Post by account_disabled on Sept 12, 2023 10:28:43 GMT
Unless you clearly need more memory, most people consider upgrading their RAM when their PC starts to feel sluggish. But RAM isn't always the answer.
Memory is just one cause of system slowdown. Working with Phone Number List large files or having dozens of browser tabs open can use up all available memory and slow down your system. However, other components, such as the entire storage drive (especially if it is a spinning disk drive), can also cause your PC to slow down.
So before ordering more (or faster) memory, check these five things: If you decide to upgrade after confirmation, refer to the following PC World guide on how to select appropriate RAM and how to install RAM in your desktop or laptop computer.
How to choose the right RAM for your PC: Key specifications and criteria
Current memory usage
When you first purchased your PC, the system specifications probably matched the amount of memory you needed. But the way we use computers can change. If the task you are currently doing uses a lot of memory, you will need more RAM for satisfactory system performance.
Users of this PC are advised to upgrade to 32GB of RAM. ⓒPCWorld
To check the amount of memory currently in use, open Windows Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and go to the Performance tab. The second item shows the current RAM usage. In the example screenshot above, four browsers (each with more than a dozen tabs open) and Microsoft Excel are consuming 86% of the 16GB of available memory. If you want to open other programs (e.g. Photoshop) or more browser tabs in this state, upgrading to 32GB RAM is the way to avoid exceeding the memory limit and resulting lag.
Tip: If you're troubleshooting a slow PC, you should also look at CPU usage in the Performance tab. Although processor usage is low in the screenshot above, it's common to see both CPU and memory being used to their limits on older PCs. In this case, the speed problem can be solved by fixing other parts besides the memory.
graphics card
Memory does not significantly increase the performance of your gaming device, but it can slightly improve performance if you play games that use a lot of CPU, i.e. games that use the processor more than the graphics card. (If you are curious about specific numbers, see this article (See the video by tuber Jayz2Cents ). Want to get the most out of every last frame on your PC? Purchasing faster memory will get you a little closer to your goal.
When using integrated graphics, faster system memory (and adequate capacity) will improve gaming performance. ⓒIDG
Additionally, upgrading RAM can also help improve the performance of integrated graphics. Integrated graphics store game textures and other graphics assets created for display output in system memory rather than in the dedicated video RAM (VRAM) found on separate graphics cards. In general, speed is more important than capacity, but it is recommended to use at least 16GB.
Motherboard free space
If your RAM slots are full, you may need to replace them entirely with faster or larger capacity DIMMs. ⓒCorsair
Depending on the number of RAM slots on your motherboard, increasing memory capacity can be simple and inexpensive, or it can cost more. On motherboards with four memory slots, often only two are used and two are empty. At this point, it's very easy to add RAM. Just purchase and insert two additional DIMMs of the same type (DDR4 or DDR5). However, keep in mind that the maximum speed is determined by the slowest DIMM speed. For example, if you add DDR4-4400 to a system that is using two DDR4-2400 RAMs, it will still run as DDR4-2400. To increase speed, you need to replace slow memory.
If there are only 2 slots or all 4 slots are in use, you must purchase a replacement memory that matches the desired speed and total capacity. Let's assume you are using four DDR4-2400 4GB memory sticks. To expand to 32GB DDR4-3600, you need to buy four 8GB DIMMs or two 16GB sticks. If you want faster performance on a regular PC, you need to use dual channel, that is, pair RAM sticks.
Memory is just one cause of system slowdown. Working with Phone Number List large files or having dozens of browser tabs open can use up all available memory and slow down your system. However, other components, such as the entire storage drive (especially if it is a spinning disk drive), can also cause your PC to slow down.
So before ordering more (or faster) memory, check these five things: If you decide to upgrade after confirmation, refer to the following PC World guide on how to select appropriate RAM and how to install RAM in your desktop or laptop computer.
How to choose the right RAM for your PC: Key specifications and criteria
Current memory usage
When you first purchased your PC, the system specifications probably matched the amount of memory you needed. But the way we use computers can change. If the task you are currently doing uses a lot of memory, you will need more RAM for satisfactory system performance.
Users of this PC are advised to upgrade to 32GB of RAM. ⓒPCWorld
To check the amount of memory currently in use, open Windows Task Manager (Ctrl + Shift + Esc) and go to the Performance tab. The second item shows the current RAM usage. In the example screenshot above, four browsers (each with more than a dozen tabs open) and Microsoft Excel are consuming 86% of the 16GB of available memory. If you want to open other programs (e.g. Photoshop) or more browser tabs in this state, upgrading to 32GB RAM is the way to avoid exceeding the memory limit and resulting lag.
Tip: If you're troubleshooting a slow PC, you should also look at CPU usage in the Performance tab. Although processor usage is low in the screenshot above, it's common to see both CPU and memory being used to their limits on older PCs. In this case, the speed problem can be solved by fixing other parts besides the memory.
graphics card
Memory does not significantly increase the performance of your gaming device, but it can slightly improve performance if you play games that use a lot of CPU, i.e. games that use the processor more than the graphics card. (If you are curious about specific numbers, see this article (See the video by tuber Jayz2Cents ). Want to get the most out of every last frame on your PC? Purchasing faster memory will get you a little closer to your goal.
When using integrated graphics, faster system memory (and adequate capacity) will improve gaming performance. ⓒIDG
Additionally, upgrading RAM can also help improve the performance of integrated graphics. Integrated graphics store game textures and other graphics assets created for display output in system memory rather than in the dedicated video RAM (VRAM) found on separate graphics cards. In general, speed is more important than capacity, but it is recommended to use at least 16GB.
Motherboard free space
If your RAM slots are full, you may need to replace them entirely with faster or larger capacity DIMMs. ⓒCorsair
Depending on the number of RAM slots on your motherboard, increasing memory capacity can be simple and inexpensive, or it can cost more. On motherboards with four memory slots, often only two are used and two are empty. At this point, it's very easy to add RAM. Just purchase and insert two additional DIMMs of the same type (DDR4 or DDR5). However, keep in mind that the maximum speed is determined by the slowest DIMM speed. For example, if you add DDR4-4400 to a system that is using two DDR4-2400 RAMs, it will still run as DDR4-2400. To increase speed, you need to replace slow memory.
If there are only 2 slots or all 4 slots are in use, you must purchase a replacement memory that matches the desired speed and total capacity. Let's assume you are using four DDR4-2400 4GB memory sticks. To expand to 32GB DDR4-3600, you need to buy four 8GB DIMMs or two 16GB sticks. If you want faster performance on a regular PC, you need to use dual channel, that is, pair RAM sticks.