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You are here: MacNN Forums > Hardware - Troubleshooting and Discussion > Mac Notebooks > What brand RAM for MacBook?

What brand RAM for MacBook?
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JAR
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May 18, 2006, 07:23 PM
 
Sorry if this seems like a redundant post (I also put this in the Powerbook/MBP forum), but I thought it was more appropriate here. Yes I know there was another thread about how much ram, but this one is about what brand ram... here it goes:

Based on all the forums and reviews I've read, I've narrowed down my choice for 2GB ram for my Macbook to OWC ($226), Crucial (Newegg $308), G. Skill (Newegg $164) and Gigaram (Newegg $168). I'm sure many other MacBook owners are looking to upgrade their ram, and I am totally new to Apple so I would appreciate it a lot if more experienced members could chime in.

My main concern with these brands is that I have read user reviews on newegg that some cheaper brands are labelled as 667Mhz but in System Profiler they show up running at around 533Mhz. This is why I didn't include Patriot in my list, because some people complained that it runs at 533MHz in Macs. I'm about to remove Gigaram from the list too because many complain it doesn't run any faster than 533Mhz ram, though they haven't mentioned whether they checked System Profiler or not.

Also, Gigaram has a reputation for dying after a few months of use, and G. Skill seems to be hit or miss with Apple computers. OWC seems to ship the occasional dead stick (as do Gigaram and G. Skill, but they're all covered by lifetime warranties), and I haven't seen any complains about Crucial.

Like anyone I want to buy the best ram for the cheapest price, and I definitely want to be sure it runs at 667MHz. Worst case scenario I will buy Crucial, but if anyone here can prove that any of the other brands I've mentioned runs at 667 MHz and won't die in a few months, I will buy that instead. Thanks!
     
+ spiral +
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May 18, 2006, 09:44 PM
 
OWC, no question.
     
Voch
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May 18, 2006, 10:58 PM
 
I'm running with 2GB of OWC RAM right now. Workin' great.
     
Gamoe
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May 19, 2006, 12:57 AM
 
Originally Posted by puffarthur
OWC seems to ship the occasional dead stick (as do Gigaram and G. Skill, but they're all covered by lifetime warranties), and I haven't seen any complains about Crucial.
Crucial replaced the RAM on my eMac after I did an OS upgrade (Mac OS X seems to get pickier and pickier about RAM, so any small "defects" that might have remained unnoticed before might cause a problem on a newer version of Mac OS X) and started getting kernel panics on a regular basis, where I couldn't even remember the last time I'd had one. And this was after more than a year (close to or more than two, actually) after I had bought the RAM from them. So I can vouch for Crucial's lifetime warranty.

I also had burnt Crucial memory replaced, even though it was clearly my fault (never add memory while the computer is on!! ), but I don't remember if that was Crucial or NewEgg that replaced it (they're both good companies!).

But if OWC RAM is reliable and good quality, AND it's offered with a lifetime warranty, why not give them a try?

So, in essence, what spiral said.
     
mavherzog
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May 19, 2006, 04:26 AM
 
You want two of these.
     
megasad
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May 19, 2006, 05:35 AM
 
Originally Posted by puffarthur
Based on all the forums and reviews I've read, I've narrowed down my choice for 2GB ram for my Macbook to OWC ($226), Crucial (Newegg $308), G. Skill (Newegg $164) and Gigaram (Newegg $168). I'm sure many other MacBook owners are looking to upgrade their ram, and I am totally new to Apple so I would appreciate it a lot if more experienced members could chime in.
Does anyone know of anyone cheaper than Crucial in the UK, who is also reliable? I've used Crucial before, and they are good, but £223 (~$420 (~$360 before VAT)) seems too much when you all are talking of much cheaper. The only place I know of, eBuyer, are actually more expensive than Crucial.
BayBook (13" MacBook Pro, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 1TB HD) // BayPhone (iPhone 4, 32GB, black)
     
harrisjamieh
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May 19, 2006, 06:15 AM
 
Originally Posted by megasad
Does anyone know of anyone cheaper than Crucial in the UK, who is also reliable? I've used Crucial before, and they are good, but £223 (~$420 (~$360 before VAT)) seems too much when you all are talking of much cheaper. The only place I know of, eBuyer, are actually more expensive than Crucial.
I was in the same situation as you when it came to buying RAM for my iMac CD, and found Crucial in the UK to be too expensive for me. I found this:

http://www.orcalogic.co.uk/asp/prodt...788&ft=m&st=3#


(link is for MacBook RAM)

and I ordered it for my iMac, and it has been find. It is made be Transcend, and though I have not heard of them, I took the gamble, and it paid off, the RAM being quite a bit lower priced. It has been in my iMac since Feburary, and I have had 0 problems with it, so I highly reccommend it. I am going to order some more from them for my MacBook when it arrives
iMac Core Duo 1.83 Ghz | 1.25GB RAM | 160HD, MacBook Core Duo 1.83 Ghz | 13.3" | 60HD | 1.0GB RAM
     
megasad
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May 19, 2006, 06:32 AM
 
Originally Posted by harrisjamieh
I was in the same situation as you when it came to buying RAM for my iMac CD, and found Crucial in the UK to be too expensive for me. I found this:

http://www.orcalogic.co.uk/asp/prodt...788&ft=m&st=3#

(link is for MacBook RAM)

and I ordered it for my iMac, and it has been find. It is made be Transcend, and though I have not heard of them, I took the gamble, and it paid off, the RAM being quite a bit lower priced. It has been in my iMac since Feburary, and I have had 0 problems with it, so I highly reccommend it. I am going to order some more from them for my MacBook when it arrives
Powerful! Thank you lots! So long as I get my MacBook today, I shall get the RAM from them.
BayBook (13" MacBook Pro, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 1TB HD) // BayPhone (iPhone 4, 32GB, black)
     
megasad
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May 19, 2006, 02:22 PM
 
Hoo-hah! I have myself a white 2GHz MacBook now, but with just 512MB RAM, it is running pretty dang jerky right now... So, I have ordered the 2GB RAM from the whale people. Thank you, Harris Jamieh!
BayBook (13" MacBook Pro, 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo, 4GB RAM, 1TB HD) // BayPhone (iPhone 4, 32GB, black)
     
Voch
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May 19, 2006, 02:45 PM
 
Originally Posted by megasad
Hoo-hah! I have myself a white 2GHz MacBook now, but with just 512MB RAM, it is running pretty dang jerky right now... So, I have ordered the 2GB RAM from the whale people. Thank you, Harris Jamieh!
Mine did that the first two days. The 2GB of RAM definately made the jerkiness go away.
     
JAR  (op)
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May 19, 2006, 10:16 PM
 
I went with the early advice on this thread and ordered some OWC. Will post my results when I get them, probably will work fine =)

I'm hoping the jerkiness in my MB will go away too
     
+ spiral +
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May 19, 2006, 10:30 PM
 
My OWC ram arrived today for my MacBook and i can report all is well (and fast). This is my 5th mac that i've bought ram for, from them.
     
   
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