T420 ThinkPad RAM upgrade compatibility question?

[Ian Bruntlett]

Hi Liam,

On Tue, 15 Oct 2024 at 15:56, Liam Proven <lproven at gmail.com> wrote:

> There are 6 different speed grades of DDR3 memory:
> DDR3-800 (PC3-6400)
> DDR3-1066 (PC3-8500)
> DDR3-1333 (PC3-10600)
> DDR3-1600 (PC3-12800)
> DDR3-1866 (PC3-14900)
> DDR3-2133 (PC3-17000)
>
Looking at the labels on the memory modules, "8GB DDR3L 1600" so I'm
guessing it is PC3-12800.


> You absolutely want matched pairs.  Mismatched may work but it can be
> unreliable and that's no use.
>
Yes, I bought a matching pair of 2x8GiB modules. Deliberately.


> So, now, my i7 T420 has 16GB, but the quad-core i7 W520 I am typing on
> has only 24GB because one module doesn't play nice. it has 2 8GB and 2
> 4GB modules. I have two 8GB ones sitting in a bag that I can't use,
> and a matched pair of 4 GB modules seemed preferable.
>
OK.


> (I have an i5 T420 with screen issues that dual-boots FreeBSD and
> ChromeOS Flex, and I plan to try the leftovers in that.)
>
Good luck!


> Reddit tells me that you can go at least 1 speed grade higher.
>
>
> https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/rxe1dc/can_anyone_recommend_me_2x8_gb_ram_sticks_to/
>
> So I would recommend getting at least PC3-12800 and preferably
> PC3-14900 modules. The machines will use them. With the integral Intel
> GPU you may get more benefit.
>
OK.


,


Ian


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