17" uMBP Mushkin 8gb ram or something else?

[nein]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has any experience with the Mushkin line of ram. I remember from my PC days Mushkin ram used to have some great quality. However I havent seen much talk about them on this forums, and from my searches I have come up empty handed.

So therefore I have a question:

I'm looking to upgrade my ram from 4gb to 8gb because frankly the performance in photoshop CS4 is pitiful even with ram allocation at 90%. I considered a SSD but figured ram prices wont be going down much and SSD will so I can grab 8gb now since the price just dropped recently and pickup a SSD later down the road.

The ram I am considering is the following:

Mushkin 8GB
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226021

It shares the same timings as the Corsair, and G.Skill and I believe is faster than the ram being sold at OWC.

The question is should I jump on something like Mushkin which is better priced than G.Skill (http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231294)

Or is there another choice I am missing.

Also, is there a huge issue with the programming of the Mac tested ram versus the non mac tested ram?

Thanks so much for anyones input!

 

[alphaod]

Mac tested RAM is just a gimmick; the current MacBook [Pro] is simply a regular PC with an EFI and a fancy OS.

Get what you find is compatible in terms of specs and you should be fine. That said I bought from OWC because not only are the prices not that bad, they also offer 30 day upgrade (ie: you can buy RAM right now, and say they update the models in 3 weeks and you want the new machine, you can return the RAM you bought [even used] and get the updated one—if it's cheaper, you get store credit, if it's more you can just pay the difference). That's not something you can do on NewEgg (despite the fact that NewEgg also has a kick ass return and exchange policy).

 

[iMav]

Go with the cheapest option on newegg. I've found that intel Macs in general are not picky as to the ram you use.

 

[Badger^2]

Go with the cheapest option on newegg. I've found that intel Macs in general are not picky as to the ram you use.

the cheapest option at newegg is only $15 less than OWC.

kinda of worth it for piece of mind for me.

even less for me in CA, since newegg charges tax and OWC doesnt...

I dunno whats going on with your PS CS4, but with PS CS3 and only 4 gigs of ram PS runs totally fine on our iMacs. And I'm talking multi hundred meg Photoshop files. Not some crappy little 72 dpi web graphics.

 

[John Kotches]

Another small price drop...

If this makes it down to $250 I'm upgrading to 8GB

Cheers,

 

[nein]

the cheapest option at newegg is only $15 less than OWC.

kinda of worth it for piece of mind for me.

even less for me in CA, since newegg charges tax and OWC doesnt...

I dunno whats going on with your PS CS4, but with PS CS3 and only 4 gigs of ram PS runs totally fine on our iMacs. And I'm talking multi hundred meg Photoshop files. Not some crappy little 72 dpi web graphics.

When you factor Canadian dollar conversion plus shipping the option from OWC wouldnt be the best for me. I have never even heard of OWC and would much rather stick with a larger brand. Apologies if OWC is on the same level as the rest of them and I just didn't know it.

Also any issues that may occur can be dealt with easily with a canadian website than american for me. As shipping costs across the border arent very nice.

Even with taxes applied the Mushkin ram is still the better value. I appreciate everyones feedback here and I think I have settled on a decision!

As far as CS4 vs CS3. That in itself may be the issue. I never had issues with CS3 and ever since upgrading to CS4 it hasnt been as smooth as I have liked it. I have optimized photoshop and probably read dozens of articles to speed it up but it's still just not up to my standards (thats a personal opinion of mine). Maybe CS5 will correct the problem but for now 4gb doesnt cut it considering I am constantly dealing with 300mb files of larger.

EDIT: Actually, looking once again at OWC. The CDN dollar is on par and the rebate program makes it very interesting considering I'll get 45 bucks back! Perhaps that is the better route.

 

[Badger^2]

Sorry, missed the part where you are in Canada (I wish peeps would put that in their profile)

OWC has been around for 20 years and are one of the *best* and best stocked apple only retailer around

their products are also top notch

great customer service and you can email the companies owner Larry at anytime.

they also have great video install guides and a pretty good blog.

glowing recommendation, but I have met them personally and had dinner with them at the last several Macworld SF shows, really great people.