RAM question

[Kramer]

so does RAM function as video ram? i ask this b/c i have a laptop with 3g ram and a weak video card, so if i were to add 1 g ram = 4g total, would that be used as if i had added video ram also? or would i see much better performance if i just bought a video card?

[Tikker]

how are you going to buy a video card for your laptop?


video card being able to use system ram is completely dependent on how it's manufactured

[Tossica]

My last laptop had several options for video cards. I took out the old 64MB one and added a newer 128mb one.

[Drem]

get a new video card and add another gig of normal ram. you'll see a performance boost either way. but i think with 3gb of ram the video card should be replaced first

[Kramer]

to tikk's question, I am not sure, how would i know if it is possible?

[Gidan]

Your video card being able to use physical ram in the laptop is going to be dependent on the system itself and the video card. You will also need to be sure that if you do increase your ram to 4G that your using a 64bit OS or you will only actually be using about 3.5G of the 4G.

Generally, if you want to improve the graphical performance of your video, you would be better of changing out the video card itself if your laptop allows for that. Very few laptops are designed to have an easily replaced video card, so before you decide to do that, you will need to make sure that your laptop does indeed support replacing it. Any laptop that does not use on onboard video card (well except mac) can be swapped out, however this generally requires a great deal of knowledge in regard to your specific laptop and how it was built. If your video card was not designed to be swapped out, then you would need to make sure the new video card connects to the motherboard in the exact same manner as well as being the same size. You would also need to be comfortable taking your laptop apart completely.

[Kramer]

Gidan thanks. that helps alot, and I am not comfortable taking my laptop apart, though i have a friend who could. would it be expensive to have it installed by a professional?

also, i assume that vista is a 64bit OS

[Gidan]

Vista comes in both 32 and 64bit, Its a safe bet that if your laptop came with less then 4G of ram you have a 32Bit version.

In all honestly though, taking a laptop apart isn't all that difficult and I have done it to a few of mine (after warranty expired). If your laptop is still rather new, you may want to try and find a company that does service on your brand of laptop or even check with your manufacturer themselves as it may be something they would be able to assist you with. If they will not do it, they may be able to direct you to a 3rd party company that they endorse for hardware support on their laptops.

[Kramer]

it's a 1 year old Dell so i assume i can yell at them and find out my options. thanks for thehelp guys.