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Buy RAM from OWC

steamboat26

steamboat26

macrumors 65816
Original poster
May 25, 2006
1,123
0
Arlington VA
I have an iMac G3 500 Mhz with a 20 GB HD, and a measly 128 MB of RAM. I have been researching getting more RAM for my machine, and found OWC. Their price for a 256 MB stick ($25) is considerably less than any other RAM i have found.
(1) Is there any reason for this lower price (like poor quality or something like that)?
(2) Will a see a difference by only adding a 256 MB stick, or should i get two 256 MB sticks or one 512 MB stick?

Thanks
 
Go with 512MB of RAM if possible, but either way, more RAM will help boost your performance steamboat26.


As far as OWC goes for RAM I would imagine that they would sell decent RAM. I have no personal experience dealing with them ( I usually go through either www.datamem.com or www.crucial.com )but I think you would be fine if you choose to use their RAM. :)
 
Nope, OWC is perfectly legit, and any of their "house brand" lifetime warranty stuff is worthwhile. It's just a good price, and you can be pretty sure it will actually work in your computer.

The three places I by default recommend for Mac ram are OWC, DMS (datamem.com), and Crucial.com. Crucial is always more expensive, but at least in theory higher quality, and the other two are about comperable--whichever offers the better price on what you want, pretty much.

In thic case, DMS charges $32 for the same stick, so you come out ahead with OWC. Go for it.
 
Makosuke said:
Nope, OWC is perfectly legit, and any of their "house brand" lifetime warranty stuff is worthwhile. It's just a good price, and you can be pretty sure it will actually work in your computer.

The three places I by default recommend for Mac ram are OWC, DMS (datamem.com), and Crucial.com. Crucial is always more expensive, but at least in theory higher quality, and the other two are about comperable--whichever offers the better price on what you want, pretty much.

In thic case, DMS charges $32 for the same stick, so you come out ahead with OWC. Go for it.
Click to expand...


Crucial does offer a "higher" quality RAM but at a premium price. :eek:
But I still recommend them due to their outstanding Mac compatibility and quality build. :)
 
since my imac is my secondary computer (mac mini all the way :D ) I am looking for CHEAP upgrades, so i will probably just get one 256 MB stick from OWC, and if i like what i see, i will get a second one.
 
OWC is an excellent choice as they are a "generic" brand that focuses on Macintosh memory, as well as processor upgrades! Everything I get from OWC tends to be perfect, and if not the memory is covered by lifetime, and their processor upgrades have an outstanding 3 year warranty as well.
 
I'll attest to OWC as well. Bought 2GB for my Macbook, and has been running great with them.
 
I recommend OWC and TechWorks for 680x0 and PowerPC machines like your iMac. I've never had a problem with compatibility.
 
steamboat26 said:
since my imac is my secondary computer (mac mini all the way :D ) I am looking for CHEAP upgrades, so i will probably just get one 256 MB stick from OWC, and if i like what i see, i will get a second one.
Click to expand...

Then go for the RAM from OWC, I am sure that you will be quite pleased with it. :)
 
dpaanlka said:
OWC is an excellent choice as they are a "generic" brand that focuses on Macintosh memory, as well as processor upgrades! Everything I get from OWC tends to be perfect, and if not the memory is covered by lifetime, and their processor upgrades have an outstanding 3 year warranty as well.
Click to expand...
Actually, OWC and Datamem both offer slightly higher than generic prices, but use quality, major-brand chips in their RAM.

For example, the RAM I just bought from DMS uses Micron chips, same as Apple's stock (and what Crucial sells--Crucial is Micron). Now, they might not be of the same grade or tested as thoroughly as Apple or Crucial sticks (I don't honestly know how many grades of memory Micron makes, or what the difference bewteen them would be), but the point is they're not junk. Add in the lifetime warranty (and both companies have been around for a long time), and you're getting solid quality at near-generic prices.
 
Makosuke said:
For example, the RAM I just bought from DMS uses Micron chips, same as Apple's stock (and what Crucial sells--Crucial is Micron).
Click to expand...

Apple has been known to use a lot of different types of memory. They used Samsung in a lot of their systems as well. They do make more RAM than anyone else, so that's no surprise. I wouldn't even be surprised in OWC RAM was really just rebadged Samsung RAM. I'm not saying it definitely is, but they are very similarly priced and it's very possible.
 
Apple seems to use mostly Micron, Samsung, or (at least in the old days) Hynix in the machines I've seen.

Regardless, OWC (and DMS) give right on their site a list of the chip manufacturers they use. For example, OWC says "[we] utilize major brand memory chips from IBM, Motorola, LGS, Samsung, Siemens, Texas Instruments, and others installed on high quality 3rd party board."

