Will a extra GB of RAM speed up my computer?

[Londo]

I have an ASUS notebook with an Intel Celeron M520 1.60ghz processor and a 1024mb of RAM (DDR2 667Mhz). Will adding another 1024mb of RAM speed it up? I am running Vista.
I want to give it to my son and thought I would ramp it up before I gave it to him. (I have since learnt that Vista needs a dual core processor to run well. It that true?) Thanks in advance for the answers.

 

[Flashgear]

One more stick of RAM can really speed up, especially on a laptop and if it's 1GB. I'd recommend it, Vista will run smoother and more efficient. Laptop RAM can be pricey though, if you have the cash, go for it! ;D

 

[Crusader]

The RAM will definitely make a difference, but don't expect miracles. From my experience on my laptop with 2GB RAM it seems Vista itself uses around 40% (around 800MB), so running any other apps will soon eat up the remaining memory on a 1GB system and cause more data to be read from the HDD more often (thus slowing things down).

 

[The_Techie]

Yes it will definitely speed it up

 

[bees]

Go for it. Laptop ram is slowly getting VERY cheap. +-R230 for 1gb stick and +- R400 for 2gb stick.

 

[Phil_B]

Yes RAM will do the trick. I've found on my desktop that another 1GB of RAM changed my user experience. Why are you running Vista rather use XP.

 

[Claymore]

The RAM will definitely make a difference, but don't expect miracles. From my experience on my laptop with 2GB RAM it seems Vista itself uses around 40% (around 800MB), so running any other apps will soon eat up the remaining memory on a 1GB system and cause more data to be read from the HDD more often (thus slowing things down).

The extra RAM Vista uses is for disk caching - so it actually improves performance. It's a big difference going from 1-2GB, and there's also an improvement groing from 2-4GB.

 

[Lino]

Yes ram will work very well, Vista needs at least 2 gig minimum. Not only will Vista be faster but your entire system

 

[Nerfherder]

Go for 2 gig or more..... also there is a way for vista to use flash memory as swap space, this can also improve performace

 

[bdt]

I have an ASUS notebook with an Intel Celeron M520 1.60ghz processor and a 1024mb of RAM (DDR2 667Mhz).

Model name/nr?

Will adding another 1024mb of RAM speed it up?

You will have picked up a trend by now - most definitely!

I am running Vista.

My (and several others' sympathies) But, seeing as you DO have it, why not go one better than just adding RAM?

And this is the basis for my question about model: if it comes with an SD slot that, I reckon, you're rather unlikely to use, why not also consider dropping a 1 or 2 gig card in there for ReadyBoost duty? Disclaimer: I don't have Vista but I hear from pals with it that this is a hella performance trick to pull off ..and, with an SD card you have a solution that you can drop in and forget about; it's not like a bulky USB that will stick out and be a hassle every time you want to pack up and move.

 

[AirWolf]

I have an ASUS notebook with an Intel Celeron M520 1.60ghz processor and a 1024mb of RAM (DDR2 667Mhz). Will adding another 1024mb of RAM speed it up? I am running Vista.
I want to give it to my son and thought I would ramp it up before I gave it to him. (I have since learnt that Vista needs a dual core processor to run well. It that true?) Thanks in advance for the answers.

It is SO-DIMM?

Check here :
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[Londo]

It is SO-DIMM?

Check here :
http://www.sybaritic.co.za/store/index.php?cPath=30_408

Yes, it is.

 

[Londo]

Model name/nr?
You will have picked up a trend by now - most definitely!

My (and several others' sympathies) But, seeing as you DO have it, why not go one better than just adding RAM?

And this is the basis for my question about model: if it comes with an SD slot that, I reckon, you're rather unlikely to use, why not also consider dropping a 1 or 2 gig card in there for ReadyBoost duty? Disclaimer: I don't have Vista but I hear from pals with it that this is a hella performance trick to pull off ..and, with an SD card you have a solution that you can drop in and forget about; it's not like a bulky USB that will stick out and be a hassle every time you want to pack up and move.

Very interesting. I have a SD slot. It seems that Vista will pick the card up and use it. Is that so?

 

[bdt]

Very interesting. I have a SD slot. It seems that Vista will pick the card up and use it. Is that so?

's the plan, Stan! Read up on the tech on that wikipedia link, it mentions the sustained speeds Vista wants (but doesn't necessarily need, there's a way to hack any USB stick to work with ReadyBoost) then go get yourself one that will meet your needs. (This should apply to SD cards too ..actually, reading the comments on that link, someone reported success with SD)

 

[AirWolf]

's the plan, Stan! Read up on the tech on that wikipedia link, it mentions the sustained speeds Vista wants (but doesn't necessarily need, there's a way to hack any USB stick to work with ReadyBoost) then go get yourself one that will meet your needs. (This should apply to SD cards too ..actually, reading the comments on that link, someone reported success with SD)

Great tip that .

 

[GTi]

Was there not an update from Microsoft to fix the Vista ram grabbing?

 

[Claymore]

And this is the basis for my question about model: if it comes with an SD slot that, I reckon, you're rather unlikely to use, why not also consider dropping a 1 or 2 gig card in there for ReadyBoost duty? Disclaimer: I don't have Vista but I hear from pals with it that this is a hella performance trick to pull off ..and, with an SD card you have a solution that you can drop in and forget about; it's not like a bulky USB that will stick out and be a hassle every time you want to pack up and move.

I've tried Readyboost on a 1GB machine, and found no performance improvement whatsoever. I've also seen benchmark tests saying the same thing.

Was there not an update from Microsoft to fix the Vista ram grabbing?

Using the RAM for cachine is not a bug; RAM is freed up for apps automatically when needed.

 

[PeterCH]

Buy XP Home OEM/DSP and install that. Go to the Asus WWW site and download XP drivers for your Wifi, etc. Getting extra RAM will help too but upgrading Vista to XP will give you even more performance.

 

[GTi]

Buy XP Home OEM/DSP and install that. Go to the Asus WWW site and download XP drivers for your Wifi, etc. Getting extra RAM will help too but upgrading Vista to XP will give you even more performance.

correction: downgrading

 

[GTi]

I've tried Readyboost on a 1GB machine, and found no performance improvement whatsoever. I've also seen benchmark tests saying the same thing.



Using the RAM for cachine is not a bug; RAM is freed up for apps automatically when needed.

It was Vista servicepack 1, which I was refering to: Read
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2277069,00.asp