Computers & Electronics

Laptop help with RAM and OS

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  • May 25th, 2012 2:34 pm
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Sr. Member
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Apr 23, 2011
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Laptop help with RAM and OS

Hey, I have a couple questions. I have an older Gateway Core 2 Duo running Vista Home Premium 32 bit. This came with 3GB of RAM installed, and during the FS sale a couple years ago I switched it to 4GB (2x2GB). Lately I've been thinking about upgrading the RAM, as performance information says that is what is holding the computer back. Now, I know that 32bit OS's limit the RAM to 3.xx, so I'm wondering if I should upgrade to Win7 64bit.

Now, what do you guys think? I'm competent when it comes to hardware and software, but I'm no expert. Should I go Win7, or just wait for 8? And what do you guys think about upgrading the RAM? I know I'd get a big boost with an SSD, but I just sent it away and got a new HDD and battery (Staples extended warranty), so I don't want to go replacing that right now. I've listed the specs below from Gateway's website.

Processor Intel® Centrino® Duo Mobile Technology
Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T5750
2 MB L2 Cache | 2.0 GHz | 667 MHz FSB
Chipset Intel® PM965
Display panel 15.4-inch Ultrabright™ WXGA TFT display (1280 × 800)
Memory 3072 MB 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM (1 × 1024 and 1 × 2048)
Operates at 667 MHz
Total slots: 2 DDR2 slots | Available slots: 0 DDR2 slots
Video controller ATI Mobility Radeon™ HD 2600 XT PCI Express Graphics
512 MB GDDR3 Dedicated Memory
HDMI HDMI version 1.2 connector
Webcam 1.3 Megapixel
Fingerprint reader No
Audio High definition audio - 2 channel
Hard drive 250 GB 5400 RPM SATA hard drive



And here are the Performance Information specs.



Processor Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU T5750 @ 2.00GHz 4.9
Memory (RAM) 4.00 GB 4.5
Graphics ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600 5.9
Gaming graphics 1791 MB Total available graphics memory 5.2
Primary hard disk 160GB Free (298GB Total) 5.9
Windows Vista (TM) Home Premium

System
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Manufacturer Gateway
Model M-6874h
Total amount of system memory 4.00 GB RAM
System type 32-bit operating system
Number of processor cores 2
64-bit capable Yes

Storage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Total size of hard disk(s) 298 GB
Disk partition (C: ) 160 GB Free (298 GB Total)
Media drive (D: ) CD/DVD

Graphics
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Display adapter type ATI Mobility Radeon HD 2600
Total available graphics memory 1791 MB
Dedicated graphics memory 512 MB
Dedicated system memory 0 MB
Shared system memory 1279 MB
Display adapter driver version 8.631.0.0
Primary monitor resolution 1280x800
DirectX version DirectX 10


Also, final question. System Requirements Lab is giving my GPU a failing grade for Diablo 3, but its on the list of supported cards. Do you think it will run alright? Not looking to max it out, just minimum at a decent framerate.

Thanks in advance. :)
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Jun 7, 2001
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What is the laptop mainly used for? Something memory intensive? Memory > 4 GB needs Win7 64 bit OS. DDR 3 laptop memory is relatively cheap....DDR2 laptop memory is quite a bit more expensive (less supply?)...probably double the price of DDR3.

At some point, you will likely need to stop spending $$ on upgrades and buy a new laptop....new basic laptops start in the $400 range and up. Refurb laptops start at $300 and up. New laptops with dedicated graphics for D3 can be as low as $499 when on sale (HP DV6-6C51CA at Staples)....this is rare....this type of performance usually pricier....in the $650-$1000 range.

Dave
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Feb 24, 2003
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Looks like your laptop cannot work with more than 4gb of ram.
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Apr 23, 2011
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If you guys read the specs you'd see that it is a 64bit processor, it just isn't running a 64bit OS. I know DDR2 is expensive, I'm just wondering if its worth it.

Personally, I'm still loving this comp. Heck, it has a dedicated heatsink/fan for the GPU! I can nearly max any VALVe game with no issues, Portal 2 included.
I had actually bought the amazing Acer 17" deal from Staples last year (and that was hard to find!), but had to sell it as I needed the cash. The problem with good laptop deals is that they're always online only or Staples. And if you need a decent GPU in it also? I know this, thats why I'm just going to build myself a desktop later this year for gaming. I'll still be using this laptop a lot though, so a little upgrade would be nice.

