LebGeeks

A community for technology geeks in Lebanon.

You are not logged in.

#1 March 4 2019

Cage
Member

What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

so I want to buy RAM sticks for my PC i have a Lenovo Desktop computer that currently has 4GB DDR3 RAM. I tried a website so i can see which RAM sticks would be better to buy and there i entered my computer's model number and everything and when i got some suggestions for RAM sticks they were all labeled DDR3L 1600MHz. I know that i sure cannot buy other than DDR3 RAM sticks but what about the 1600MHz? Can i buy one with another frequency?(Cause i am going to buy it from here). What about the L beside the DDR3 what does it stand for? Do you guys recommend any stores that sells them for good prices? Thanks in advance.

Offline

#2 March 4 2019

Cage
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

oh plus they say DIMM at the end if any one knows what that means too

Offline

#3 March 4 2019

rolf
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

Higher frequency should be OK, maybe even better. It has to be the right physical format (DIMM, soDimm, whatever), this is very important. You can find this info on the laptop manufacturer website or manual. Normally it's much better to get multiple identical ram "sticks" so if you have one module get rid of it, better not to mix. So if you have two slots then 2×8 (ideally identical) should be faster than 1×16 because of "dual channel" technology on most computers (sort of like RAID for RAM)

Last edited by rolf (March 4 2019)

Offline

#4 March 4 2019

Aly
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

You can open your desktop, remove the ram sticks and check the model of your existing ram type and speed.
Let’s say you have DDR3 1333 MHZ and your motherboard supports a speed of max 1333 mhz, even if you buy 1600 mhz or 2133 mhz ddr3, these will still work but will underclock and operate at a 1333 mhz frequency. However if you buy ddr2 or ddr4 it wont fit at all.
You can check macrotronics and pcandparts, other shops should have as well, get a decent brand and compare prices.

Last edited by Aly (March 4 2019)

Offline

#5 March 5 2019

Cage
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

Thanks for the replies!

Offline

#6 March 5 2019

duke-of-bytes
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

if your Lenovo has Intel 4th generation processors,they  are not backward compatible with regular DDR3 memory modules.

Offline

#7 March 6 2019

rolf
Member

Re: What RAM sticks are compatible with my computer?

Aly wrote:

check the model of your existing ram type and speed.

Use CPU-Z CPUID for that (check SPD).

Last edited by rolf (March 6 2019)

Offline

Board footer