RAM is among the most important components for a modern PC; for the uninitiated, RAM is the short-term memory of the computer, the place where the computer stores the programs and data it is currently using; RAM is important because otherwise the PC would be forced to load data continuously from the hard disk, which compared to RAM is much slower. We have sensed that RAM allows you to understand immediately how many programs we can open at the same time and, in the event that RAM is not enough or it is too slow, we risk obtaining very slow programs, with large lag and in some cases even system errors and restarts sudden.
To find out every detail on RAM memories, how to choose a new RAM and the various types of modules available, please read the following lines, where you will find everything explained in detail.
READ ALSO: How to add or replace the PC RAM
1) What RAM memory looks like
RAM memory on all types of modern computers (desktops and notebooks) looks like a module full of shorter or longer chips, which can be removed and added to the specific RAM slots on the motherboard.
Obviously the length of these modules and their positioning changes according to the type of PC: for example on desktop PCs the RAM modules are called DIMMs and are interlocked in vertical slots, so as to make the modules appear vertically (we can always find them very close to the processor).
These slots have a single interlocking insertion direction and blocks to prevent the module from moving during use.
On portable PCs instead the modules are called soDIMM and are smaller; the slots in this case are horizontal interlocking, with a small angle of attack necessary to insert and remove the module.
These slots also have a single insertion direction.
2) Types of RAM memory (DDR)
In addition to the shape of the RAM modules, you must also consider the type of memory, which uniquely identifies the performance of a particular module (or certain modules).
The types of RAM memory currently used for PCs are called DDR SDRAM (which stands for Double Data Rate and Synchronous Dynamic Random Access Memory )
or simply DDR.
Based on the version, we can distinguish the types of DDR RAM:
- DDR (first generation)
- DDR2
- DDR3 (DDR3L for laptops)
- DDR4
Of these types of memory only the last two are still in circulation (with the DDR4 which are rapidly replacing the DDR3, now increasingly rare) and can be considered for PCs released in the last 6-7 years.
The DDR and DDR2 have now completely disappeared, we can only find them on PCs older than 10 years.
Performance obviously varies according to the version in use (DDR4 are faster than DDR3 and so on), but very importantly they are highly specific: we cannot use DDR4 modules on DDR3 slots and so on for all other types of modules.
This is because in addition to the voltage and performance differences there is a "physical" impediment: even if the modules are of the same length, they have a different cut on the connector based on the type of memory (it was inserted precisely to avoid making mistakes ).
Below we can find the various cuts on the connector according to the type of DIMM memory used for a desktop PC.
Here below instead we can find the cuts to the connector based on the type of soDIMM memory used for a laptop.
This makes modules with different types of slots incompatible (and vice versa): if we have a PC with DDR4 support, we will only have to use DDR4 modules.
We can find out the type of memory that we can use on the PC using a program like CPU-Z, downloadable for free from here -> CPU-Z .
Once downloaded, just take us to the Memory card to immediately understand the type of RAM supported by our desktop or laptop PC.
3) How to understand the speed of a RAM memory
Now that we have discovered almost all the secrets of RAM, we only need to understand how to distinguish two RAM modules of the same type, so as to understand which one is faster and which one is slower instead.
The first parameter to be observed is certainly the frequency, which is "different" if we read the label or the presentation of the module from the actual speed shown by the specific programs (such as CPU-Z that we have already shown above).
For example, a DDR4 DIMM RAM for PC has a speed of 3000 MHz, but once installed it shows only 1500 MHz in CPU-Z.
How come "> Kingston 4 GB RAM memory, 1600 MHz, DDR3 (20 €)
DDR3 Modules (Portable)
- Crucial RAM 8 GB, DDR3L, 1600 (€ 34)
- Samsung 8 GB (1 x 8 GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (37 €)
- Crucial 8 GB Memory Kit (4 GBx2), DDR3L (50 €)
- HyperX Impact HX316LS9IB / 8 memory 8GB 1600MHz DDR3L (37 €)
DDR4 modules (Desktop)
- Ballistix Sport LT 8 GB Memory Kit (4 GB x 2), DDR4, 2400 (€ 42)
- Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB, 2x4GB DDR4 RAM Memory Kit (€ 66)
- Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 X 8 GB), DDR4, 3000 MHz (70 €)
- HyperX Predator 16GB DDR4 16GB DDR4 3200MHz (€ 80)
DDR4 Modules (Portable)
- Crucial 4 GB memory, DDR4, 2400 (20 €)
- Crucial 8 GB memory, DDR4, 2400 (€ 35)
- Ballistix Sport LT 8 GB memory, DDR4, 2666 (€ 40)
- Corsair Vengeance Performance 16GB, 2x8GB, DDR4 RAM memory (€ 90)
READ ALSO: How to increase the Ram and add new memory to the PC
