Upgrade Memory or not?

[TallPaul]

I have an HP desktop from 2008 with Windows Vista. It came with 1 gb ram (two half gig sticks). I bought two 1 gb sticks and installed them and had all kinds of problems, crashing, Oh Snap on Google Chrome etc. Put the old memory back in and everything is fine again. Bad memory! Am returning it. I really want the memory upgrade as with 1 gb it is very slow, 2gb was much faster. Many are telling me that memory upgrades are almost always a problem and I am better off just buying a new computer. What do you all say? Should I try to upgrade again, assuming I can get replacement for the bad sticks after I have had them over 3 months.

 

[Quattro Pete]

Originally Posted By: TallPaul
Many are telling me that memory upgrades are almost always a problem and I am better off just buying a new computer.

I don't agree at all. But I can see how it can be a problem if you buy defective RAM or if the sticks you bought are incompatible with your machine. Use Crucial website to help determine the right type, although you don't necessarily need to buy from them.

What processor do you have? If it's something like Core2Duo that has decent specs, then it should be reasonably fast and adding RAM (maybe up to 4 GB) should help improve Vista performance greatly.

Whether you should buy a new computer will depend on what you're trying to do on your machine.

 

[Bryankkkk]

I would try to upgrade, try a different brand and use crucial site to see what your max ram is. Dont neeed to buy it from them as its marked up on their site. Ram is cheap(amazon) and can usually really wake up a vista machine with 1gb or less

Whats your model of computer?

 

[BISCUT]

Originally Posted By: Quattro Pete
Originally Posted By: TallPaul
Many are telling me that memory upgrades are almost always a problem and I am better off just buying a new computer.

I don't agree at all. But I can see how it can be a problem if you buy defective RAM or if the sticks you bought are incompatible with your machine. Use Crucial website to help determine the right type, although you don't necessarily need to buy from them.

What processor do you have? If it's something like Core2Duo that has decent specs, then it should be reasonably fast and adding RAM (maybe up to 4 GB) should help improve Vista performance greatly.

Whether you should buy a new computer will depend on what you're trying to do on your machine.


Agree, I've updated a few times on an old Dell with no issues.

 

[John_K]

I have added memory before with no issues.

John

 

[javacontour]

I added 64GB of additional RAM to a server just last night. No drama

Adding memory, when done properly USUALLY doesn't cause problems.

Now if it's bad memory or the wrong memory, that can cause issues.

Get some good quality memory and it shouldn't be an issue.

If you haven't sent it back, you could try ONE stick at a time to see if it's just one of the two sticks, assuming one dimm is a valid configuration for your machine.

 

[Bottom_Feeder]

Originally Posted By: TallPaul
Many are telling me that memory upgrades are almost always a problem and I am better off just buying a new computer.

Yeah, I don't agree with that at all. As long as you know what you need, upgrading RAM is one of the easiest things you can do with a PC. Just don't expect miracles since more RAM is not always a fix-all. And if it's a Vista-era PC, it probably uses DDR2 which is getting expensive again.

Tell us what model it is specifically and we can help you out.

 

[cat843]

Use the Crucial web site and memory checker to see what your computer requires.

Although 2008 is 5 years old. I think Win 7 64 bit is the minimum I would have assuming it was mine to choose.

Max out the memory for laptops and desktops running any 64 bit oper system.

 

[Coprolite]

One of the important things to do with a memory upgrade is to run a battery of tests to check the RAM that you have installed for any errors. This will help you find any bad RAM that might sneak in right away. If the memory checks out well you can sleep well at night.

 

[Danno]

There may be a bios update for your motherboard that may allow the computer to work with more memory than with what was shipped on the machine originally. I doubt it is bad memory.

 

[Eddie]

+1 to let Crucial check your computer and make a recommendation as to what to buy. I used them with my Dell and it worked perfectly.

 

[WishIhadatruck]

I've also used the Crucial at least once to have it scan and recommend the correct memory type, I even bought their ram, no issues. The last 2 systems I built I used the Corsair site and picked my ram based on the motherboard model. You can also pick it by computer make/model as well. It does not scan like the Crucial site but I like their memory. I've upgraded or installed ram in many systems and never had a problem. I'd go with a minimum of 4Gb, 8Gb if you plan to keep it a while, usually it works best in pairs. RAM upgrades have been some of the most noticeable improvements I've made to machines. Get the correct quality ram and you'll be fine.

