Upgrading RAM(opinions)

so ive decided to upgrade my RAM,i have 2 256s,and two slots left.ive found one on ebay:



http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWA:IT&ih=013

i was just wondering about these.i know these are probably not suitable for super fast alienware PCs,but for a normal PC would they be good?

just to check,i can use this with my 2 256s,right?just making sure u dont need two of the,i thought thats what DDR means.

my PC runs hot,would one of those "RAM Heatsinks" work,theyre only 6 bucks?

how can i tell what my PC allows in one RAM slot?

any difference in high/low density?

and it doesnt seem like im always using ALL the RAM,but isnt it better to have more free even if u never max it out?

its a DELL 4700,4 slot ram.

thanks

The 4700 does support different size ram sticks. 2x 256mb and 2x 512mb would work a total of 1.5gb.



You dont need the heat spreaders or heatsinks with pc3200 unless you are going to overclock.



If you buy another gig, you will see a noticeable difference in speed.

Your Dell Dimension 4700 motherboard doesn't take Double Data Rate (DDR) 184-Pin RAM. It takes Double Data Rate 2 (DDR2) 240-Pin Random Access Memory up to a maximum of 4 gigabytes (4096 megabytes).

I would recommend you buy 2 more gigabytes (2048 megabytes) of dual channel memory to use with your current memory.

Kingston 2 gigabytes (2 x 1 gigabyte) 240-Pin DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Dual Channel Kit Memory - $49

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820144157


Or if you don't want to spend that much on a memory upgrade, you could buy a single 1 gigabyte memory chip.

Kingston 1 gigabyte 240-Pin DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Desktop Memory - $28

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820144151

ok ill go for that 1gb stick,but i believe mine is pc2 3200,thats what it says on the ram now.just making sure so i get the right stuff.

and whats overclocking?

I was reading the manual on your motherboard. The PC2 4200 memory I recommended will simply backclock (go the same speed) to PC2 3200 memory speeds if you install it. Your motherboard specifies it supports PC2 3200 and PC2 4200 RAM.

I would highly recommend you get the 2 gigabyte dual channel memory kit as dual channel memory will have a 128 bit pathway through the Front Side Bus. If your memory is not in dual channel mode you will only have a 64 bit pathway through the Front Side Bus (slower processing speed).

You need two very similar memory sticks to have it in dual channel memory mode. Adding one memory stick will not enable dual channel.

wont 1 stick of 1gb still be better then 2 256s?i was just gunna spend some extra money i wasnt looking to spend 50 bucks

If you add a 1 gigabyte chip of memory your system will have 1.5 gigabytes of RAM. It will perform better, but 2.5 gigabytes will increase your system speed even more. Your motherboards maximum is 4 gigabytes ( but it is not profitable to upgrade to more than 3 gigabytes with Windows XP). Are you going to upgrade your memory ever again with this computer? If you are spend the extra money now.



If you aren't going to upgrade your memory ever again I would get two 512 megabyte 240-pin PC2 4200 memory modules as it will enable you to have dual channel mode.



Kingston 1 gigabyte (2 x 512 megabyte) 240-Pin DDR2 533 (PC2 4200) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory $32



http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820144152

if i get that 1gb stick from the 2nd link,can i simply buy another and use it along with it later on or can i only use that by itself?and as u said the 2 gb will have faster processing speed,if im not using all of my memory now even,will upgrading be useless or does the 1gb still have a faster processing speed then 512,as well as more memory?