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Upgrading memory
I'm thinking about upgrading my memory. Is it difficult to do with a laptop? I've never worked with laptop hardware before and am trying to save a few dollars by doing it myself. Would it be better to purchase the memory online and would I need special tools?
Thanks.
They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
1. What is your laptops make and model?Originally Posted by luvsall
2.No, it does not require special tools. All you need is a small screwdriver.
3. It would be better to purchase it in a store where they can help you if something goes wrong.
Hope this helps!
Regular Member
I have a Sony Vaio Pcg-grt model, it's about five yrs old. I was thinking this morning of maybe getting a memory stick and put my games on it, or would I be better off upgrading the memory? How much memory should I get?
They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
If the laptop is five years old, It is not worth spending money to upgrade memory.
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That's what I kind of thought. I can't afford another machine right now, so I'll deal with "old paint" for the time being.If the laptop is five years old, It is not worth spending money to upgrade memory.
Thanx for the advice.
They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
Do you mean memory or storage? Because it's two different things
Memory (ie: RAM) can't be used to hold files or data, it just works withh the processor to run your programs. If what you need is more storage space to hold files then adding RAM won't help.
What would help is uninstalling any apps you don't use, cleaning out any old junk data, maybe zipping up any folders of data you only use rarely, empty your recycle bin, etc.
If you only ned the space for data files and not programs then a USB memory stick or some other portable storage like SD cards can give you a nice cheap boost.
The only tools you will need are a screwdriver, probably a Philips Screwdriver.
Make sure to know how much maximum memory your laptop has, and how many slots. If you just need some more memory and are happy with your machine, I recommend the memory upgrade.
If you need a lot more power than it can handle, perhaps get a new machine. Some people say computers that are 5yrs old are no good, this is not true, if you take care of those machines they can be quite powerful (and desktops can be upgraded)
Memory is a commodity. Even though you'd expect memory on older machines to be cheaper, it isn't because the manufacturers are busy building the new stuff.
Not really true. In stores, is is WAY too expensive, at BestBuy anyway. Online, it's really really cheap compared to newer memory.
Depends. Some old obsolete types of memory can be surprisingly expensive, since demand exceeds supply.
2002 memory and above is really cheap on the market with plenty of supply
Not trying to hijack this thread but I've been wanting to upgrade my laptop memory but I have one question. I have an older desktop PC that doesn't work anymore (bad power supply). Can I take the memory sticks from the desktop and use them in my laptop?
No unfortunately you may not, Dodi.
PCs/Desktop use RAM (Memory) of a certain length and pin number depending on the motherboard.
Laptops use smaller RAM with fewer pins and different insertion "U" points (the part that looks like an upside-down "U" on the memory)
Each motherboard takes different memory, so laptops have to use much smaller pieces of memory.
Hope this helped, if you need to upgrade your laptops memory, please PM me and I will tell you how to find out how to do so.
thanks
Regular Member
I haven't checked this thread for awhile, and am glad I did just now. I can't afford a new machine right now. I do appreciate the input, especially since if this laptop kicks the bucket I'm offline. I have gone to different sites that help out with laptops, and have found out that my type of laptop does have an overheating problem that Sony knew about, but continued to manufacture this particular laptop. When my laptop gets warm, is when my problems really start to occur. I'm kind of thinking that this is something I have to live with until I am able to afford a new machine. I know that if you have a pc you are able to add fans and such, but with a laptop, I don't know. I have dumped every possible program that is not necessary for this laptop to function.
I defrag, and scan disk on a regular basis. I guess it would be best to build a pc from scratch!
They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
There are 3 ways to keep your toasty laptop cool or cooler.
-Memory Heatspreaders, will reduce the overall temperature in that section of the computer. I can link you to the product if you would like (only $8-$10 with shipping)
-Laptop cooling pad. The right pad can keep your laptop really cool. Mine used to burn my hand if i touched the bottom+back, but since I started using one, I could touch it and it felt room temperatue!(anywhere from $10 - $40)
-Professional: Opening up your laptop, removing the old "heat grease" from your processor, and applying the best "thermal grease"; "Artic Silver"
Also, you could find small heatsinks and, if there is room, place them on some parts, like the harddrive.
Building a PC from scratch is the best, if you wish to do so on a budget, I can assist you, all I need to know is if you need it for general purposes, gaming, video editing, that sort of stuff
Regular Member
I think I'll go with the Laptop cooling pad. It seems to be the easiest and lest expensive way to go. Which one would you recommend? My laptop gets super hot, I have a table fan blowing on it all the time.There are 3 ways to keep your toasty laptop cool or cooler.
-Memory Heatspreaders, will reduce the overall temperature in that section of the computer. I can link you to the product if you would like (only $8-$10 with shipping)
-Laptop cooling pad. The right pad can keep your laptop really cool. Mine used to burn my hand if i touched the bottom+back, but since I started using one, I could touch it and it felt room temperatue!
-Professional: Opening up your laptop, removing the old "heat grease" from your processor, and applying the best "thermal grease"; "Artic Silver"
Also, you could find small heatsinks and, if there is room, place them on some parts, like the harddrive.
Building a PC from scratch is the best, if you wish to do so on a budget, I can assist you, all I need to know is if you need it for general purposes, gaming, video editing, that sort of stuff
Thanks for the help, and when I'm able to build a pc, I'll gladly accept your help, as I've never built one before. It will be nice to have just want I want on my machine instead of all the bundled junk you get buying a ready made.
They who dwell in the ends of the earth stand in awe of Your signs; You make the dawn and the sunset shout for joy.
Honestly the first part of which you should get depends on the size of your laptop, you dont want to have one smaller than the laptop like I do.I think I'll go with the Laptop cooling pad. It seems to be the easiest and lest expensive way to go. Which one would you recommend? My laptop gets super hot, I have a table fan blowing on it all the time.
Thanks for the help, and when I'm able to build a pc, I'll gladly accept your help, as I've never built one before. It will be nice to have just want I want on my machine instead of all the bundled junk you get buying a ready made.
Vantec brands are usually good and cheap.
Imperial - I wanted to say thank you. I just got in the stuff that you told me to order. So far the laptop is running great! The Physical Memory is running at 32% and the Paged Memory is running at 22% with the internet browser running.
Regular Member
You can go to memoryx . net and tell it to scan your computer and it will tell you what memory you need. Sorry abouth the link. It will not let me post a link yet. Just a few more posts to go think
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