Laptop Memory Upgrade

[Zanshin]

Just doing my usual dredge for opinions.

I think I want to bump up my laptop memory from it's resident 512 meg. 

Any opinions on whether I should just order the memory and pop it in myself, or bring it in for someone else to do it?

My laptop has a 1.5 gig memory capacity, so I think a single gig chip should do the trick.  Then again, if it's way cheaper, I might just pop in another 512.  Generally, I use the machine as a desktop replacement, and I think the extra memory might make it a little easier to process any of the minor video-editing tasks I might run into. 

But is the installation easy (like opening a door and popping it in carefully) or hard (as in taking the thing apart and risking breaking it). 

On my desktop, I did it myself, and it was ridiculously easy.  Just wondering if that was also true for laptops.

If it matters, I have a Toshiba Satellite A75-s229.

Any thoughts?

[Wingspan]

check the manual.

it's probably easy, just stick with name brand.

you probably just pop off the keyboard and snap it in. most laptops make ram easily accessible

[Susquehanna Birder]

My P25 has a door on the bottom. Just take out the screws, open the panel, and the memory expansion area is right there.

[Cerevant]

My Toshiba was stupid-easy to upgrade.  Remove one screw and there's the RAM slots. 

Looks like your system has 512M built in, with a 2 slots to add more.  The last page of this file shows where to put the memory.

[Zanshin]

That's very, handy...thanks.

I also need to get a new battery for the thing...man, those fargers are pricey.

[Susquehanna Birder]

I hate laptop batteries. I run on A/C most of the time, and it ends up pretty much killing the longevity of the battery.

[Diomedes]

My old lady actually makes a point of running the laptop from the battery until it's dead, then plugging it back in.  Which means she nags me to do the same.  It's an annoying practice, but it does preserve battery life.  Same with cell phones.

[Susquehanna Birder]

Yeah, that's the way to do it. I recently replaced the batteries in our home cordless phones, and I had to explain the process to the wife. I'm not sure she completely understands, but at least she's humoring me.

[PhillyPhanInDC]

Like other people have said, it is stupid easy. Putting together an old school snap-tite model is harder. I would go with the 512MB stick, it'll save you some dough, and in the event a stick goes in the crapper, the laptop will still function on the remaing stick when you remove the bad one. Just remember whenever you are swapping anything in a computer, properly ground yourself. Static kills.

[Zanshin]

My old lady actually makes a point of running the laptop from the battery until it's dead, then plugging it back in. Which means she nags me to do the same. It's an annoying practice, but it does preserve battery life. Same with cell phones.

Think it would help if I didn't leave it plugged in overnight?  Actually, I hardly ever turn it off; at most, I'll close the lid to hibernate...but leave it plugged in pretty much 24/7, other than when I take it to the couch or something.

[phattymatty]

I need to upgrade mine too, I also have a Toshiba. 

I was actually just wonering about this the other day, can you just buy any kind of memory or is it brand specific? 

[Zanshin]

I've seen that many Toshibas need a KTT3311/512 Kingston PC2100/PC2700, 512MB DDR compatible.  I'm not going to take a chance to save $3, so I'll probably just pick up the Kingston.  If you go to www.tigerdirect.com, they have a memory wizard thing that tells you what you need for your particular laptop.

[Zanshin]

Actually, here's the direct link to that confgurator.

[phattymatty]

sweet, thanks

[Cerevant]

Let me clarify a few things on the battery life discussion above.  If you don't want the details, just read the last paragraph.

Running a rechargable battery until it is dead is a good practice for batteries that suffer from "memory effect" - these days this means Nickle Cadmium (NiCd) batteries.  If you bought something cheap with a rechargable battery (toothbrush, razor, etc) you should never recharge the battery until it is completely dead. (Or dead enough not to be useful anymore)

Most modern electronics now use Lithium Ion (LiIon) or Nickle-metal Hydride (NiMH) batteries - these batteries have no memory effect and will last longer if you keep them charged.  This applies to things like cell phones, iPods, etc.

Now for laptops: Most laptops now have NiMH or LiIon batteries, but they are "smart" batteries that can tell the laptop how much charge is left.  The problem is that the measurement it uses gets out of synch, and it lies to the laptop - and the battery doesn't get fully charged.  Running the battery until it is dead re-calibrates this meter, so that the battery can be charged properly again.

So, for laptops, I recommend running it until it is dead *occasionally* - once every one or two months.  Otherwise, it is best to just keep it charged.