Any stores sell reliable memory.

[kerpow]

I'm in the States for 2 weeks and wondered whether I could pick up any bargains on memory for my PB. If I could find a 1gb for a good price I'd go for it. Do the usual techie stores like CompUSA, Radioshack etc. sell good Mac memory?

On crucial.com/uk (where I have bought memory in the past) it would cost me $240. Which is alot!

 

[~Shard~]

As far as memory for your Mac is concerned, as with many things, you get what you pay for. Perhaps you can risk cheaping out and buying generic RAM which will end up working, but I wouldn't do that to my Mac for the few extra $ it would save me. You should buy Mac from a reputable dealer who meets two important criteria:

- they have a lifetime guarantee on their RAM
- they guarantee Mac-compatibility specifically

 

[kerpow]

As far as memory for your Mac is concerned, as with many things, you get what you pay for. Perhaps you can risk cheaping out and buying generic RAM which will end up working, but I wouldn't do that to my Mac for the few extra $ it would save me. You should buy Mac from a reputable dealer who meets two important criteria:

- they have a lifetime guarantee on their RAM
- they guarantee Mac-compatibility specifically

Oh I totally agree with you, one of the main reasons Macs are reliable is the fact that Apple doesn't use cheap components. That said, you're not really answering my question. Are there any bricks and mortor shops that you would consider reputable? Do Best Buy et al sell good memory or is it all no-name brands that they can sell for attractive prices to PC users?

Sorry, Im not very familiar with Apple dealers/resellers in the US.

 

[~Shard~]

Oh I totally agree with you, one of the main reasons Macs are reliable is the fact that Apple doesn't use cheap components. That said, you're not really answering my question. Are there any bricks and mortor shops that you would consider reputable? Do Best Buy et al sell good memory or is it all no-name brands that they can sell for attractive prices to PC users?

Sorry, Im not very familiar with Apple dealers/resellers in the US.

As far as I know, those types of stores cater to Joe Schmo computer user, so I would be very surprised if they had Mac-specific RAM. I don't have any experience with buying RAM from them myself though, so hopefully someone else can help you out.

 

[ortuno2k]

Don't buy cheap no-name memory to save a buck or two, it will make your Mac slow and crash often. I've seen this happen with PNY, Centon & other similar ram from CompUSA.
If you want good, reliable memory that works, get Crucial. They have good prices too.
http://www.crucial.com

 

[tveric]

And stay away from CompUSA regardless - their prices are MORE than what you'd pay from a reputable dealer online AND it's totally generic RAM anyway. So, yeah, it would probably (or might) work, but why get robbed?

Also the sales guys are completely clueless. They'll tell you anything you want to hear to get you to pull out that credit card. Slightly better are the techie guys in the back fixing computers, but you'll rarely to get to talk to one of them, they're all in the back fixing broken PCs.

 

[kerpow]

Well thanks for the advice. I can't buy anything online as I won't be in the States long enough for it to be delivered. I guess I'll just wait until Leopard comes out and then put some more memory in then. I don't really "need" more than 768mb, it would just be nice to have that little bit extra from time to time.

 

[SmurfBoxMasta]

Well thanks for the advice. I can't buy anything online as I won't be in the States long enough for it to be delivered. I guess I'll just wait until Leopard comes out and then put some more memory in then. I don't really "need" more than 768mb, it would just be nice to have that little bit extra from time to time.

Probably the best budget brand you can find at local stores is Kingston. The first 256mb stick I bought 6 yrs ago for my B&W was from OfficeMax, and it is STILL working just fine

If you have an older mac, then basic run-of-the-mill PC100/133 will work great, but if you have any mac in the Quicksilver or later series, then stick with the better name brands like Crucial, Samsung, Hynix ect

 

[~Shard~]

Probably the best budget brand you can find at local stores is Kingston. The first 256mb stick I bought 6 yrs ago for my B&W was from OfficeMax, and it is STILL working just fine

Was it the KVR- series or the KTA- series? Kingston's value RAAM is not Mac-compatible, the KTA- series is.

 

[SmurfBoxMasta]

Was it the KVR- series or the KTA- series? Kingston's value RAAM is not Mac-compatible, the KTA- series is.

It was the value Ram series ($12 for 256mb at that time!), but again, it was for a B&W, which is not nearly as picky about ram as later machines are....

 

[CanadaRAM]

It was the value Ram series ($12 for 256mb at that time!), but again, it was for a B&W, which is not nearly as picky about ram as later machines are....

Except that Kingston have changed the makeup of the KVR- modules and the new PC133 modules are no longer compatible with the B&W and Beige machines... which just illustrates that generic RAM can change without notice. You are unlikely to find the real KTA- series Kingston Apple RAM in stock at a computer discount, bigbox or electronics store.

Kerpow -- Probably your best bet is to call Independent Apple dealers in the city you are in and ask what their price is for guaranteed RAM. You'll find that some of them will try to keep to the Apple pricing levels but some may have competitive 3rd party prices. Or you could get mailorder RAM delivered overnight to your location, so unless you are on the move every day, then ordering from someone like Data Memory Systems may be feasible. Call them and ask. You may even be able to arrange delivery to a UPS store or FedEx depot to await you pickup.

 

[~Shard~]

It was the value Ram series ($12 for 256mb at that time!), but again, it was for a B&W, which is not nearly as picky about ram as later machines are....

Yeah, for a B&W, it probably isn't as big of a deal - newer Macs though are a different story.

And as CanadaRAM mentioned, generic RAM can be risky that way.

 

[umrdad]

hey I just bought 2 512mb boards for pismo from Omni they're pc133 work perfectly they were $182 if i remember good tech support too

 

[~Shard~]

hey I just bought 2 512mb boards for pismo from Omni they're pc133 work perfectly they were $182 if i remember good tech support too

A word of advice - punctuation is your friend.

