Hardware Review
Crucial 2GB Kit(2x1GB) 200 Pin SODIMM DDR2 PC2-5300
Upgrading to bigger RAM is a very easy concept, the more memory, the better the PC's performance. We've taken a look at several memory modules before, today though; we'll take a loot at laptop memory offerings from Crucial. Crucial has been providing memory upgrades to diveres PC users, from your average users to the enthusiasts. We'll be taking a look at two 1GB PC2-5300 SODIMM modules from Crucial. We would like to thank the Crucial team for making this review possible.
As mentioned above, these memory modules are notebook memory. We'll test the modules on our Gateway ML3109. We'll keep this review as simple as possible. We received our sample in secure anti-static bags. These modules run at 667MHz with default speeds. We're not going to do some crazy over clocking with this one. With the limitation of the laptop we will be using, we decided just to compare these memory modules with a generic name memory. I know, I know, obviously there will an obvious performance difference. But we just wanted to show how much more performance gain you can get by investing on more memory.
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Let's get this review on the way. For this review we used a couple of memory benchmark apps such as PC Mark 05, SiSoft Sandra Lite and Everest. We run 3D Mark 2001 several times on our Gateway ML3109 just to make sure we don't get any crashes. The Crucial modules were pretty stable, and the laptop was more responsive compared to the generic memory we used. Below are the scores of the Crucial kit compared to the generic name RAM.
As you can see from the charts, the Crucial kits had a bit better numbers than the no name memory. These kit retails for about $47.99, that's a very good value for a 2GB kit. I also felt that these modules would over clock well too considering the quality Micron chips used with the RAM. To sum up, having to invest on more RAM can benefit and even pro-long the life of your laptop. Try to find name brand memory as they do tend to be more compatible with most systems.
Overall, we were pleased with the 2GB kit Crucial currently offers and we give it a score of 9 out of 10 and our Unique Rigs recommendation, please visit their website at www.crucial.com.
Pros:
Very good price ($48)
Stable Performance
Quality Micron chips
Potentially overclockable
Cons:
No heat sink
