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8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
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8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
Someone on eBay listed a screen cracked T420 with 16GB of RAM for $70 so of course I bought it. Throwing in my T430's old HD+ and flipping it should net me a few coffees.
What I'm wondering is if beyond the increased capacity for multitasking, heavy editing, poor browsing habits, and virtual machines, is there any noticeable speed boost like there is going from HDD to SSD? Will my OS (Windows) properly take advantage of the extra RAM? I've been very comfortable running 8GB on my T500, X230, T430, and T430s so it's not like I need the extra RAM... just curious to see, and read anyone else's experiences / thoughts / opinions, is all.
What I'm wondering is if beyond the increased capacity for multitasking, heavy editing, poor browsing habits, and virtual machines, is there any noticeable speed boost like there is going from HDD to SSD? Will my OS (Windows) properly take advantage of the extra RAM? I've been very comfortable running 8GB on my T500, X230, T430, and T430s so it's not like I need the extra RAM... just curious to see, and read anyone else's experiences / thoughts / opinions, is all.
Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
No...there will be no actual, measurable speed improvement. However, you may experience the illusion of a speed boost.TPFanatic wrote:What I'm wondering is if beyond the increased capacity for multitasking, heavy editing, poor browsing habits, and virtual machines, is there any noticeable speed boost like there is going from HDD to SSD?
If you are using a 64-bit OS, then yes.TPFanatic wrote:Will my OS (Windows) properly take advantage of the extra RAM?
Collection = T430 - T500 - R400 - X300 - T61 (14" WXGA+) - R61 (15" SXGA+) - T60 - X40 - T43p - T43 - T42p - A30P
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Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
In an analogy I made up, RAM size is equivalent to the size of your working table.
Having a big table doesn't mean you'll work faster, but having one that's too small will definitely slow you down.
Unless you're constantly running out of free RAM, upgrading from 8GB to 16GB won't make much of a difference.
Having a big table doesn't mean you'll work faster, but having one that's too small will definitely slow you down.
Unless you're constantly running out of free RAM, upgrading from 8GB to 16GB won't make much of a difference.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E
Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
Others have given good examples and reasons, I stick with the guy who said that it's like a working table -- it's there when you need it and it's just extra space when it's not.TPFanatic wrote: ↑Mon Jan 21, 2019 9:08 pmSomeone on eBay listed a screen cracked T420 with 16GB of RAM for $70 so of course I bought it. Throwing in my T430's old HD+ and flipping it should net me a few coffees.
What I'm wondering is if beyond the increased capacity for multitasking, heavy editing, poor browsing habits, and virtual machines, is there any noticeable speed boost like there is going from HDD to SSD? Will my OS (Windows) properly take advantage of the extra RAM? I've been very comfortable running 8GB on my T500, X230, T430, and T430s so it's not like I need the extra RAM... just curious to see, and read anyone else's experiences / thoughts / opinions, is all.
That said, I seem to remember that you do some intensive tasks, so you might enjoy having the upgrade.
Give it a try, you should know the answer for yourself within a few days.
Last edited by madicetea on Tue Jun 11, 2019 8:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
MadIceTea, Thinkpad Enthusiast
Daily: X250 FHD
Museum: PC110 20MB, X61 T9300 SXGA+ LED
Donated: x2001 AFFS i5-530 (to my alma matter)
Past: 701Cs German, 535/X, 760E/XL, i-series 12/14xx, piano s30, R60e, X60, X61, T60, T61, X200 P8700, X121e
That chicken sure looks funny.
Daily: X250 FHD
Museum: PC110 20MB, X61 T9300 SXGA+ LED
Donated: x2001 AFFS i5-530 (to my alma matter)
Past: 701Cs German, 535/X, 760E/XL, i-series 12/14xx, piano s30, R60e, X60, X61, T60, T61, X200 P8700, X121e
That chicken sure looks funny.
Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
It's hard to know whether it's because of the extra RAM or because of the much faster processor, though.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad
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Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
I'd bet it's the processor, it'd be roughly four times as powerful. The speed of the storage might also play a role.
Windows 10 has lots of background tasks like updates, telemetry, superfetch/prefetch, auto-downloading games, etc. and will use more ram if you have it. so if you're on 10 you might actually notice a speed improvement.
Windows 10 has lots of background tasks like updates, telemetry, superfetch/prefetch, auto-downloading games, etc. and will use more ram if you have it. so if you're on 10 you might actually notice a speed improvement.
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Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
Not just the processor cores themselves, but the other parts inside the CPU like the integrated memory controller and GPU.MrBurgerKing wrote: ↑Sat Jan 26, 2019 12:15 pmI'd bet it's the processor, it'd be roughly four times as powerful. The speed of the storage might also play a role.
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E
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Re: 8GB to 16GB upgrade, noticeable speed boost?
There isn't much of a difference. I upgraded from 8GB to 16GB because I use virtual machines a lot and need the extra ram.
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