 

[MBS500]

1 gig? Man my 16GB seems low in my laptop

. Upgrade to win7-much better than Vista, and probably on sale right now since Win 8 is there.
Go at least 4 gb if your MB supports it. Price difference is minimal today.
If it doesn't--time to think of getting new PC, but put it together yourself, it's not that hard and you can get the right combination that you want.

 

[TallPaul]

Thanks, It is a HP s7700n with AMD Athlon Dual Core Processor 3800+ 2.00 GHz. 32-bit Operating System. I bought the upgrade memory at Staples and they checked to get the correct memory. I then called them back and had them check it again and it is correct. When I first put it in Windows was saying it was not legitimate and that it had to be registered or something. That went away when I reinstalled the operating system. The computer showed 2GB of memory and it was faster. If the 2GB works then the computer will be fine for my purposes. I don't know was there anything other info you need?

 

[Mullick2001]

If you really want an upgrade get windows 7. Windows vista is a resource hog. If you had 2Gb of ram and windows 7 I could see you getting another 2 years out of that laptop. A lot of people say memory upgrades cause a lot of problems. That is because of 2 reasons. 1 being that many laptop and even some desktop manufacturers will try to make you purchase "their" OEM memory. They may do this by using a module with non standard voltage, timings or other minor things like that. The other reasons is many people believe they are a hassle is for desktop computers. You would think memory is plug and play because of the ease of installation. Wrong there are a ton of motherboard and memory manufactures out there. Each one will run their modules slightly differently.So when you pop in a stick of ram it will default to "safe" slow settings until you go into the bios and change the timings, frequency, and voltage for that specific memory. Now the problem with laptops and most desktops is they purposely have a very simple bios. You often can't change any memory settings. Meaning you are stuck with buying OEM or searching to find the exact specs of the original and buy something similar and hope it works. Just another lesson in how PC manufactures rape your wallet.

If you can't find any non OEM modules to work search for the 1Gb version of the modules u already have on ebay or other sites

 

[SuperDave456]

Not sure how much RAM your HP desktop from 2008 will recognize.
You might want to do a little research on your hardware, specifically your motherboard.

The greater the amount of RAM that your Motherboard will recognize, the longer your PC will last.

Bad production runs of RAM happen, but not as often as it used to.

I'd check the Service Tag Number, or whatever HP has on their website to identify makes of computers, and see what type of RAM is available. Don't buy it from them, as they are very proud of their products, just go there to see how much they say you can place into your system.
It's a good starting point.

BTW, a re-install was a good idea. Especially if this is the first time you have done it since 2008.

I'd also go ahead and get Ccleaner and get all the junk software that your PC came with off of there. I've done this to several old laptops and it really speeds them up.

 

[TallPaul]

It is a compact desktop computer. I was told that 2 gb is the max it will take. That would do me fine for a long time.

Yeah, you buy a new computer and it comes pre installed with all sorts of malware that the manufacture puts in there for one reason or another, usually to get your money.

First I have to see if Stapled will give me a refund or store credit. Else I will have to go to PNY for warranty replacement.

 

[gomes512]

Is this the slim s7700n desktop? I upgraded one of those at work a few months ago with 2 Corsair 1Gb PC2-4200 sticks.

What were the 2 sticks that you tried?

Don't think it's that picky, just get run of the mill non-ECC PC2-4200.

 

[TallPaul]

Originally Posted By: gomes512
Is this the slim s7700n desktop? I upgraded one of those at work a few months ago with 2 Corsair 1Gb PC2-4200 sticks.

What were the 2 sticks that you tried?

Don't think it's that picky, just get run of the mill non-ECC PC2-4200.
Yes it is the slim model desktop s7700n, so slim the disk drive only fits vertically. Smaller in all dimensions. The sticks I purchased were PNY brand. I guess I can see if the'll replace them and try again.

 

[Doog]

I just upgraded my laptop and server at work to 4GB each. Huge difference for the $$ spend and now I'll get another 2-3 years out of each machine. I used the crucial website to help. Easy to use and accurate. Note: if you are still running 32bit WinXP it will max out at 3.25GB.