need advice on HD & RAM upgrades

[rassoodock]

I have a G5 Dual 2.5 GHz Power PC with the original 160GB internal drive and 1.5GB of DDR SDRAM.

I'm looking to add a second Serial-ATA internal drive with a LOT of space. I've seen capacities up to 1.5TB. That sounds great, but my most important criteria is reliability and a track record of quality. Can anybody suggest a drive that would be ideal or, perhaps, a site that offers good advice?

Also, can anybody suggest a good place to get DDR SDRAM memory at a good price? I have 4 slots I can fill. Is there a manufacturer who has better memory than others? I've never upgraded before, so any help most appreciated.

Thanks!
Michael

[GGJstudios]

You'll find answers to this and many other commonly asked questions under the Guides tab at the top of this page:
Guides : Hardware: MR Guide to Buying RAM (http://guides.macrumors.com/Buying_RAM)
Guides : Hardware: MR Guide to Understanding Intel Mac RAM (http://guides.macrumors.com/Understanding_Intel_Mac_RAM)
Apple charges more than double the price you would pay with other reputable RAM providers (for example, $200 for 4GB RAM.)
A great source for Mac-compatible RAM is OWC (http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/apple/memory/). Their MacBook and MacBook Pro 4GB upgrade kit (http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/53IM2DDR4GBK/) is $99 (£50). You can check their site for other configurations.
Another source is Crucial memory (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148201) from newegg.com (http://www.newegg.com/).
Installation for a Macbook (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1651) or a MacBook Pro (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1270) or a late-2008 MacBook Pro (page 42) (http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/MacBook_Pro_15inch_Late2008.pdf) or iMac (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1432) is easy and does not void (http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=13946) the Apple Warranty (http://images.apple.com/legal/warranty/docs/cpuwarranty.pdf) or the AppleCare Protection Plan (http://images.apple.com/legal/applecare/docs/AppleCare_Protect_Plan_NA_en.pdf), unless you damage something in the process.

If you have questions that these sources doesn't cover, you can check to see if it has been answered in another thread by doing a Google search of the forums (http://mroogle.edesignuk.com/). I hope this helps!

[gothamm]

I would suggest apple RAM only. Like their other products, apple's ram is of higher quality, and is simply better. and they "just work"

[GGJstudios]

I would suggest apple RAM only. Like their other products, apple's ram is of higher quality, and is simply better. and they "just work"
That is absolutely untrue. First of all, Apple doesn't make RAM. They buy it from 3rd party vendors like Samsung, Hynix and Micron. Apple RAM is of no higher quality than RAM from a reputable dealer like OWC or Newegg. OWC RAM, like so many others, has a lifetime warranty on it. Apple RAM is very much overpriced and has no benefit over 3rd party providers.

[rassoodock]

Thanks for the info on RAM. I think I'm well sorted on that count.

Any suggestions regarding adding a large capacity 2nd internal drive? I'm looking to add a second Serial-ATA internal drive with a LOT of space. I've seen capacities up to 1.5TB. That sounds great, but my most important criteria is reliability and a track record of quality. Can anybody suggest a drive that would be ideal or, perhaps, a site that offers good advice?

Thanks,
Michael