Thinkpads Forum

I am wondering what your opinion is on buying cheap, generic RAM from eBay, such as this.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/8GB-KIT-DDR3-1066 ... 2931wt_905

Is there any difference to justify me spending more on brand name memory? It will be for my soon to-be T400.

I'd avoid it and use Crucial. The price difference is worth it for peace of mind.

I thought so, what about Samsung? For about 10 pounds more I can get an 8th upgrade kit.

Samsung, I believe, has a limited lifetime warranty on that RAM. So if it ever breaks on you you can get it replaced.

(I don't know, though- you'd need to check with Samsung but since almost every other manufacturer has it I don't see how that'd be different.)

I actually have the same question but about G.Skill. Is that a good brand?

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People have different opinions, but I buy whatever brand is cheapest.

I remember seeing a post that said Corsair RAM fried a motherboard somewhere.

@richk, yeah, seems to be the best bet, Samsung.

@colonel, really? Corsair is suppose to be good.

Quick off topic question. Will I need the 9.5mm or 12.7mm travel cover?

Ram is ram.
most brands use samsung or nanya chips anyway.

Go with crucial on a store like newegg, and go by ratings, not price. you generally get what you pay for.

Sadly, no newegg over here. Another reason why I sorely miss the US...

Anyways, will apple memory work? I would think it would be the same as anything else, since macs are basically pcs now runnng intel and everything else.

I went ahead and got 2x4GB Crucial from Newegg for $84. It should arrive by Monday. I hope the installation is easy.

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The Corsair post was somewhere over on Lenovo Forums, but my memory is hazy.

I haven't seen any literature that singles out Apple RAM as being special, so I don't see why not.

@PIP33, installation should be really easy. Just follow the Hardware Maintenance Manual for your model and you should be good to go.

Colonel O'Neill wrote:
@PIP33, installation should be really easy. Just follow the Hardware Maintenance Manual for your model and you should be good to go.

Thank you, Colonel. I will follow that, as I will be doing the installation next Tuesday.

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Colonel O'Neill wrote:The Corsair post was somewhere over on Lenovo Forums, but my memory is hazy.

I haven't seen any literature that singles out Apple RAM as being special, so I don't see why not.

Thanks, I'll see what I can find. Some good deals cropping ip on Amazon UK. Does anyone know if I get paypal-like buyer protection on there? I read something abou A to Z Protection but I don't know if it is similar.

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@hunterman223: Amazon UK is an excellent company to do business with. However, go for Amazon deals rather than deals linked to other companies.

Good luck, and let us know how you get on.

killer wrote:@hunterman223: Amazon UK is an excellent company to do business with. However, go for Amazon deals rather than deals linked to other companies.

Good luck, and let us know how you get on.

Thanks Killer, I definitely will.


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I finally got my Crucial RAM (2X4GB) and I got them installed correctly (my first time with a Thinkpad). I must say that I actually have not noticed much of a difference from when I had only 4GBs in. Ah well. I'm still glad to have the extra RAM, nonetheless.

PIP33 wrote:I finally got my Crucial RAM (2X4GB) and I got them installed correctly (my first time with a Thinkpad). I must say that I actually have not noticed much of a difference from when I had only 4GBs in. Ah well. I'm still glad to have the extra RAM, nonetheless.

youll notice it if you load a few raw images into photoshop or try to edit 1080p video

People have different opinions, but I buy whatever brand is cheapest.

People's individual experience will vary.

Samsung, I believe, has a limited lifetime warranty on that RAM.

All brands that I have come across have that.

I am wondering what your opinion is on buying cheap, generic RAM from eBay, such as this.

Is there even such a thing as generic RAM? Maybe the sellers just don't specify the manufacturer?

Module builders like Corsair, Crucial and G.Skill buy DRAM on the open market from any one of the major memory manufacturers. That generally means whatever is cheapest at the time . What they do in some cases to "add value" is to test them at faster than "normal" speeds. That way people who overclock their systems can be assured that the memory will function correctly.

This is also one thing I suggest to anyone who buys any type of memory, be it from one of the major memory makers (Samsung, Micron, Hynix, et al.) from a module assembler, from whatever brick-and-mortar store you prefer and especially from any online source (Newegg, eBay): thoroughly test the memory before committing to keep it. Run memtest86+ on the system for at least three complete passes. If it completes the testing without any errors, then you should be okay. There's always a small chance that a memory failure will occur later on in its life but if you check it out right after you buy it, it's usually easier to process a return or exchange with the seller as soon as possible.

If you follow my link in the original post, that is what I meant. Unbranded, generic ram, and the photos do not show marked chips or anything.


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I generally purchase "name brand" modules made by companies that I know have been around for a number of years. Of the times that I don't follow that advice, it's usually because the module is unique in some sort of manner (for example, using chip-on-board mounting technique, as opposed to individually packaged parts) or it is significantly lower in price than the name-brand versions AND the seller has a well-stated money-back guarantee.

