Notebook Memory Recommendations

[greatromances]

Hey all, I just picked up a new laptop (Toshiba A105-2081) for a great great bargain of $280 new from my sister who got it as a gift for school. It's as low budget as they come these days but here's some of the specs:

Celeron M 1.6ghz
40gb HDD
Integrated graphics
256mb DDR2 pc4200

The only thing I'll be using it for is basic stuff like web browsing, email, word, etc. I only bought it because of how cheap it was and cuz it'd be nice to be able to get online anywhere around the house. I'd like to get a little extra performance under windows for these tasks, so I'm wondering which would be better: Upgrading to 512mb or to 1gb. I'm trying to determine whether getting 1gb will have that much of a difference than getting 512mb since the system isn't really built for speed overall. I'm also not sure if the performance difference between 512 and 1gb would justify the price difference in the long run. Any input or suggestions would be much appreciated. Thanx mucho!

 

[alimoalem]

i would go with 1gb. i'm using XP running IE, firefox, AIM, Norton, and a couple background things that automatically start when i login...i'm at 641MB.

you got the laptop for $280. add $70 for a gig and make it an even $350. plus, if you do get 512mb, are you getting 2x256mb or 1x512mb? 2x256mb will run in dual channel so it'll be faster than the single 512mb stick, but it'll limit your expansion (you only have 2 dimm slots). if you go with the 512mb, as i said, you'll be running slower.

2x512mb, i think, is ideal

 

[greatromances]

That's right I didn't take into account the dual channel factor. Thanx for the input, I think i'll be going the 2x512 route. I was surprised that the system handled XP as well as it did with only 256mb either way. Can't wait to see how it'll run on a gig though still. Thanx again!

 

[Ruptga]

Dual channel won't make any difference for you for two reasons
1. You're not doing anything very taxing
2. Your FSB is 533 (unless you have an old celeron M, then it's only 400Mhz), and your memory is 533, so you already have as much bandwidth as the FSB can handle. Granted, it might make a difference for your integrated graphics since that's on the NB, but any difference will be pretty small.

Anyway, having more slow memory is always preferred over having a little fast memory. 1GB will suit your needs pretty nicely, though you can probably get away with being really cheap and getting another 512 for a total of 768.

Also, XP usually does perfectly fine with 256.. until you install some programs