ski

Dell Inspiron 8600 came with 256MB RAM, and I've noticed that running the UT2004 Demo creates big problems due to not enough RAM! I could pick up a 256MB stick for $40 or so, or a 512MB stick for $90. What do I get?

I have a 128MB Radeon 9600 in there, so in 1-2 years, it won't be an effective gaming laptop. Will I cross the 512MB barrier before the video card gets too outdated? I'm on a tight budget!!

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bachviet

Get the 256MB since anything above 512MB gives little gain.

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Dell Dimension 9200 | Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 (2.4GHz) | 4x1GB DDR2 | 256MB nVidia GeForce 8800GT

Dell Studio 17 | Intel Core i7-720QM (1.6GHz) | 2x2GB DDR3 1066MHz | 1GHz ATI Mobility Radeon HD 4650

Intel P4-C 3.0GHz | ECS 865PE-A | 3x512MB PC3200 | 128MB PNY GeForce 6600GT

Kevster

I have 1Gb of memory on my Dell laptop and with some of the apps I use for work, it uses about 3/4 of it.

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My small adventures, my fears.
The small ones that seemed so big,
For all the vital things I had to get and to reach.

And yet there is only one great thing, the only thing:

To live to see the great day that dawns,
And the light that fills the world.

-old Inuit song

LPMiller

not true at all on a laptop.

Get the 512.

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lpmiller
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Apex

Above 256mb, you won't get a huge jump in performance, but it will be noticable. Above 512mb, you may not notice a performance difference at all, depending on what you're doing. Graphics or video intensive stuff (or multitasking) does tend to take up more memory.

This being said, one of the side benefits of more memory is less use of the hard drive as virtual memory. This allows your battery to last longer, which is definitely nice.

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