I have the same comp. but running 8gb of ram. I recently moved from snow leopard to Yosemite and it definitely runs like garbage. 8gb is the max on that machine so it'll help. But it's not gonna be miraculous.
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Will more RAM make Yosemite run better?
- Thread starter thekayman
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
I noticed 160gb HDD that came with the 09 models are garbage. I speed tested both of mine and max at 25-30mb/s vs a newer 500gb 5400rpm that can do 80-90mb/s. So a new HDD definitely help
More RAM pretty much always helps a computer run better. Give it a shot. I'd get it from Amazon.com not Bestbuy or something. Usually cheaper.
An SSD will make a far greater difference. Also looking at the OP's memory stats, he's swapped out 2.3 megabytes. RAM will make little difference here. I'm not discounting RAM is useful, however in this case the biggest priority is the disk.
Yes, SSD will definitely be the deciding factor for speed. Wasn't aware he was on an HDD.
I'm running two 500gb 7200rpm drives on this machine. It's been years since I've had that 160gb installed. I think it's time to retire this machine to the kids usage
Its just physics. The lower data density means the bits are more spread out on the disk, so the higher-density drive, rotating at the same speed, has more data pass under the heads per second so can read faster, all other things being equal.