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1GB of Ram

benlee

benlee

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Mar 4, 2007
1,246
1
Soon i want to install another GB of Ram into my computer. What is my best bet? Should i install it myself or just have apple do it and therefore not have to worry about the safety of my MBP. The well being of "my baby" comes first and money second. I have worked with hardware installation on windows desktops but never laptops. Im a little nervous. How much more would it be to have apple do it?

Also, where should i get the memory? Is apple's that much more? TIA
 
get RAM from OWC or newegg.

install it yourself - it's quite simple. Apple has instructions on its website. this PDF also turned up when i searched for "install RAM MacBook Pro" on Apple's support site.

i got my RAM from OWC and installed it myself. it's not difficult and i don't imagine you'll have a problem doing it yourself.
 
Do it your self, it should be very simple. Apple overcharges way to much for their ram so you would be better buying t from newegg.com or something.
 
Check exactly what RAM you need at Crucial. Fitting it might take you a few minutes especially if it's your first time, but it's very straightforward. Apple's website provides instructions with photos, if I remember correctly. Make sure that you have no static electricity in your body when handling RAM chips. Earth yourself by touching a radiator (or wear an anti-static wrist strap if you have one). Small electrical discharges can ruin RAM. Save the removed RAM just in case you need to return your machine to Apple - that will mean the warranty still covers it for the first year. If your machine is older than that, sell the removed RAM on eBay and recover a small amount of your costs.
 
jonharris200 said:
Check exactly what RAM you need at Crucial. Fitting it might take you a few minutes especially if it's your first time, but it's very straightforward. Apple's website provides instructions with photos, if I remember correctly. Make sure that you have no static electricity in your body when handling RAM chips. Earth yourself by touching a radiator (or wear an anti-static wrist strap if you have one). Small electrical discharges can ruin RAM. Save the removed RAM just in case you need to return your machine to Apple - that will mean the warranty still covers it for the first year. If your machine is older than that, sell the removed RAM on eBay and recover a small amount of your costs.
Click to expand...


I'm going to leave the original in ....im adding a GB and leaving one in...thats possible right? there are two slots?
 
I installed some Kingston ram myself, its not hard at all. Turn off the computer. Take out the battery, remove the 3 little screws, take off the cover piece, insert the new ram at a 25 degree angle, snap it down into place, recover, put screws back, put battery back, your good to go. If you are REALLY CONCERNED about doing this on your laptop, get a ground strap that goes on your wrist, and ground yourself like I did. Crucial, Kingston, or Corsair are all pretty good.
 
benlee said:
I'm going to leave the original in ....im adding a GB and leaving one in...thats possible right? there are two slots?
Click to expand...

Yes, sorry, should have read your original post more carefully. :rolleyes:

Conventional wisdom is to install RAM in matching pairs - matching manufacturer and type etc as well as size. However, I think more recently matching is not always so necessary for optimal performance.

If I remember correctly, Crucial has specific advice on whether or not you should match depending on the exact spec of your machine. Check it out if you haven't already.

In any case, it's not a problem if the two RAM chips 'should ideally match' but actually yours don't - it's just that the speed increase may not be quite so great as it could theoretically have been.
 
What jonharris said is perfectly correct, and, without trying to stir anything up, I wouldn't worry about it. Just stick in your new stick. Presuming you have either 2x512mb sticks in now, or just a single 1gb stick, you'll be fine just sticking in a new stick. No need to worry about the matching pairs etc.



Good luck!
 
now im confused

So should i use matching pairs? Ill have 2-1 GB sticks...however, not the same manufacturers though. Are you saying its ok...just not optimal?

Its crazy that its so much cheaper. $75 at OWC compaired to apples $170.
Would be nice to be able to double my RAM for only $75.

Thanks for all your responses guys. Feel better about doing it myself. I've built a couple desktops but never laptops.
 
Honestly mate, you'll be fine. Afaik, having matched pairs (i.e. size, manufacturer etc) only gives you a 5% performance increase anyway, it will hardly be noticable. You will be fine :)


Enjoy your 2Gb of RAM, and watch your notebook fly! :D
 
So it is alright to have a 512mb in one slot and a 1gb in the other slot, it will just lack a ~5% increase in performance?

Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm new to any sort of computer customization.
 
pocketchange said:
So it is alright to have a 512mb in one slot and a 1gb in the other slot, it will just lack a ~5% increase in performance?

Not to beat a dead horse, but I'm new to any sort of computer customization.
Click to expand...


Correct! I really wouldn't worry about that 5% though, it won't be noticable.

I've got 512Mb atm (2 x 256Mb) which I will either upgrade to 1.25Gb (by buying a 1Gb stick, and leaving one 256Mb stick in), or 2Gb ( 2 x 1Gb). I'm hoping to get the 2Gb, as memory dropped again in price in the last couple of days (At least in the UK).
 
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