upgrading memory for the T60

[Ianski]

I thought some people here might want to know how easy it is to upgrade the memory.

Last night I replaced the 512MB Hynix memory stick that came with the laptop. I'm keeping it, because if there's a warranty issue I'll need to reinstall it (the warranty says that you have to remove all customer-added parts prior to sending the machine in for service.)

I bought a pair of 1 GB Corsair ValueSelect sticks and installed them - what a difference! I noticed the speed improvement right away. The actual spec is Corsair PC2-5300 DDR2-667 200 pin SODIMM, model VS1GSDS667D2.

I thought installing the memory might be tough since it is under the touchpad, but it was really quite simple and took me maybe 15 minutes. Four long screws on the bottom (you have to tip the machine over to get the screws to come out, careful not to drop them!), then push in on the sides of the palm rest to get it to pop up and gently flip it towards you. No need to actually disconnect it as the instructions say, just be careful not to stress the flat cable that connects it to the machine. I had to remove the existing 512MB stick in order to install the new pair of 1 GB sticks. Install the memory, then put it all back together. Getting the palm rest to sit correctly took a bit of work but not too much. Lenovo's documentation of the process is pretty good if you look at the User Guide, not so good in the Hardware Maintenance Manual (the pictures aren't as clear). Both of those are available online.

The memory is stacked one on top of the other, so you have to be careful not to get memory that's too thick, although I think all SODIMMs are standard size now. I had checked Corsair's website for compatibility before buying so I felt pretty safe on that one.

Now I'm "Vista-ready" for whatever that's worth. Still waiting for the promised "free-upgrade" DVD, but that's a topic for another forum.

[lefei]

A pair of 1GB RAM does wonders to the speed. Boy, I can really feel the difference!

For myself, I bought a pair of Kingston PC2-5300 DDR2 SO-DIMM, and yes installation on my T60 was a breeze, though I was quite skeptical about having to unscrew so many screws and having to lift the palm rest to insert the new RAM. RAM prices have dropped tremendously too. A stick of Kingston 1GB is now going for S$55! How wicked is that? Not-so-lucky me, I bought a stick at S$75, and another stick at S$65.

[ZaZ]

[quote="Ianski"]Now I'm "Vista-ready" for whatever that's worth.

[/quote]

Not much.

[bigswede]

If my T60 came with a 1GB PC2-5300 667mhz (1 DIMM).

Can I just add another 1GB DIMM of the same spec?

Do both 1GB DIMMs need to be the same brand?

Where's a good place to buy memory from?

[bfgun]

should be able to add another 1 gb stick. I just ordered a 1 gb stick from crucial. Total cost: 46 dollars shipped.

you might want to check the invoice or the specs and see if it came with two 512 sticks or a single 1gb stick. if two 512's, then you'll probably want to just go with two 1 gb sticks.

good luck!

-B

[Ianski]

I paid $39.99 (Canadian dollars) per 1 GB stick (on sale) from www.ncix.com for Corsair Value RAM. It cost $10 to have it shipped. I believe NCIX ships to the US as well as Canada, but I can't see them being competitive with prices in the Silicon Valley which I'd expect to be lower.

I've dealt with NCIX for years and they're a reputable seller and deliver the goods quickly.

[smartegyptian]

I got 2GB RAM on IBM Thinkpad T60 2623D6U VISTA runs real slow restorded back to OEM XP runs just fine
Also GPU is 64MB in this system looks like not great with Vista

I thought some people here might want to know how easy it is to upgrade the memory.

Last night I replaced the 512MB Hynix memory stick that came with the laptop. I'm keeping it, because if there's a warranty issue I'll need to reinstall it (the warranty says that you have to remove all customer-added parts prior to sending the machine in for service.)

I bought a pair of 1 GB Corsair ValueSelect sticks and installed them - what a difference! I noticed the speed improvement right away. The actual spec is Corsair PC2-5300 DDR2-667 200 pin SODIMM, model VS1GSDS667D2.

I thought installing the memory might be tough since it is under the touchpad, but it was really quite simple and took me maybe 15 minutes. Four long screws on the bottom (you have to tip the machine over to get the screws to come out, careful not to drop them!), then push in on the sides of the palm rest to get it to pop up and gently flip it towards you. No need to actually disconnect it as the instructions say, just be careful not to stress the flat cable that connects it to the machine. I had to remove the existing 512MB stick in order to install the new pair of 1 GB sticks. Install the memory, then put it all back together. Getting the palm rest to sit correctly took a bit of work but not too much. Lenovo's documentation of the process is pretty good if you look at the User Guide, not so good in the Hardware Maintenance Manual (the pictures aren't as clear). Both of those are available online.

The memory is stacked one on top of the other, so you have to be careful not to get memory that's too thick, although I think all SODIMMs are standard size now. I had checked Corsair's website for compatibility before buying so I felt pretty safe on that one.

Now I'm "Vista-ready" for whatever that's worth. Still waiting for the promised "free-upgrade" DVD, but that's a topic for another forum.

[Vali]

I upgraded my T60p to 2 GB, I had 1GB Hynix and added an extra 1 GB Samsung.

I tested it in AutoCAD 2006 with 3dorbit and it was OK. Catalyst is set to AutoCAD and AutoCAD is set to use hardware acceleration.

I am planning to dedicate 512 MB to a RAMDisk for some temporary and most used files.

How can I stress-test it to see if it fails or not.

Thank you in advance.
V.

[Ianski]

I found a way to get even more performance out of my 2 GB of RAM. This may not work for everyone, depending on what sort of applications you run and how demanding they are on the RAM.

In Windows XP Pro, I turned off the "Virtual Memory" settings - that is, set the page file to zero - which requires a reboot. What a difference! With 2 GB of RAM the chances of needing a page file (aka swap file) are slim - and if you try it and it doesn't work for you, just change it back. But for whatever reason, the machine runs much faster without a page file. Flash up your Task Manager and see how much page file you normally use (the Performance tab) - it should be well under the 1 GB mark.

This is probably a much better use of the expanded RAM than setting up a RAM drive - in my opinion.

On another topic, I finally got my Vista disk from Moduslink - but since trying it out on a desktop PC (installed Ultimate without activation, which will work for 30 days), I'm not too impressed... its just the same old Microsoft stuff with a bunch of new eye candy, nothing substantial, and standard utilities (antivirus, disk management, etc.) will all need to be updated or replaced. And its adequate, but slower than the same system (athlon xp, 2 gb ram, radeon 9600 Pro) was with XP installed on it. I suspect with the 64MB video in my laptop, I would encounter video slow-down issues. At least I can "upgrade" down the road if I'm forced to by some "killer app" being developed for Vista-only.

Ian

[ntneko]

Thanks for the info! I've been thinking to upgrade my T60 to 2GB of RAM as well, but haven't gotten around to it due to my aversion to opening up the laptop. I'd hate to mess up and void the warranty.

Anyway, I might give it a try after after looking at the user guide, since it appears to be relatively safe