PC Question, Memory Capacity

[IRISH BULL]

My PC has been acting up latley and Dell advised my wife that our memory is too low. They said we are using 520 megabytes and that is causing the problems we are having. Basically we need more memory. Keep in mind I bought the computer about 4 years ago, and just bought a basic package.

 

They told us they could sell us a 1000mg for $50 and 2000mg for $100. Can I get memory cards cheaper than what Dell is quoting me?? And are they correct that this might help my issues.

 

 

Thanks!

 

[at3dave]

If the computer is a dell.. it will require Dell Compatible memory. Especially if its 4 years old.

[[*N*]Sal0713]

is it a laptop or a desktop?

And you are talking about memory ram right?

[sharkbait2]

Well 1000 mg (or megabyte) im guessing would be a really wierd piece to put into a pc... a gig of ram would be 1024mb

 

Try http://www.crucial.com/ to find out which memory your computer would need, then go into a bestbuy or try newegg.com to buy some ram that will match your computer

[[*N*]Sal0713]

Sharkbait2 ]

Well 1000 mg (or megabyte) im guessing would be a really wierd piece to put into a pc... a gig of ram would be 1024mb

 

Try http://www.crucial.com/ to find out which memory your computer would need, then go into a bestbuy or try newegg.com to buy some ram that will match your computer

 

new eggs is a lot cheaper also Compusa or tigerdirect are good too.

[Chili327]

at3dave ]

If the computer is a dell.. it will require Dell Compatible memory. Especially if its 4 years old.

You can buy parts for it outside of dell. but depending on your system it may be easier.

 

He said PC, so im guessing it is a desktop.

It really does depend on what you have & what they are talking about..

Mg isn't the correct term (im guessing) as shark said, it is probably 1024mb which is 1 Gigabyte.

 

Adding a gig of ram would help, but maybe not enough.. You may want to add more, but that will depend on the motherboard, & if it is capable of it, some only allow a limited amount (also, you probably have DDR which is out dated, so you may want to rethink what you are doing altogether)

 

A new PC or hardware upgrades might be a better idea.!

[[*N*]Sal0713]

Chili is right, plus now days you can find cheap computers for cheap prices but if you think of buying a new one do not buy a Emachines.

[Playerdown]

Isn't 4 years like 30 in computer age?

 

Kinda like dog years.

[IRISH BULL]

Yea, I meant (mb) megabyte. Thanks, for the info.

[[-VR-] Tool_Minion]

Irish. Do this.

 

Hit Ctrl+Alt+Delete and go to preformance. Your physical memory and your PF usage is what you want to look at. If you see that your PF usage is maxed out, then you are having a memory issue. Dell's are basically pieced together systems from all the makers, so you would want to crack it open, look at your motherboard, and find out what type (style) of memory it takes (PC100, etc.), and how many available slots are available. That will determine how much upgrade room you have.

 

If your working with 512, you may have three extra spots, and you could add a few Gig. Also, never fear going into your Control panel and removing programs you no longer use. It will help alot too.

 

GL mang!

[IRISH BULL]

I am working with 512 and I'm at 499 usage right now. Also, I went to Crucial.com and did a scan and it told me I can benifit from 2 1gb memory cards, because I only have 2 slots. Are these easy to install??

 

Thanks again.

[[-VR-] Tool_Minion]

yeah, you need some. If you have two empty slots, all you gotta do is open the side, locate the two slots.

 

They will look like this:

 

all you do is push it in and close it back up. As long as you get the right style, your done.

[sharkbait2]

I know with some dells, you need to match ram. So with your 2 slots you need to get 2 identical pieces and replace the ram you have in there now, but that depends on what kind of dell you have. I have to do it with my dell dimension.

[Nikastylez]

With any computer and not just dells, its always best to use matching ram sticks. 2 gigs of ram should do your computer well. Anything beyond that is completely unnecessary if you just plan on doing basic things with your computer like checking email, browsing the web, etc.

 

By the way, like Sharkbait siad, get the crucial brand if you can. They have been around for a very long time and they make a really good product. Of course, you can brows around the web like newegg.com or tigerdirect.com for the cheapest price, but try to go with crucial if you can and if your dell allows you to use it.

 

For 2 gigs of ram by the way, it shouldn't cost you no more than $40. I'm sure its DDR2 that it uses and with new machines now using DDR3, DDR2 isn't as expensive.

[at3dave]

Nikastylez ]

With any computer and not just dells, its always best to use matching ram sticks. 2 gigs of ram should do your computer well. Anything beyond that is completely unnecessary if you just plan on doing basic things with your computer like checking email, browsing the web, etc.

 

By the way, like Sharkbait siad, get the crucial brand if you can. They have been around for a very long time and they make a really good product. Of course, you can brows around the web like newegg.com or tigerdirect.com for the cheapest price, but try to go with crucial if you can and if your dell allows you to use it.

 

For 2 gigs of ram by the way, it shouldn't cost you no more than $40. I'm sure its DDR2 that it uses and with new machines now using DDR3, DDR2 isn't as expensive.

 

I Beg to differ on that statement.

Thats the entire reason i REFUSE to purchase a dell, gateway, or compaq.

 

If you have HP or IBM or something Completely PC/Compatible it dont matter what you use.

My computer is over 4 years old as well and came with 512DDR

I bought and put in the Corsair DDR2 2024x2 800MZ for 25.00 bucks and it works fine.

 

No Need to go to DDR3 if your not playing Games like FarCry 2 and HUGE programs like that on your PC.

