[SINC]

I want to buy a max stick of RAM for my new 12.1" Aluminum 1 Ghz Powerbook. Anyone have any opinions on what brand to buy and what I should expect to pay? This is one purchase I can make anywhere in the country as it is so small, that shipping cost is not an issue.

Cheers

 

[monokitty]

You should probably expect to pay over $400 before taxes or shipping; and from the U.S at that. Crucial: 1 GB SO-DIMM for 12" Powerbook - $499.99 U.S ($652.00 CAD)

 

[Bolor]

I Like canadaram ... pricey tho' Try this Canadaram Mac page

 

[Hankman]

I have been searching for 1 GB RAM for my iBook G4. Nothing in Canada that doesn't cost an arm and a leg but I have found the following places in the States which sell RAM, which are actually cheaper than buying in Canada even with the exchange rate.

http://eshop.macsales.com/
http://www.transintl.com/

I have bought from both these places before and they have both been great to deal with.

H

 

[monokitty]

It's unforunate that despite such high prices on 1 GB DIMM's now, it'll still be another year or longer (probably the latter) before they even come down a small tad in price - especially with current RAM prices climbing up instead of down as of now.

 

[plperdue]

Will the 1GB ram sticks work for REV A Powerbook 867mhz 12 inch?

 

[Hankman]

Well I have been tracking the price of 1 GB RAM for the iBook G4 and it has come down in price within the past month. It had been selling for $500 US but now it is around $389. I guess it's due to it not being so exclusive now to certain online dealers.

 

[PosterBoy]

I always recommend Kingston RAM. It is sometimes (quite a bit) more expensive, but it is the best RAM out there.

Kingston RAM for 12" PowerBook 1Ghz

Note that the price on their website is in US dollars, and somewhat inflated from what you would pay if you walked into a store and ordered it.

 

[Aaross]

I have an iBook G4, I thought 640 was the max ram you can put in it.

 

[SINC]

Sorry PB, but I just do not understand why a 512 MB is under $200 and the 1 G is $800. What is with that? If 512 is worth $190, should not a 1 G be worth $350 or so?

Cheers

 

[monokitty]

Sorry PB, but I just do not understand why a 512 MB is under $200 and the 1 G is $800. What is with that? If 512 is worth $190, should not a 1 G be worth $350 or so?

When you double the size of a DIMM, we all wish it were as simple as just doubling the price. The reason 1 GB DIMM's are so expensive is because a) they're new technology - so much RAM in one stick and b) not popular. The former is the biggest reason. Oh, and c) - chances are, not cheap to produce.

Heck, 4 years ago, a 128 MB DIMM costed about $300 U.S - and that was when it was on sale.

Ahh, the back pages of MacAddict advertisements reveal old year price.

 

[Neil Yates]

The MacTracker app lists the 12" AlPB Rev A as being able to use a 1GB SO-DIMM module.

The reason for more expensive 1GB modules over 512 and 256MB can be primarily attributed to 'supply & demand'. There's a low demand, hence a low supply. A low supply = a low unit production. Low unit production = high unit cost.

A sign of increased demand is that in September, this module was over $1200 US in price. Give it time, and the unit price will drop...

 

[SINC]

Thanks for all the replies folks. I guess my best option is to wait and see if the price drops.

Cheers

 

[monokitty]

Apple officially only supports putting in 512 MB in the open slot on the iBook G4. But that was because there was no such thing as 1 GB RAM for the iBook G4.

Actually, that's isn't quite right. There was 1 GB SO-DIMM's at the iBook G4's release that were DDR266 specific, therefore would work in the iBook G4. I think one of the reasons Apple posted the max at 640 MB was because they didn't want the iBook to be advertised so it could almost hold as much RAM as the Powerbook 12". I think Apple wants the iBook to stay signicficantly different than the Powerbook line - and that includes how much RAM it can hold.

However, the iBook G4 can indeed hold 1.12 GB of RAM if you throw in a 1 GB (1024 MB) DDR266 (PC-2100) SO-DIMM into its only slot.

 

[Hankman]

Aaross,

Apple officially only supports putting in 512 MB in the open slot on the iBook G4. But that was because there was no such thing as 1 GB RAM for the iBook G4.

All the companies that do make the 1 GB RAM say they are made to Apple's specs for the iBook. So technically there should be no problem and I haven't heard of any as such. As long as Apple doesn't build the limitation into the firmware of the iBook and so long as the memory is up to spec it should work and be recognized.

 

[Hankman]

Thanks Lars, my bad.

I was thinking of when the AlPB came out. Back then I think there was no 1 GB SO-DIMM available.

 

[PosterBoy]

A 1GB RAM chip costs more than twice as much a 512 chip for the same reasons that a 512 costs more than twice as much as a 256:

A) very low demand for such a high capacity chip
B) very difficult to get more chips into the same physical space.

And because of B,

C) very difficult to manufacture such a high capacity chip and have a good ratio of good chips to bad chips.

 

[Aaross]

Thanks guys, that's great to know that I can stuff twice the ram into this than I thought.