i have a imac 24 inch 2.8ghz running 2 gigs of memory. thinking about maxing out its memory.my question is will it give me a noticable speed increase and who should i buy from
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mac memory
- Thread starter jmpantalone
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Newegg Mushkin RAM. Yes it is $59.99 after $30 mail-in rebate. I just got my rebate for $15 from buying it a month ago. They dropped the price by $18 in the last month. I don't think you'll find cheaper RAM anywhere and it works great.
I think that whether or not you'll see a 'noticeable' speed increase will depend on what programs you're running on it.
I've always bought RAM from OWC. Their 4GB upgrade for the iMac is $92 (-$20 rebate if you send them your old 2 x 1GB modules).
I've always bought RAM from OWC. Their 4GB upgrade for the iMac is $92 (-$20 rebate if you send them your old 2 x 1GB modules).
Taking your foot off the brake does not make your car go faster - it just discontinues slowing it down.
Upping the memory does not increase the machine's speed -- rather it removes slowdowns that are based on your programs and data not having enough memory. When there isn't enough memory for all you are doing, the OS is forced to swap memory space on and off the hard drive. Because hard drives are way slower than RAM, this slows the machine down overall.
How much your machine slows down depends on how you are using it. If you use just one program at a time, and don't open large data sets, then you may not notice a speed difference. If you regularly multitask many programs, or use 'hungry programs like Photoshop, digital video or digital audio software, then you should see noticeable improvement with 3 GB or 4 GB RAM.
Check out the information under the Guides tab at the top of the window.
MR Guide to Buying RAM
Upping the memory does not increase the machine's speed -- rather it removes slowdowns that are based on your programs and data not having enough memory. When there isn't enough memory for all you are doing, the OS is forced to swap memory space on and off the hard drive. Because hard drives are way slower than RAM, this slows the machine down overall.
How much your machine slows down depends on how you are using it. If you use just one program at a time, and don't open large data sets, then you may not notice a speed difference. If you regularly multitask many programs, or use 'hungry programs like Photoshop, digital video or digital audio software, then you should see noticeable improvement with 3 GB or 4 GB RAM.
Check out the information under the Guides tab at the top of the window.
MR Guide to Buying RAM
You would see a speed increase if you just have 1gb but with 2gbs you wont really notice anything except on rare occasions or depending on what you do.
If you get stuttering when doing things then more ram will help. If you never experience short little pauses and stutters then you arent using all your ram so more of it wont do anything.
If you get stuttering when doing things then more ram will help. If you never experience short little pauses and stutters then you arent using all your ram so more of it wont do anything.
Just incase your located in the UK the thread in my sig. should be good for you!
RAM will make a big difference if you are someone like me who has several apps open at once. Ofcourse if its only basic apps (safari, itunes, text edit, mail) you can stick with 2GB however if you are planning on having several bigger apps open together (Photoshop, iMovie/FCE/FC Pro, iPhoto/Aperture, Logic, CS3,) and others like that in addition to some of the basic apps I woujld suggest bumping it up to the full 4gb...
RAM will make a big difference if you are someone like me who has several apps open at once. Ofcourse if its only basic apps (safari, itunes, text edit, mail) you can stick with 2GB however if you are planning on having several bigger apps open together (Photoshop, iMovie/FCE/FC Pro, iPhoto/Aperture, Logic, CS3,) and others like that in addition to some of the basic apps I woujld suggest bumping it up to the full 4gb...
Check out http://www.crucial.com They will tell you just what you need for your specific system. The website is great and really helps narrow down your search. I just ordered a kit containing 2, 1 GB cards for my MBP for under $50.
Let's run through this again.
Crucial 2X2GB $112.35 after tax and free 5-7 day shipping.
Mushkin 2X2GB RAM Newegg $59.99 after $30 rebate no tax and free 3 day shipping.
Crucial 2X2GB $112.35 after tax and free 5-7 day shipping.
Mushkin 2X2GB RAM Newegg $59.99 after $30 rebate no tax and free 3 day shipping.
Crucial has the best website for identifying what type of RAM your specific system uses- really can't get much simpler, or more efficient than the way they do it..
BUT, as far as price goes I've always found OWC and Newegg to be cheaper.. Truthfully, I usually go with OWC even if they're a couple bucks higher because I've used them for so long.. But I think RAM is one of those items where you can just get the cheapest compatible sticks you can find with a lifetime warranty.. Others may swear by certain brands, but I haven't noticed anything that would make me believe one brand is better or worse than another.. To me, the lifetime warranty is key- that, and the fact that I know I'll be able to exchange it hassle free when I need to actually utilize that lifetime warranty..
Keep in mind that my opinion is only based on my personal experiences- which is extensive in my own mind-lol- we're talking about 8-10 purchases total.. You're much better taking the advice of an expert like CanadaRam.. He deals with this all day, every day, so he's a very valuable resource to have at your disposal..
BUT, as far as price goes I've always found OWC and Newegg to be cheaper.. Truthfully, I usually go with OWC even if they're a couple bucks higher because I've used them for so long.. But I think RAM is one of those items where you can just get the cheapest compatible sticks you can find with a lifetime warranty.. Others may swear by certain brands, but I haven't noticed anything that would make me believe one brand is better or worse than another.. To me, the lifetime warranty is key- that, and the fact that I know I'll be able to exchange it hassle free when I need to actually utilize that lifetime warranty..
Keep in mind that my opinion is only based on my personal experiences- which is extensive in my own mind-lol- we're talking about 8-10 purchases total.. You're much better taking the advice of an expert like CanadaRam.. He deals with this all day, every day, so he's a very valuable resource to have at your disposal..