Memory upgrade in a 13" MB Pro

[darktsx]

I'm a total Mac newbie but I'm loving this laptop .. I've had it for 2 months and I'm looking to upgrade my ram. I don't know which type I have (Santa Rosa, Penryn, etc . . ) but here's my system info:

2.2GHz C2D
Model Identifier: MacBookPro5,5


So I'm looking at this ram http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104103

What I can't figure out is if I'm able to adjust the timings on the Mac to take full advantage of this memory's 5-5-5-15. I called up Apple and they said they weren't aware of any way to do it and that I should search Google .. I have, but the best I could find was obscure information on installing windows with bootcamp and using a memory tuning utility??

Does anyone know of a way to make this machine use the memory at 5-5-5-15? If not, should I just buy 7-7-7-20 RAM and save a few dollars?

Thanks!

 

[0ptional]

You can't change the timings in OS X, just buy 7-7-7-20 RAM.

 

[darktsx]

Thanks, I thought that would be the case.

Will I still notice a speed boost compared to the stock RAM?

What kind of performance increase would 2x4GB sticks give? You think it's worth the money?

 

[0ptional]

Considering the price of 4GB sticks, I'd stick with 2x2GB.

Generally 2GB is fine for general usage, but 4GB helps if you're a heavy multi-tasker, but I'm among the folk that things anything below 4GB is too little and is hindering my machine, simply because RAM is so cheap and having more can't hurt me.

 

[Terpfen]

Most recent Macs have DDR3/1067 RAM, but to make sure, go to  → About This Mac. It'll tell you what sort of RAM you have in the pop-up.

Whatever type you have, get the exact same, just in larger quantities. If you have 2x1GB of DDR3/1067, for example (most likely), then just get 2x2GB of DDR3/1067. 204-pin, too. Usually most people wind up buying this.

 

[0ptional]

He said it was a 13" Pro, and unless he was mistaken about the model, then the only possible memory configuration he has is DDR3/1067.

 

[Terpfen]

He said it was a 13" Pro, and unless he was mistaken about the model, then the only possible memory configuration he has is DDR3/1067.

I understand that. But the type of system he has isn't really relevant to the type of RAM he has. I told him a quick way of finding out what sort of RAM he has in his system without having to load System Profiler, which he obviously did in order to give us the MacBookPro5,5 identifier.

Just teaching the man to fish, s'all.

 

[darktsx]

Thanks for the tips, guys.

How is this stuff? I like the price point: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820178242

I also like:

Patriot http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820220338
Crucial http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148191
Mushkin http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226019

Any thoughts?

Also, Terpfen, how did you type the little apple symbol?

 

[0ptional]

option+shift+K

only shows up on a mac btw.

also there's a useful widget here for it: http://www.tacowidgets.com/widgets/characterpal/

 

[Terpfen]

Any thoughts?

As long as the RAM is 204-pin DDR3 at 1067MHz, it shouldn't really matter which brand you use. Macs aren't nearly as picky about their RAM as they used to be. That said, everyone who's bought the Crucial set I linked to has reported success.

Also, Terpfen, how did you type the little apple symbol?

Option-Shift-K, as 0ptional said. The arrow is copied from the Special Characters menu in Safari (Edit → Special Characters, find the symbol you want to use and click Insert.) You can also switch your text input over to Unicode as outlined here.