, it wont see it. At least thats how its been in my experience

 

[AsianriceX]

Originally posted by: RadiclDreamer
Chances are, it wont see it. At least thats how its been in my experience

It won't see the module as a whole? or it just won't see half of it? Damn this laptop!