 

[enckwanzer]

I've bought from Other World Computing on many occasions. Their products are great (guaranteed compatible and functional for the life of your Mac) and their service is unbeatable. Go to http://eshop.macsales.com/.

 

[cepler]

Ram

All this nonsense about how Mac's memory is somehow special etc is just total nonsense. RAM is made to specific standards and timings, if the specs match and the product is not faulty, it will work, period.

I picked up some DDR2 RAM mail order from NewEgg (Kingston I believe, 2 1 gig sticks) and it works just fine. Yes, there is cheap RAM out there that is crappy construction-wise but if you stick with reasonable brands and you purchase the right spec RAM it'll be fine.

Now, as far as Brick and Mortor stores here in the US, I avoid them like the plague for things like RAM. They're overpriced for the items they sell.. The only time I'd consider them is if I needed something RIGHT NOW. Maybe you can have something mail ordered to where you're staying? It's only a few days delivery for things and you'll get a much better deal.

 

[CanadaRAM]

All this nonsense about how Mac's memory is somehow special etc is just total nonsense. RAM is made to specific standards and timings, if the specs match and the product is not faulty, it will work, period.

I picked up some DDR2 RAM mail order from NewEgg (Kingston I believe, 2 1 gig sticks) and it works just fine. Yes, there is cheap RAM out there that is crappy construction-wise but if you stick with reasonable brands and you purchase the right spec RAM it'll be fine.

Your problem here is that you never get to see all the specs. Therefore you can never tell by looking at it whether a given piece of "PC3200 184 pin 2.5V CL3 DDR DIMM" conforms to the specs or not.

Specifically, the row and column and rank organization of the chips, and the Serial Presence Detect settings on the module are important. You wil never, ever see these published, so you have to rely on either the seller having tested and guaranteeing compatibility, or trust to luck and do your own testing.

Different Macs have different tolerances to RAM that is not programmed correctly in the SPD settings. RAM that works in a PowerMac G5 can fail miserably in an iMac G5 or a Mini, same story Powerbook 1.5 GHz vs Powerbook 1.25 GHz. The nastiest scenario is where you have marginal RAM that works OK under 10.2.8, but fails when you upgrade to 10.4 because 10.4 introduced tighter conformance to the specifications.

I am glad your purchase worked out for you. But it is incorrect to extrapolate that to all models Mac or all RAM with the same nominal specifications.

enkwanzer: OWC's RAM is mostly lifetime guaranteed, their other products carry the manufacturer's normal guarantees.
"After 30 days from the invoice date, item is subject to Manufacturer's warranty"
A few people here on MR have commented about OWC holding to their 15% restocking fee when returning goods that didn't work.

 

[~Shard~]

<snip>

Excellent explanation CanadaRAM, thanks for that. I know you must get tired every once and a while from responding to the myriad of RAM questions here on MacRumors, but your efforts to properly educate people and ensure they make smart decisions when buying RAM is appreciated.

 

[shdwsclan]

The basics-> Mac hardware is usually outdated and overpriced (ex: PC133/PC100) Just dont buy it from an Apple store and you'll get the better prices from any other store. Make sure you know what the pin type and speed of ram you need....like 184 and PC2700. The top brands are Kingston, Corsair, and Crucial.

 

[Nermal]

Was it the KVR- series or the KTA- series? Kingston's value RAM is not Mac-compatible, the KTA- series is.

I had Value RAM in my PM G4 and am currently using it in my iMac G5. No problems whatsoever. The place I bought it from offers a lifetime warranty too

Edit: Wait a minute, my G4 was Kingston, but my G5 has Samsung RAM, purchased from Crucial.

 

[enckwanzer]

enkwanzer: OWC's RAM is mostly lifetime guaranteed, their other products carry the manufacturer's normal guarantees.
"After 30 days from the invoice date, item is subject to Manufacturer's warranty"
A few people here on MR have commented about OWC holding to their 15% restocking fee when returning goods that didn't work.

I can't speak to RAM for printers (which is what that post referenced), but I have only experienced and heard good things about the OWC "branded" RAM for Macs, which has a lifetime warranty (advanced replacement for most models). I've bought their RAM for a PM G4, an iBook G4, and two 12" PBs -- all have been wonderful. In terms of returns, I had a processor upgrade (OWC branded) crap out that needed to be replaced. I had to pay the shipping to sent it to them; but within a day of receipt, they sent a replacement back to me free of charge. In the end, I think the trick with them is to sick as closely as possible to the OWC branded stuff so that you can have the easiest warranty help if needed. As with any company though, I'm sure that some people have had problems -- I've just heard of far fewer with OWC than many others (even NewEgg, from whom I used to purchase stuff all the time).

 

[AlmightyG5]

I've bought from Other World Computing on many occasions. Their products are great (guaranteed compatible and functional for the life of your Mac) and their service is unbeatable. Go to http://eshop.macsales.com/.

Same here...just ordered memory for an iBook, iMac G4, and iMac G5. Very pleased.

 

[primalman]

I've bought from Other World Computing on many occasions. Their products are great (guaranteed compatible and functional for the life of your Mac) and their service is unbeatable. Go to http://eshop.macsales.com/.

I second this [or third, or fourth, or wherever we are at in the lineup. I have bought close to 200 sticks of RAM from them over the last 5-8 years and had only one fail, which was cheerfully exchanged in advance. The BEST customer service of any computer accessories dealer I have ever seen.

 

[generik]

If possible try to get Hynix modules, since those are the ones Apple uses you are virtually guaranteed that they'd work just fine