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What's the best price on a 1GB RAM upgrade right now?

E

elperroabando

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 14, 2006
23
0
I'm thinking of getting a stock Mac Pro and upgrading it to 2 GB RAM (no, I can't afford to go higher right now, sad, I know). I can get the 1GB upgrade for $275 at Apple (with an EPP discount), but I'm hearing that RAM prices are on their way down once again. Can I get it somewhere else for less than $250?

Wow -- that's great! I assume there is no trick to installing the ram oneself. Right?
 
E

elperroabando

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 14, 2006
23
0
WildCowboy said:
DMS is a terrific Mac RAM vendor...you'll find them very highly recommended here. They've got the 1 GB (2x512MB) kit with heatsinks for $224.
Click to expand...

Thanks! I assume it's no big deal to install it oneself.

As much as I'm tempted to get the RAM now, so it's ready for when I get the Mac Pro, I'm thinking I should wait, so that I don't have to deal with returning both, in case the Mac Pro doesn't work out.
 
theblotted

theblotted

macrumors regular
Nov 10, 2006
211
0
Los Angeles
what are you using the Mac Pro for? i can't imagine the Mac Pro doesn't work out for you, unless it's an Intel/PPC software incompatibility issue or it's just too darn powerful.:D

btw, i did some research on RAM for a week before i purchased my Mac Pro. the cheapest i found was 180004memory.com (with heatsinks & lifetime warranty).

or better yet, you can go to http://www.dealram.com, which'll show you the most up-to-date RAM prices in list format, so you can always find cheapest at anytime.

g'luck.
 
N

Neonguy

macrumors 6502
Sep 10, 2006
275
0
I wouldn't recommend you buy 3rd party Ram. Spend a little more and get the original from Apple, that ways no fear of overheat and kernal panic. Apple ram is alway Guarantee to work. I saw sometime on eBay people pull Ram off their Mac Pro and go as little as $190, but I was too chicken to buy.
 
SPG

SPG

macrumors 65816
Jul 24, 2001
1,083
0
In the shadow of the Space Needle.
Neonguy said:
I wouldn't recommend you buy 3rd party Ram. Spend a little more and get the original from Apple, that ways no fear of overheat and kernal panic. Apple ram is alway Guarantee to work. I saw sometime on eBay people pull Ram off their Mac Pro and go as little as $190, but I was too chicken to buy.
Click to expand...

Normally I'd say Pfeh! Buy it from Crucial.com and save some scratch, but with the MacPro I'll agree, this stuff is new and needs the right heatsink. Also, the price difference isn't that big between apple and the rest right now.
Buy your drives elsewhere to save money, and get a Dell monitor with all the coupons, but the RAM should come from Apple for now.
 
S

strieck

macrumors member
Aug 24, 2006
41
0
Yakima, WA
SPG said:
Normally I'd say Pfeh! Buy it from Crucial.com and save some scratch, but with the MacPro I'll agree, this stuff is new and needs the right heatsink. Also, the price difference isn't that big between apple and the rest right now.
Buy your drives elsewhere to save money, and get a Dell monitor with all the coupons, but the RAM should come from Apple for now.
Click to expand...

There are several 3rd party vendors selling Mac Pro RAM for much less than Apple. I have found 2x1GB kits guaranteed to work in the Mac Pro with proper heatsinks and a lifetime warranty for under $400. The exact same thing from Apple (minus the lifetime warranty) is $700. That may not be a big difference to you, but it seems huge to me.
 
theblotted

theblotted

macrumors regular
Nov 10, 2006
211
0
Los Angeles
yes, lifetime warranty is absolutely necessary when buying 3rd party RAM.

the only downside i see for 3rd party is the time spent/wasted on tech support when a RAM goes bad. but this is the same for Apple RAM, which doesn't guarantee that it's working EVERYTIME. it simply raises the chance of getting better RAM, but if a RAM goes bad, the time spent/wasted is still the same.

but when Apple Care or warranty is over, then you're on your own...

plus, when you're buying 8GB of RAM, that's a lot of dough. if one thinks the money is well-worth it going thru Apple, then that's your peace of mind.
 
dkoralek

dkoralek

macrumors 6502
Sep 12, 2006
268
0
SPG said:
Normally I'd say Pfeh! Buy it from Crucial.com and save some scratch, but with the MacPro I'll agree, this stuff is new and needs the right heatsink. Also, the price difference isn't that big between apple and the rest right now.
Buy your drives elsewhere to save money, and get a Dell monitor with all the coupons, but the RAM should come from Apple for now.
Click to expand...

Crucial is actually more expensive than Apple for the 2x512 kit at educational pricing and matches it exactly for regular pricing (in the US, at least). Larger modules, I believe, are cheaper than Apple. Since I didn't pay for mine, I went with Apple since it could be ordered with a PO and I wouldn't have to be reimbursed for buying it from somewhere else myself.

cheers.
 
WildCowboy

WildCowboy

Administrator/Editor
Staff member
Jan 20, 2005
18,495
2,992
I agree that buying the cheapest Mac Pro RAM out there isn't a good idea, but I would still stand by DMS. Knowing their reputation and knowing people who know the DMS folks, I am confident that the RAM they offer has been thoroughly tested in Mac Pros. I wouldn't hesitate to order from them.
 
theblotted

theblotted

macrumors regular
Nov 10, 2006
211
0
Los Angeles
don't forget, crucial has "dynamic pricing". search this forum, lots have been discussed.

just an update, i've been running heatsinked RAMs from 18004memory, and it's working perfectly.
 
CanadaRAM

CanadaRAM

macrumors G5
Oct 11, 2004
12,417
6
On the Left Coast - Victoria BC Canada
SPG said:
RAM should come from Apple for now.
Click to expand...
Spend a little more and get the original from Apple, that ways no fear of overheat and kernal panic.
Click to expand...

Umm, what would your reasoning be?

There have been thousands of third party FB-DIMMs sold by now; they have been tested up down and sideways (including by Barefeats.com and by me).

A FB-DIMM from a reputable third party vendor who gives a guarantee of MacPro compatibility and heat profile compliance, with advance no shipping cost replacement on DOA's and a lifetime warranty, should be no extra risk over Apple's.

Any RAM, Apple's included, is going to have an OOB failure rate of about 1%. A good vendor will replace DOA RAM immediately with no cost, no hassle and no issues. Some sketchy dealers will make you pay shipping on DOA replacement - ask their policies first and avoid those dealers.
 
P

pheidius

macrumors newbie
Aug 5, 2004
7
0
Indiana(Midwest U.S.)
if it works

Now that Apple is moving in the right direction and prices are coming down lets encourage that trend by not slavishly paying way more for upgrade gear.
Let’s face it a Mac is all PC gear now. High quality pc gear but PC gear none the less. As an earlier poster referenced BareFeats here is a quote:
BUYING RECOMMENDATIONS
We have no hesitation in recommending Other World Computing and Trans International as good sources for Mac Pro memory (and memory for other Macs). We have purchased our memory from both companies for many years. They both have a strong track record. They carefully test for Mac compatibility and reliability. They both provide a quality product at reasonable prices. And, for the record, we chose them as advertisers because of our good experience with them.

So spend the difference on a system upgrade that you can't get anywhere aftermarket not on pieces.
 
theblotted

theblotted

macrumors regular
Nov 10, 2006
211
0
Los Angeles
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