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Upgrading RAM on MacBook!

R

rikadik

Senior member
Hi, I'm buying a 13" Macbook (yay) but want more than the standard 512mb of RAM. I will not be gaming or doing anything else intensive on this machine, other than having lots of office, email, internet, iTunes etc open at the same time (hence the need for more RAM).

What I need to know, and this is quite a general question, is cheap RAM ok? I've found someone on eBay in Hong Kong who sells a 1gb DDR2-677 SO-DIMM for £35. Crucial would charge me £120 for the same. Will it matter?

I've installed RAM on a laptop before, obviously is usually a doddle. Is it the same for the MacBook?

Thanks for your time!
 
Here are Apple's instructions for installing more RAM on your laptop, as far as buying cheap RAM; buying cheap RAM is fine as long as it is from a good maker, like kingston or something of that sort. No name RAM can and does go bad. Not saying that if you buy cheap RAM it will go bad, just that it could and you might not be able to return it. I've never had a problem with Value RAM, but I would go with a name brand.

http://manuals.info.apple.com/en/MacBook_13inch_Memory_DIY.pdf
 
Yeah I agree...I would stay away from no name Hong Kong brand on ebay. That is just asking for trouble. But I will say when I do buy ram from places like monarch, mwave or newegg I go for the cheapest possible and I have never have a problem; roswell, patriot, kingston value ram, G Skill ram (what I have right now and using it actually got RID of problems that I used to have and now attribute to my old crucial stucks) all of them work fine for me.

But Hong Kong Ebay ram? I dunnoo....

Just a quick newegg search shows 1 gig stick for about 70-90 dollars which is within the same price range for the pound. I would think shopping around in the UK (You are talking about pounds 😉) would show the same prices
 
I have been reading a lot of post lately about this cheap HK ram. None of them have been good. One thread the poor guy couldnt even identify what ram he got from ebay! No markings, nada, needless to say, the ram did not work right at all and didnt even post of some systems. Buy name brand mem.
 
Well thanks for you help guys.

I think the sensible thing to do will be to buy the MacBook with 1 gig of RAM installed (an extra £60). Once I've ruled out the cheapo hong kong crap its the most economical thing to do.

Out of curiosity I looked at how much it is to buy RAM directly from Apple... I can't believe how expensive it is! Any reason for this?
 
Originally posted by: rikadik
I think the sensible thing to do will be to buy the MacBook with 1 gig of RAM installed (an extra £60). Once I've ruled out the cheapo hong kong crap its the most economical thing to do.

Out of curiosity I looked at how much it is to buy RAM directly from Apple... I can't believe how expensive it is! Any reason for this?
Click to expand...

Apple is a money grabbing corperation just like any other big name computer company 😉

Just because they gave us OSX and pretty computers it doens't mean they are nice people.

Edit: go to dabs and enter 3PCQWS that'll give you a 1GB SODIMM stick from corsair. Only 4200 RAM, but c'est la vie.
 
Which do you think would be better for performance:

512mb + 512mb

or

1gb + 256mb

or

1gb?

Either would cost me the same at this stage, except the 2 x 512mb configuration would be the fast 667mhz Apple ones? The second configuration would be a mish-mash of manufacturers and speeds most likely. And the third? This is hurting my brain.
 
Originally posted by: rikadik
Which do you think would be better for performance:
512mb + 512mb
or
1gb + 256mb
or
1gb?
Either would cost me the same at this stage, except the 2 x 512mb configuration would be the fast 667mhz Apple ones? The second configuration would be a mish-mash of manufacturers and speeds most likely. And the third? This is hurting my brain.
Click to expand...
If you are talking about the MacBook (non-Pro) then I would say the fastest would be a perfectly matched pair of SO-DIMMs because the MacBook (non-Pro) uses integrated Intel GMA950 graphics, which uses your system RAM for graphics memory.

Apple ships all of their Intel Macs with a 667 MHz FSB and PC5400 667 MHz DDR-2 RAM, so I would assume you should stick with the same.

If it were me, I would do either 2x512MB PC5400 or 2x 1GB PC5400. And I would go with Crucial or Kingston.
 
Yea it is the non-pro MacBook. I think the 2x512mb direct from apple is the best idea. Thanks for your help.
 
The MacBook has integrated graphics, so matched memory would be ideal.

However, don't know which would be better:
- 512 MB stock memory and 1 gB stick
- two 512 MB sticks (obviously 2 1 GB sticks would be ideal, but is expensive)

🙂
 
Yea if there was a saving to be had I would buy from Crucial etc..., but my out of pocket expense is going to be £60 from Apple or £100 from Crucial, although spending the £100 I would have 2 256mb sticks to sell.

Apple always appears to supply the memory in matched modules, so a 1gb and 512mb stick would unforunately be impossible. The ideal situation would be if Apple supplied a laptop with 512mb of RAM with a single stick, then I'd just buy another 512mb stick, but alas, they will not...
 
Well, I've just ordered it! Went for the 1gb of RAM direct from Apple. Estimated delivery date: 21st June!!! :shocked:
 
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