[Chili327]

YES you need to match the sticks to each other.. is what i think he meant. you cant have two different brands, or sizes.

The sticks of RAM need to be exactly the same as each other.. (unless you have four slots than 2 & 2 need to be indentical)

Also it depends on how much RAM the machine is capable of.. I would guess it is capable of 2gb, but you never know.

just because there are 4 slots doesn't mean you can throw four 2gb sticks in it, & get 8gb of RAM.

 

Irish since you have two slots, i would get two 1gb sticks to give you a total of 2gb of RAM.

just need to double check what you have in there, or get a make/model number of the motherboard.

 

at3Dave.. I dont want to say i dont believe you, but i've never heard of a motherboard taking any kind of RAM sticks.

If it is DDR then you have to replace it with DDR, if it is DDR2, then DDR2, etc, etc.. (but i am no professional, i was just always told that)

 

 

PS. NEVER buy an eMachine.!!

[SHANE23]

No they DO NOT have to be identical!!! You can have 2 completely different speeds now, as long as they are the same TYPE, 168Pin, 184Pin and so on. They will dumb down. You can have a 333 with a 266 as LONG as the RAM is the type your motherboard supports.

 

You can also have 1GB stick with a 1/2 GB stick.

 

Go to Crucial.com and put in your system and it will tell you what you can use.

[Chili327]

SHANE23 ]

No they DO NOT have to be identical!!! You can have 2 completely different speeds now, as long as they are the same TYPE, 168Pin, 184Pin and so on. They will dumb down. You can have a 333 with a 266 as LONG as the RAM is the type your motherboard supports.

 

You can also have 1GB stick with a 1/2 GB stick.

 

Go to Crucial.com and put in your system and it will tell you what you can use.

Crazy.. i didn't know that, but i would think you are better off keeping things matched.

 

Also his machine is 4 years old, so dont think it would apply here

[sharkbait2]

SHANE23 ]

No they DO NOT have to be identical!!! You can have 2 completely different speeds now, as long as they are the same TYPE, 168Pin, 184Pin and so on. They will dumb down. You can have a 333 with a 266 as LONG as the RAM is the type your motherboard supports.

 

You can also have 1GB stick with a 1/2 GB stick.

 

Go to Crucial.com and put in your system and it will tell you what you can use.

 

You're able to have 2 different speeds of ram in a computer, but its stupid... the faster speed will slow down so it's even with the slower stick. Im guessing that's what you meant by "they will dumb down".

 

As for the crucial thing.... I already said that

[at3dave]

.... I removed the original 512 ram it came with.

Guess I forgot to mention that.

 

I dont know about mixing them all-together.. I would imagine that would be kinda stupid.

I just completely changed mine.

I only have two slots.

 

[SHANE23]

Yes that is what I mean by Dumb Down, if you have 400 and 333 the 400 will dumb down to 333.

 

It ALL depends on what you are doing. If you are using it for office and other applications like that it really doesn't matter. If you are gaming then yes you probably would be better off spending the extra money and getting the most that your motherboard will support. If it supports 400 top then get 1-2GB of 400. If you are only doing simple applications the more RAM the better not the speed so having a stick of 500MB at 333 and 1GB at 400 will still help you a lot.

 

As far as 4 years old it won't matter. It has been able to dumb down for almost 10 years now. In the past you are correct where you HAD TO HAVE matching sticks or it wouldn't work at all but that was 15 years ago.

 

If you want you can put your Dell model here and I am sure someone will help you. Ex. Dimension 5100

 

 

 

 

 

[sharkbait2]

I have a dell dimension 4700. I also work at best buy in the computers department so I know stuff about the brand new computers

[SHANE23]

Dimension 4700

 

4 Slots - Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300,DDR2 PC2-4200,DDR2 PC2-6400 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*

 

Now if you are using XP you can have 4GB but XP will only recognize 3GB, unless you upgrade to 64bit.

 

This is from Crucial and like I said it depends on what you are doing with the PC.

 

"Although the memory can be installed one module at a time, the best performance comes from using matched pairs of modules."

 

From Crucial you can get 2GB for $50 of the 6400, that is 800Mhz and the fastest your motherboard will support.

 

 

 

 

 

[Chili327]

SHANE23 ]

Dimension 4700

 

4 Slots - Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300,DDR2 PC2-4200,DDR2 PC2-6400 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*

 

Now if you are using XP you can have 4GB but XP will only recognize 3GB, unless you upgrade to 64bit.

 

This is from Crucial and like I said it depends on what you are doing with the PC.

 

"Although the memory can be installed one module at a time, the best performance comes from using matched pairs of modules."

 

From Crucial you can get 2GB for $50 of the 6400, that is 800Mhz and the fastest your motherboard will support.

 

 

Perfect answer.. but it was Irish that needs the info. lol

[SHANE23]

Chili-Palmer ]

SHANE23 ]

Dimension 4700

 

4 Slots - Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300,DDR2 PC2-4200,DDR2 PC2-6400 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*

 

Now if you are using XP you can have 4GB but XP will only recognize 3GB, unless you upgrade to 64bit.

 

This is from Crucial and like I said it depends on what you are doing with the PC.

 

"Although the memory can be installed one module at a time, the best performance comes from using matched pairs of modules."

 

From Crucial you can get 2GB for $50 of the 6400, that is 800Mhz and the fastest your motherboard will support.

 

 

Perfect answer.. but it was Irish that needs the info. lol

 

smart ass... LOL Someone put a model and I gave them an answer.