RAM or Random Access Memory is critical to gaming
laptops. Mainly because the more RAM you have on
your laptop or computer, the higher the performance
level you can achieve. Higher RAM will increase
your enjoyment and let you play even the most
challenging 3D games.

Besides the CPU (Central Processing Unit) RAM is
probably the most vital element you will have in
your laptop or computer. Just as you can't have
enough money, so too you can't have enough RAM.
The more the merrier. The more RAM you have, the
faster your computer will perform.

Most serious gamers know their RAM. They know the
difference between static and dynamic RAM. Many can
even tell you how SIMM, DIMM and SO-DIMM memory modules
are different from each other. Plus, they would all
know the importance of VRAM or VideoRAM to the operation
of their gaming laptop. Most of all, they know their
Graphics Cards or GPUs (Graphics Processing Units).

First, you should realize, RAM is probably the best
known form or type of computer memory. Second, RAM
is very important in how well your computer can
perform the tasks you call upon it to do. The more
RAM you have, the more computer tasks and programs
you can run at one time.

Nor should you make the mistake that only gamers
are concerned about getting enough RAM; professionals
who work with heavy graphics such as video editors,
architects, layout artists, website designers...
are also keenly aware of the importance of having
enough RAM to get the job done.

Keep in mind, computer technology is advancing at
a blistering rate and is constantly changing.
Overseeing all these industry standards and
technology is JEDEC, which acts like a regulating
body for the semiconductor industry. Hey, someone
has to keep track of all these forms of RAM!

Basically, you have two kinds of RAM - Static
RAM (SRAM) which is faster and more expensive
than Dynamic RAM (DRAM). Just as their names
suggest, Dynamic RAM is constantly refreshing
and is slower and less expensive than Static RAM.

Static RAM is primarily used for cache such
in your CPU's speed-sensitive cache.

What confuses most people is the whole range
or types of Dynamic RAM, with more in development
as we speak. Complicating the matter even further,
is the development of RAM for laptops which need
smaller and more compact memory modules.

Here are some types of RAM you may or may not have
seen or heard of:

FPM DRAM -- which stands for "Fast Page Mode Dynamic
Random Access Memory" and was the original form of
DRAM. It has a maximum transfer rate of approximately
176 MBps to L2 cache; and if you're wondering what
is level 2 cache, this is cache located outside the
processor chip. Level 1 refers to internal cache in
the processor.

EDO DRAM -- which stands for "Extended Data-out Dynamic
Random Access Memory" and is around 5% faster than
FPM DRAM. Transfer rate is at about 264 MBps to L2
cache.

SDRAM -- which stands for "Synchronous Dynamic Random
Access Memory" is very common in today's computers.
Transfer rate maxes out at around 528 MBps.

DDR SDRAM -- which stands for "Double Data Rate
Synchronous Dynamic RAM" is similar to SDRAM but
has higher bandwidth, allowing for greater speeds.
Transfer rate to L2 cache is around 1,064 MBps.

DDR2 SDRAM -- which stands for "Double-data-rate
Two Synchronous Dynamic RAM", operates the external
data bus twice as fast as DDR SDRAM.

DDR3 SDRAM -- which stands for "Double-data-rate Three
Synchronous Dynamic RAM" and is an improvement over
DDR2 SDRAM. DDR3 allows for chip capacities of 512
megabits up to 8 gigabytes, which gives you the maximum
memory module size of a whopping 16 gigabytes.

Faster RAM Is Better

It should be mentioned, usually the faster the RAM you
have in your gaming laptop - the better the performance
you will get.


Memory Modules

RAM modules are mounted on printed circuit boards
to be used in personal computers. First, you had SIMMs
(single in-line memory modules) which were gradually
replaced by DIMMs (dual in-line memory modules).
The main difference between them: SIMMs have a 32-bit
data path and DIMMs have a 64-bit data path. Now for
notebooks, you have SO-DIMMs (small outline dual in-line
memory modules) which are smaller and more compact memory
integrated circuits.

Of course, like everything in life, there are radically
different forms of RAM such as RDRAM which stands for
"Rambus Dynamic Random Access Memory". This was
designed by Rambus and has a high speed data bus
nicknamed the Rambus channel. Likewise, you had
Rambus in-line memory module (RIMM) and for laptops
you had SO-RIMM.

Graphics Card

Next you must know there is something called VRAM
or VideoRAM. This is a type of RAM is used for
video adapters or 3-D accelerators. VRAM is
located in the Graphics Card and is important
for high resolution and color depth, both
very essential for gamers. Since true multiport
VRAM is expensive, some Graphics Cards use SGRAM
(synchronous graphics RAM) instead because it is
cheaper. Other types of special high speed or
multi-port memory include WRAM, DDR2, GDDR3 and
GDDR4.

Your Graphics Card will be the heart of your
gaming machine. Most gamers go for the top
brands such as NVIDIA (GeForce) and ATI (Radeon)
- the higher number series card usually means
higher the performance. For example, at the
time of writing, Nvidia has released the
GeForce 9800 GX2, which is basically dual
GeForce 8800 GT in one card. This will also
give you DirectX 10 Graphics. Wait a couple
of months and there will probably be something
faster and more powerful on the market.

If one Graphics Card is good, then two or more
would be even better. That's why you have SLI
(Scalable Link Interface) technology which
allows for the linking of two or more video
cards together to get a single output.
PCI Express, is another expansion card interface
format which was introduced by Intel in 2004.

How Much RAM Do You Need?

As already mentioned, the more RAM you have,
the better your computer will run. You will
be able to perform more tasks and do them
faster if you have plenty of RAM. Actually,
upgrading your RAM to a higher level will
usually give you a whole new computer.

There are recommended minimum requirements
if you want to run certain programs or
operating systems on your PC or Laptop.
For running Windows XP, Microsoft recommends
128MB as the minimum RAM requirement, again
more is better.

For Mac OS X systems you will need a minimum
of 128 MB but for optimal performance try 512 MB.
Linux will work nicely on a system with only 4 MB
of RAM.

For Windows Vista - Microsoft recommends at
least 1Gig of RAM but many users have reported
that 2 to 3 Gigs of RAM makes Vista a much more
easier beast to handle. Vista probably needs all
the good press if can get.

For Gaming Laptops: How Much RAM?

Again the more the better, gaming laptops
need a lot of RAM since you have heavy video
graphics and images. Serious gamers usually
buy as much RAM as they can afford, choosing
the fastest machines with the latest Graphics
Card. Laptops with four Gigs of RAM are becoming
common, with many gamers opting for 8 Gigs.

At the time of writing, what levels are we
currently at in regards to laptops and RAM?
Well, the new Alienware Area-51® m17x Notebook
comes with the following specs: An Intel® Core™ 2
Extreme processor with up to 4GB DDR2 667MHz
memory, sporting Dual Nvidia® GeForce® 8800M GTX.
This machine also has the Killerâ„¢ K1 Gaming Network
Card plus the ultra-life-like environments generated
by the Ageia PhysXâ„¢ processor. You should also note
that Ageia was recently (Feb. 2008) acquired by
Nvidia.

Perhaps, in regards to RAM, the wisest route
to take is to buy a laptop or PC where you
can easily upgrade or expand the RAM if you need
more memory. Changes are, wait a few months
and you will probably need to increase your RAM.


....

The author runs a handy online Laptop Guide featuring
the latest top gaming laptops: Best Gaming Notebooks/Laptops
To learn how to do your own computer or laptop memory
upgrade try here: Computer Memory Upgrade
Copyright © 2008 Titus Hoskins. This article may be
freely distributed if this resource box stays attached.