New to T400 series - needing some advice

[madkat]

Hello again
In my signature you can se all my thinkpadding history.
The latest addition is a T400 - 6475-GD3.
Very nice machine, with a 1440x900 screen, decent configuration.

First question - it runs (of course) on DDR3, 1066 according to specs. Does it need only 1066 type modules? Or i can add 1333 or 1600 modules as well, and they will run at 1066mhz?
Second - the "quantity" o ram admissable it's said to be 8gb. This must be "made" from equal modules? I was thinking of buying a 4gb module now, runnig it together with one of the 1gb i have, and at a later date add a second one. Will it work with 5gb?
Third - it doesnt have a cardreader. Found a express card cage - half with a sd slot, and the other half with express slot. Are they any good? Maximum size of the sd supported is?

Thanks!

[Tasurinchi]

Congrats to your new T400!

I've used 2x2GB 10600 modules in two of my T400 with no issues, and yes, they will run at 1066. 5GB is surely a funny config but I will run with no problems.

I don't have any experience with card readers though...

My 2 cents!

[RistoE]

I have also bought my firs T400 and have been searching compatible 4GB memory.
If you google around you will find that people claim these to work:
G.SKILL 8GB (2 x 4GB) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10600) Laptop Memory Model F3-10600CL9D-8GBSQ
Crucial 8GB (2 x 4GB) 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Laptop Memory Model CT2KIT51264BC1067
KTL-TP1066/4G : Kingston 4Go PC3-8500 DDR3-1066 204-pin SODIMM
KTL-TP3B/4G : Kingston 4Go 1333MHz Module
KVR1333D3S9/4G 4GB 1333MHZ DDR3 NON-ECC CL9 SODIMM
M471B5273BH1-CH9 Samsung 4 GB SO-DIMM 1333 MHz DDR3
M471B5273BH0-CH9 Samsung 4 GB SO-DIMM 1333 MHz DDR3

But for example this one is not compatible:
Corsair Value Select 4GB DDR3 1066MHz CL7 SODIMM (CM3X4GSD1066)

I also would like to hear if 1666Mhz memories work, I think they should (?) but did not find any information.

... my 2 cents...

[madkat]

I've heard of issues with corsair memories in ibm/lenovo's.
I'm quite curious about the 1666 modules. They are thea cheaper now - and can be useable even 2 years from now in a newer machine.

[agenttexx]

I've had my T400 Since the beginning of August having gone through a few different 61 Series machines. I got one of the T400s with the Intel Graphics cards and the 1200x900 Maximum Resolution. This compliments my T61 that I have been quite happy with.

I got my Ram from eBay having done a search for "Thinkpad t400 RAM." Normally I would hit up Newegg, but I wasn't finding a very good price and really wasn't too picky about it apart from that. I was able to get a matched pair of sticks of 4GB 1066 for around $60. If you can afford it, go ahead and max out your RAM that way you can get matched sticks as opposed to hodge-podging it.

My model has the integrated card reader and I have yet to get it working correctly - im not sure if it's disabled in bios, faulty hardware, or was disconnected/damaged by the previous owner, but I would have preferred an extra Express card slot to non-functional hardware. And I would definitely prefer to use an addon card for SD functionality.

The SD support should be specified with the hardware you buy, so check it out for the details on compatability. If you rely on a specific type of SD Card, I would also look into a USB adapter just in case.