DMS, likewise, says "Major brand commercial grade chips (Samsung, Micron, Infineon, Nanya, Elpida, Hynix)".

Basically I assume they get bulk lots of chips from decent chip fabs, have them put on a decent board, and sell them at prices much lower than a stick that comes directly from one of those big-name factories. You don't know exactly what you're getting, of course, but in my experience whatever the chip manufacturer ends up being it'll work fine, and both companeis are obviously willing to back it up with a lifetime warranty.
 
Here is a stupid question- why is older RAM more expensive than more recent RAM? Is it just because it is rarer? I was looking up RAM prices for a powermac G4 on lowendmac, and PC2100 and PC2700 RAM is like $30 cheaper for a 512 MB stick than PC100 or PC133 RAM.
 
steamboat26 said:
Here is a stupid question- why is older RAM more expensive than more recent RAM? Is it just because it is rarer?
Click to expand...

Yep...you've got the main reason. Not much of the older stuff is being made these days, so the supply is low.
 
Depending on the particular style, older RAM also requires lower-density chips, which I assume are manufactured less commonly these days, and may actually cost more per megabyte to make--all things being equal, you'll need to make more chips to get the same number of megabytes.

Try going even farther back (say, to SIMMS), and if you can even find them (which is not that easy) they'll either be free in a junk heap or several dollars per megabyte. Of course, for a 4 meg chip that might only mean $10, and I seriously doubt anybody is manufacturing them anymore so it must just be old stock, but were you to be paying equivalent per megabyte prices for modern RAM you'd be looking at thousands of dollars for a gig.
 
Makosuke said:
Try going even farther back (say, to SIMMS), and if you can even find them (which is not that easy) they'll either be free in a junk heap or several dollars per megabyte. Of course, for a 4 meg chip that might only mean $10, and I seriously doubt anybody is manufacturing them anymore so it must just be old stock, but were you to be paying equivalent per megabyte prices for modern RAM you'd be looking at thousands of dollars for a gig.
Click to expand...

OWC actually carries Power Mac 168pin DIMMs for rather cheap. 128mb is only $20 for the Power Mac 8600. Going back even further, 72pin SIMMs for the NuBus Power Macs are only $12 for 32mb and $19 for 64mb. These are all brand new and covered by their lifetime warranty.
 
dmw007 said:
Crucial does offer a "higher" quality RAM but at a premium price. :eek:
But I still recommend them due to their outstanding Mac compatibility and quality build. :)
Click to expand...

Are Crucial modules *really* higher quality? Or is the higher pricing just clouding the purchaser perception of them?
 
generik said:
Are Crucial modules *really* higher quality? Or is the higher pricing just clouding the purchaser perception of them?
Click to expand...

I'm skeptical of this as well. Crucial used to be competitively priced with the likes of OWC and DMS, but their prices are now considerably higher.
 
WildCowboy said:
I'm skeptical of this as well. Crucial used to be competitively priced with the likes of OWC and DMS, but their prices are now considerably higher.
Click to expand...

Well, personally I once shelled out good money for a set of Kingston modules, didn't work well in my PBG4... and it is the 100% compatible module! I was pretty sure they didn't even bother with doing actual tests, just took the PBG4 specs out of the spec sheet, and slap the right speed modules in.

A pair of cheap Transcend modules at LESS than 1/2 the price worked perfectly.

Since then I weened off the koolaid of more expensive = better.
 
I don't buy into the Crucial hype. I just buy my RAM from whomever says that it will work with my mac and will allow me to exchange it if required. Like a mac discount retailer or an established memory retailer.

The only time I've had RAM trouble is when a so-called "friend" gave me six 16 meg chips that he found laying around and four were bad! :eek: I was also running Linux at the time, trying to configure my drivers. I still have fond memories of that weekend.

Anyway, I still wouldn't buy a 256 meg chip, that's nuts. 512m is so cheap and will give you a *big* performance boost. I also believe that people who don't put enough RAM into their computers should be made to wear underwear that are several sizes too small as punishment to see how they like the experience.
 
Having purchased ram from DMS and several other things from OWC, I would highly recommend them both without hesitation!

they offer great prices, fast, affordable shipping, lifetime warranties, guarenteed compatability, and a no-questions-asked return policy.......

Out of the 100GB or so of memory I have bought from DMS, only 1 stick had to be returned, and they even sent me a prepaid return box for that, and shipped the replacement by next day air at THEIR expense :D

what more could anyone ask for ?
 
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