Oh yes, and I mostly use it for Photoshop/graphic design(bit slow, but thats its main use. And it handles it), medium gaming and various music software.
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Since you're limited to 4gb of ram in your laptop, you could try out a 64-bit version of Win7. You may be able to use the serial key that came with your laptop to activate the 74 bit version.
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PM965's support 8gb of RAM, but there's a chance that the BIOS for the particular board you have doesn't support it. Basically on a laptop like that, you'd probably have to try it out for yourself. I can verify 2x4gb works just fine in the Latitude D630/D830 series which uses the same chipset.

But yeah I agree, probably time to start looking at an upgrade. Your head will explode one you learn the price of 4gb DDR2 SODIMMS :( :( :( .
TodayHello wrote: ...The Banks are smarter than you - they have floors full of people whose job it is to read Mark77 posts...
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You are going to spend $130 for Win7 on an OEM license that can only be used for that computer. Otherwise $220 for a retail edition that you can use on another PC when you recycle that one.
You are going to spend a further $80 on DDR2, minimum. RAM upgrades & WEI aren't just about capacity, speed has a huge role as well. You may not see much improvement.

So you're looking at $200-300 to upgrade, and you may not see much change. Probably the biggest difference will be nuking Vista. For this price you are much closer to a second laptop and you can just have two or sell what you have on CL.

First thing I would do is go through a Vista-tweaking guide on the web and turn off all the unnecessary crap. If memory serves it's something like 75 services running in the background that can be turned down to about 15. Tweaking the page file, turning off visual effects, etc.
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Mark77 wrote: PM965's support 8gb of RAM, but there's a chance that the BIOS for the particular board you have doesn't support it. Basically on a laptop like that, you'd probably have to try it out for yourself. I can verify 2x4gb works just fine in the Latitude D630/D830 series which uses the same chipset.

But yeah I agree, probably time to start looking at an upgrade. Your head will explode one you learn the price of 4gb DDR2 SODIMMS :( :( :( .

Does it matter which revision of the 965 chipset is in the laptop? I also have a laptop with a 965 chipset and HP says the maximum amount of ram is 4 GB.
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audit13 wrote: Does it matter which revision of the 965 chipset is in the laptop? I also have a laptop with a 965 chipset and HP says the maximum amount of ram is 4 GB.

AFAIK, they're all the same. "Officially" the limit is 4gb, but 8gb works just fine if there's proper BIOS support. Electrically the chipset can handle it, so its strictly a firmware issue.

Obviously none of these laptops were ever marketed with 8gb capability. But the Dells I mentioned work just fine with 2x4gb, even though 'officially' the limit is 4gb.
TodayHello wrote: ...The Banks are smarter than you - they have floors full of people whose job it is to read Mark77 posts...
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BTW, its practically a crime against humanity to use a laptop without SSD, so I'd make darn sure there's a SSD in the laptop before even considering going more than 4gb.
TodayHello wrote: ...The Banks are smarter than you - they have floors full of people whose job it is to read Mark77 posts...
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Would Crucial's memory scanner program work? I am not sure how this programs works. I have a 5 year old Compaq/HP desktop....Crucial memory scanner said that it was maxed out at 4 GB (4x1 GB)....not a big deal since it's Vista 32 bit OS.

Dave
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IMO, the 5400rpm HD is the main performance bottleneck.
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Suede wrote: Alright, so my laptop is as good as its going to get without an SSD or better OS. What do you guys think of this one? Seems pretty good for $450-500ish after selling the 360.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/-/b ... acbc9ben02

HD 6470M is #217 at Notebookcheck.net. A lot of other A6-based laptops have the HD 6520G (#222). GT 540M is a pretty popular (light to moderate gaming) graphics card on many laptops....usually $600+. If you are planning to game, the GT 540M is probably the cheapest dedicated graphics card that I would choose for a laptop.

Is this $649 HP DV6-6128CA laptop eligible for a free Xbox 360? It has the 6755G2 graphics (#95) which ranked higher than the #122 GT 540M.

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/hew ... 71280.aspx

$699 for this HP....cannot find the ranking of it's graphics card...conflicting model #'s. 7670M is #115. 6620G-7450M combo is #157. 7690M is #96....maybe the same (crippled?) graphics as the $498 HP recently at Staples. Same Xbox 360 eligibility as the HP above?

http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/ca/en/ho ... html?dnr=1

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-CA/product/hew ... 90010.aspx

Dave
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If you got the xbox/ discount on any of those, that would be a decent deal. BB and FS are bending MS's promo though and only including certain Samsung laptops over $599. Technically their promo is on any Win7 laptop over $599.

Like I said though, I don't plan on buying a new laptop. I intend to build a desktop and just take this one with me for PS(need it mobile. Its a weird job/business thing). I was simply hoping to boost the performance of this a bit to tide me over. It still runs like new.

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