Choosing Computer Memory

Choosing computer memory for your computer

Memory is also know as RAM (Random access Memory). The more memory you add to a computer in theory the faster it will be. This is a guide to choosing the correct memory for you computer

Crucial Memory Selector

See which RAM you require with the Crucial Memory Selector™
Select your system and press go!

Memory Types

Memory comes in several shapes and sizes. It is important that you get the correct memory for your motherboard. There are four main types of memory.

SIMM (Single In-LineMemory Module) are old technology that date back to the early days of the pentium and before, few people use it today. People often still use it as a generic term for memory though.

SIMM

DIMM (Dual In-Line Memory Modules) also know as SDRAM is still support by many motherboards. It has the advantage of being cheap and compatible with both Intel and AMD processors if you have the right motherboard.

DDR DIMM

DDR DIMM (Double Data Rate SDRAM). Faster than DIMM, but your motherboard must have the special sockets that support it. This is mainly used on AMD Athlon based motherboards, although it is supported for some Pentium motherboards.

RIMM (Rambus or RDRAM). This was the memory that Intel designed the Pentium 4 around. It is the fastest and consequently the most expensive memory.

RIMM

Upgrading Memory

Upgrading your memory is probably the cheapest and most effective way of increasing the performance of your PC. Consider this before thinking about more complex things like upgrading you processor. It is important to get the correct memory for your motherboard use tools like the Crucial one above in order to determine what type of memory you need.

Cheap Memory

Cheap memory is not necessarily good memory. It is critical to get memory from a brand name manufacturer as memory behaviour at temperature and under stress is critical to how your system behaves. Get it from quality trusted manufacturers like Kingston memory, Crucial memory or Samsung memory. Remember cheap memory can be a bad investment

Extra Memory Hints

A few chipsets eg NVIDIAs nForce have two memory controllers. This means that you double the rate at which memory can be accessed. However in order to make use of both memory controllers you have to have memory in at least two memory slots. So for instance two 128Mb modules would be a bit faster than one 256Mb module. Again tools like the Crucial one above should tell you this.