I Googled "koybe memory modules" and found this: http://steampile.com/web/web/4a9c01c33dde8 The poster says that "Koybe" is/was the same eBay seller as "Smilentango".

edit: Did some sleuthing for you...

http://www.bbb.org/oregon/business-revi ... a-22525614 (not in Ventura, CA but the logo at http://www.koybe.com is the same as eBay seller)
http://www.santabarbara.bbb.org/Busines ... o-92003620

more...

http://www.networksolutions.com/whois-s ... ntango.com
http://www.networksolutions.com/whois-search/koybe.com

They share the same P.O. Box in Vancouver, WA.

Yikes. That doesn't sound fun at all. That just permanently changed my mind: brand name RAM it is.


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rkawakami wrote:Module builders like Corsair, Crucial and G.Skill buy DRAM on the open market from any one of the major memory manufacturers. That generally means whatever is cheapest at the time . What they do in some cases to "add value" is to test them at faster than "normal" speeds. That way people who overclock their systems can be assured that the memory will function correctly.

This is also one thing I suggest to anyone who buys any type of memory, be it from one of the major memory makers (Samsung, Micron, Hynix, et al.) from a module assembler, from whatever brick-and-mortar store you prefer and especially from any online source (Newegg, eBay): thoroughly test the memory before committing to keep it. Run memtest86+ on the system for at least three complete passes. If it completes the testing without any errors, then you should be okay. There's always a small chance that a memory failure will occur later on in its life but if you check it out right after you buy it, it's usually easier to process a return or exchange with the seller as soon as possible.

That's interesting. I have always gone with name brand RAM, but it doesn't sound like it's anything different from the "generic" stuff on the market.

I will say that I notice my fan running a lot more since installing the 8GBs of RAM. Prior to installing it, when I only had 4GBs, the fan didn't run as frequently as it seems to run now. I don't know if that's any cause for concern. I just notice the difference.

I am finding some pretty good deals on Crucial memory, like this:
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/164771

I can grab a couple of those for £70 shipped, so not bad. I will be stalking eBay for good deals in the meantime.

I checked out Koybe's feedback, and it's not as great as the percentage. Apparently buyers are extorted for positive feedback, and it shows. Either a one or two word comment or a negative message masked behind green lettering. Hmm... I also checked out smilentango. Not surprising, it's the same there too.




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@Hunter: Have a look at Quidco. They do 7% cashback on Crucial orders ... plus loads of other deals with suppliers of anything.
It costs nothing to join and £5 a year deducted from your cashback. I have saved hundreds of £s over the last four years.

Site here: http://www.quidco.com/browse/

P.S. This only applies to the UK, AFAIK.

P.P.S. Clear your browser history before using Quidco or your order might not get tracked.

PIP33 wrote:That's interesting. I have always gone with name brand RAM, but it doesn't sound like it's anything different from the "generic" stuff on the market.

Sorry if my statement is a little misleading... I'm not saying that all module builders always use major name-brand DRAM. The three module builders that I listed are in the upper tier of the business and my understanding is that they tend to buy from reliable sources. Other builders may buy from less known manufacturers and still others may purchase "seconds" or "downgraded" memory for use in their modules. It all goes back to the advice of adequately testing the memory to make sure it works in your application.

I don't think there are many manufacturers of RAM chips anymore, just the few large makers that have survived through the years. There are quite a few companies making DIMMs and they probably have different ideas on how to QC them. And lastly you have resellers selling used memory, maybe tested and maybe not.

Buyers need to research to find out what memory they need. There are too many people [censored] on the internet about companies screwing them over when they buy the cheapest DIMM they can find without looking to see if it will work on their machine. If you are too lazy to do the research then buy premium RAM from the major sellers who will tell you what DIMM you need based on your model machine. Even the big boys can sell crap RAM (I had to RMA new Micron memory years ago that failed after little use) and they are picky on how you send it back (reciept and original box, many people toss that stuff).

I tend to buy older types of RAM on ebay, after looking up exactly what I need, and then only from sellers who have a decent description of what they are selling. This way I get the RAM I need at a very good price. For new systems I would go with Newegg. You don't save much getting current mass produced RAM from other sellers, so why bother.

Thanks killer, I'll look into that. It sounds like a pretty good deal.

In the past I have always used Kingston ValueRAM. I have used it in more machines than I can count and recommended it to dozens of people. It is reliable, but not super fast or anything. I will most likely end up with crucial as it is not out of my price range and is a company I trust.

The only reason I am upgrading is to be able to run a few more VMs at a time and what not. Maybe 6GB would be better for me. Does the T400 support dual channel mode, and will I see a performance decrease by buying just one crucial stick and reusing one of my 2GB sticks? (not a matched pair)


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