Upgrading DDR2 RAM

[FlamesAddiction]

Is this something that you need to have a technician do, or can I just buy the RAM and do it myself easily? I kind of picture it as just opening the back of the computer (I have done this before), and unplugging the old RAM module and plugging in the new.

Or am I playing with fire if I start monkeying around with that stuff....?

Thanks.

[cKy]

It is probably the single most easy upgrade in the computer world to do. If you cannot do it, you should never operate a computer again (Maybe a little extreme, haha). Its super easy, just make you got the indent lined up properly. Dont be afraid to force it in (assuming its lined up properly) to make the tabs click in,

[FlamesAddiction]

Thanks.

I'm going to attempt it I think. One of my co-workers just told me it's really easy too, and just said to make sure that I discharge my static electricity first..lol.

[Rathji]

My mother installed new RAM in my grandparents computer. Just make sure it goes all the way into the slot.

[FlamesAddiction]

Lol... thanks guys. Literally took me about 10 minutes to do. So easy... a Stortini could do it.

I can't believe some places charge $88 to do it.

[ricosuave]

^ wow, we're in the wrong business if that's the case!

[Vulcan]

It should be pretty easy, especially if the ram you are replacing has the same voltage and timing as the new ram. If it is different, to get the best performance from your new ram, you may have to go into your bios to update the settings. How to do this will differ depending on your motherboard. I used google on how to update my MB ram settings.

[FlamesAddiction]

Originally Posted by ricosuave

^ wow, we're in the wrong business if that's the case!

No kidding. It was actually worse than that...

The place I called was going to charge $88/hour (min 1hr), plus $75 each for 1 GB DDR2 RAM modules (I wanted 2). So that is about $240 plus taxes.

I ended up getting two 2 GB DDR2 RAM modules for $35 each and did it myself in 10 minutes. Total cost was around $75 - and I got twice as much RAM as I originally wanted. From what I understand, Vista only recognizes 3 GB no matter how much you have in your computer, but I figured for the price, I might as well put 4 GB in case I change operating system at some point.

And FYI, the place I got the 2 GB modules from was selling 1 GB ones for $20.


Anyway, I must have did it right because I can notice a huge difference now.

[SebC]

Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction

From what I understand, Vista only recognizes 3 GB no matter how much you have in your computer, but I figured for the price, I might as well put 4 GB in case I change operating system at some point.

Actually both Vista and XP come in 64-bit and 32-bit versions. 32-bit versions of either won't let you use all 4 Gb, 64-bit versions will. Are you using 32-bit Vista? Anyways, "system properties" (Right-click "My Computer" -> properities in XP) will show you if the system is using 3 or 4 Gb. If you want to get fancy, cpu-z will give you lots of details on your system.