Ram and Mac's?

[Techno]

If I buy a Mac mini, can I buy ram from newegg to place in it instead of buying it from apple and paying an additional $400 when I can just pay $150?

Thanks

 

[Childs]

Yes. May want to go with Crucial, although I really don't think it matters.

Courtesy of Thin Lizzy:

Download this movie to learn to dissassemble the Mac Mini!!!

 

[KeithP]

It has been my experience that similar spec RAM is usually swapable between Mac and Windows hardware. However, Macs are definitely more particular and you can occassionally run into problems. I would strongly recommend sticking to a major manufacturer (Crucial, Mushkin) and buy their Mac specific RAM.

-Keith

 

[halfadder]

I have heard the same thing, stick with Crucial or another major brand who tests their RAM in Macs.

http://macsales.com or http://smalldog.com is another option. They know Macs inside and out and physically test a stick or two from every batch they get in.

 

[metalmania]

You don't need "mac specific" memory sticks. They are all the same. It's just a marketing strategy to get more money from you.

To say that, I don't mean "I heard" blah blah. I upgraded 3 ibooks and one emac since 2000.

 

[hopejr]

I just upgraded my iBook G4 with PC2700 from a PC wholesaler down the road (even though the specs say to use PC2100). It works fine.

 

[Baked]

If you read Apple's Mini Mac fine print, it states you have to buy the amount of RAM you want when you order from Apple.com, or bring it to a Apple service center if you want to do it later. If you do it yourself, bye bye warranty. Not sure if you can bring your own RAM into service center for installation.

 

[halfadder]

I remember a buzz similar to this way back when Apple was overcharging for 30 pin SIMMs in the mid 1980s. I believe someone cited a consumer protection law in the USA that states that a company like Apple cannot cancel your full warranty for doing an upgrade like RAM provided that you use the proper memory and don't break anything in the process. I also believe that the law stated that if you did break something, only the broken part was excluded from the rest of the warranty.

But maybe that's null and void these days with the DMCA and other draconian laws.

Apple's Mac Mini RAM specs:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=300572