RAM and Mountain Lion

[iPhoneApple]

Hi,

I have a mid-2009 MacBook Pro with 2GB of RAM. Right now, on Lion, my mac gets really slow so I am planning on upgrading the RAM. Should I upgrade to 6GB or to 8GB? Also what screwdriver should I buy so that I can open up this mac?

Thanks

 

[heisenberg123]

Hi,

I have a mid-2009 MacBook Pro with 2GB of RAM. Right now, on Lion, my mac gets really slow so I am planning on upgrading the RAM. Should I upgrade to 6GB or to 8GB? Also what screwdriver should I buy so that I can open up this mac?

Thanks

should be a phillips #00

 

[iPhoneApple]

should be a phillips #00

Is it this one?

 

[heisenberg123]

Is it this one?

yup you might just want someone else to confirm that works on my early 2011 which I'm pretty sure is identical bottom as your 2009

 

[wolfpackfan]

Forget my answer, I see OP was talking about an MBP.

 

[Icy1007]

Hi,

I have a mid-2009 MacBook Pro with 2GB of RAM. Right now, on Lion, my mac gets really slow so I am planning on upgrading the RAM. Should I upgrade to 6GB or to 8GB? Also what screwdriver should I buy so that I can open up this mac?

Thanks

I believe that MBP only supports up to 4GB.

 

[daneoni]

^
I think thats wrong. At the very list it supports 6GB but i actually think it goes up to 8GB too.

 

[mwhities]

What model of MBP? Check out everymac.com and it will tell you what's been reported.

My mid 2010 Macbook supports 8Gs.

 

[iPhoneApple]

I believe that MBP only supports up to 4GB.

According to here, it says it's 8GB

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1270#link2

What model of MBP? Check out everymac.com and it will tell you what's been reported.

My mid 2010 Macbook supports 8Gs.

I think it's 8GB max

 

[iPhoneApple]

Is Crucial a good company to get RAM from?

 

[Peace]

Is Crucial a good company to get RAM from?

Yes it is. They are Micron. Been making memory for a long time.

 

[alexreich]

You could max out your RAM at 8GB for $56 at Other World Computing. They're a reputable company, and I order all of my RAM from them.

I maxed out the RAM in my Mac mini by buying 8GB a year or so ago, and also bought an SSD from them shortly after that.

 

[Tomkins!]

I also have a 2009 MacBook Pro. It's a 13" model and it can take 8GB just fine ;-)

 

[iPhoneApple]

I also have a 2009 MacBook Pro. It's a 13" model and it can take 8GB just fine ;-)

Does the 8gb help speed up the computer and load apps ? On 2gb my Mac slows when I open more than two apps.

 

[alexreich]

Does the 8gb help speed up the computer and load apps ? On 2gb my Mac slows when I open more than two apps.

Yes adding RAM will be a great help with multitasking capabilities.

 

[GGJstudios]

I believe that MBP only supports up to 4GB.

8GB. You can find specs on all Apple products, including maximum RAM:

• By visiting EveryMac.com: Actual Maximum RAM
• By selecting your model on the Crucial Memory Advisor™ Tool to find RAM information
• By using Mactracker
• By entering your serial number here to find specs for your model.
  (Be aware that some models can use more RAM than Apple shows. Check EveryMac to verify actual usable RAM.)

Does the 8gb help speed up the computer and load apps ? On 2gb my Mac slows when I open more than two apps.

It won't likely help much with loading apps, but it will help with multitasking or handling large files. You'll get faster boot up times and faster app loading by replacing your HDD with a SSD.

 

[Mr. Retrofire]

I believe that MBP only supports up to 4GB.

I used 8 GB in my Mid-2009 17" MBP.

 

[G-Mo]

It won't likely help much with loading apps, but it will help with multitasking or handling large files. You'll get faster boot up times and faster app loading by replacing your HDD with a SSD.

Of course it will help with loading apps! Lion and 1 or 2 apps running will 100% consume 2GB of RAM, in order to launch a new app then, information loaded in RAM for the OS and other apps has to be written to the swap file on the HDD, this takes time. If there is already RAM free, then the app can just grab available space and load. It's not as big an improvement as launching from an SSD, but, it will definitely help.

 

[MasterHowl]

I used a kitchen knife to unscrew the bottom off my mid-2009 MBP to upgrade the RAM... :|

 

[GGJstudios]

Of course it will help with loading apps! Lion and 1 or 2 apps running will 100% consume 2GB of RAM, in order to launch a new app then, information loaded in RAM for the OS and other apps has to be written to the swap file on the HDD, this takes time. If there is already RAM free, then the app can just grab available space and load. It's not as big an improvement as launching from an SSD, but, it will definitely help.

I understand how paging works. I didn't say it won't help at all. I said it won't likely help much. The impact of added RAM will be noticed much more in multitasking and handling large files, large numbers of windows/tabs open more than the impact of app loading time. If app loading time is a primary concern, a SSD will impact that much more than adding RAM.