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Why would someone get 3GB of Ram?
- Thread starter levitynyc
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levitynyc said:
I doubt having mispaired RAM is going to make a noticeable difference. Sure it will technically run slower but it will hardly be noticeable as RAM is accessed virtually instantly anyway no matter what config.
Paired RAM is preferred and ideal, but not having it will not negatively impact your system's performance. It may not run as well as with paired RAM, but it definitely won't result in poor performance.
levitynyc said:
but you could put it in yourself. i wouldn't buy RAM from apple anyways, i can't afford it
Does anyone know why the limit is 3 GB though? Is it a firmware/motherboard limitation? What happens if you stick two 2 GB sticks in the new iMac?
Paired RAM is required in the Mac Pro, but all other Macs currently do not require it at all, and really won't benefit all that much from it when used.
Basically all paired memory does is create a double-wide memory path that can improve memory bandwidth. However, memory bandwidth is only a part of the overall performance of any computer system. This is especially true when the hard disk(s) have spun down, as anyone with multiple HDDs knows all too well.
The real bottleneck today is hard disk speed, which is why Microsoft is *requiring* Flash RAM + HDD instead of only HDD to use Windows Vista effectively.
Basically all paired memory does is create a double-wide memory path that can improve memory bandwidth. However, memory bandwidth is only a part of the overall performance of any computer system. This is especially true when the hard disk(s) have spun down, as anyone with multiple HDDs knows all too well.
The real bottleneck today is hard disk speed, which is why Microsoft is *requiring* Flash RAM + HDD instead of only HDD to use Windows Vista effectively.
weeag said:
Doesnt the MP access RAM in 4s instead of G5 pairs? I think thats what is meant with 'mispairing' even though it is grammatically incorekt.
stuartluff said:
The difference is around 5% from what I hear. Far too little to be noticed by an end user. Just enough to get pick up by a decent benchmark.
Yes, double the speed of RAM isn't as big a speed boost as people would expect -- unless the machine used RAM as VRAM.savar said:
Otherwise, people will notice the speed of not having enough RAM -- because there is a bigger difference between the speed of ram (5300mbps) and the hard drive (50-75mbps)
With the discrete graphics on the imac there isnt really anything that requires so much bandwitdth, all of it goes to the CPU. The extra ram could be good for future versions of OS X and bit apps such as final cut and Aperture.
Im still interested on how exactly Apple gets to 3gigs... one laptop slot, and one normal desktop slot (laptops top out at 1gig and desktop slots top out at 2gig)?
Im still interested on how exactly Apple gets to 3gigs... one laptop slot, and one normal desktop slot (laptops top out at 1gig and desktop slots top out at 2gig)?
AJ Muni said:Apple sells ram? People actually BUY RAM from apple?
The 2gb option on the new iMacs aren't horrible... $175. Would cost $300 - whatever you could eBay the old RAM for if you got it from Crucial. So, not completely unfair at all.