Best Buy Stole My Memory

[Neon]

If you have not read my recent saga, Best Buy Stole My Memory, you've missed out on laughing at my expense. I shall summarize the events to date:

My notebook had a video problem, so Best Buy sent it for repair under warranty to their regional repair center. It came back with only 256 MB of PC2100 memory, instead of the 512 MB of PC2700 that it started with. This week, it returned from the shop again, and now it has one 256 MB stick of PC2100, and one 512 MB stick of PC2700.

Of course, both sticks have to run at the slower PC2100 speed. Unfortunately, the PC2100 stick is the internal one that is really hard to get to, so I can't swap it out.  On the plus side, there is now 768 MB of memory, which is more than the 512 MB it had in the first place.

So is it better to have 768 MB of memory running at 133 MHz (PC2100), or is it better to have 512 MB of memory running at 166 MHz (PC2700)? What would you do?

[Chandler]

I'd say keep the additional 256MB of memory.  You are probably going to notice the additional memory more because there will be less swapping/paging to the relatively slow notebook hard drive.

Having said that, the CPU's FSB is higher than the memory bus speed, so it could be bottlenecked.  Is there really no way to get to the 256MB module (and then flog it on eBay as "compensation").

[Neon]

Obviously, it's not impossible to get to the internal module, but it requires a rather time-consuming and tedious disassembly of the notebook chassis, as the module is located under the keyboard. This is probably why the "repair center" didn't bother to change it.

[Chandler]

The way I see it, you've already got your 512MB of PC2700 and the extra 256MB can be considered a bonus (even if not running optimally).  If you send it back, they'll probably remove the 256MB and leave you with the 512MB PC2700.

I suppose if you make a fuss they might give you 768MB of PC2700 but that's a gamble.

[Neon]

I agree with your assessment. I expected to get 512 of PC2700, as that is what it was equipped with when new. That would still be satisfactory.

It comes down to which offers better performance - 768 MB running at 133 MHz/266DDR/PC2100, or 512 MB running at 166MHz/333DDR/PC2700?

I'm sure the extra 256MB will help to keep from disk paging as frequently, but will I notice the difference in the speed of the memory modules?

[query]

Given that it's a notebook, I doubt there's much, if any difference between 266 and 333 MHz operation, particularly if the system has a slow (4200 or 5400 rpm) hard drive.

[wonderings]

First off, I am kinda confused, did you pay for the extra 256? Or was it a mistake that they gave it to you? If it was a mistake I would go back to Best Buy and inform them. But when it comes to ram I always say get as much ram as you can afford.

[Neon]

I did not pay for the extra 256. I speculate what may have happened is the following:

The original repair required the replacement of the motherboard. During final assembly, the first tech forgot to remove his testing module of memory, and replace it with the memory that originally came with the notebook (512 MB of PC2700). Thus, I ended up with only 256 MB of PC 2100, located in the internal slot.

The second time around, somebody decided not to spend the time/effort to open the chassis and replace the internal 256 PC2100 module, so they just slapped 512 MB PC2700 into the external slot, like the repair order says, and called it day. No thought was given to the fact that both modules operate at the slower speed.

[Buffalo2102]

Whoops!  I put my reply in the other thread before I saw this one.

Hop over there if you are interested. ::)

Buff; I voted though.

[scuzzy]

I agree that it's doubtful that you'll notice a speed difference. The extra memory, however, can certainly come in handy if you're surfing Poasters and reading spam at the same time.

[Neon]

I am leaning towards keeping the extra memory, even though it will run at a slower speed. Most of my notebook tasks are email, internet, and office-type tasks - only occasionally fire up a game. In fact, I haven't yet installed any games.

[Whizbang]

Too bad that notebooks are not as friendly to consumer repair as towers.  I do find it a bit interesting that Best Buy repair center was the first choice for HP's repair of my son's Pavillion that had a continual bootup problem if he shut off the power at the wall after power-down and shut-down.  They never found the problem, nor did HP's own service center; although the computer came back every time as "fixed."  That is when I dumped manufactured units and entered the "scary" world of customizing my own.  I haven't looked back since.  I do  not fault Best Buy at all, but I have not returned to any HP computer purchasing either.