Laptop Memory

[Grinder]

I had some laptop memory (128MB SO-DIMM PC100 144-pin) go bad, and RMA'd
it to the manufacturer. It turns out that their lifetime warranty is
the "lifetime of the technology." I wouldn't really expect them to
replace a 20 year-old bit of hardware, but this card was only 6 1/2
years old.

After shipping the defective memory, at my expense, they told me that
they had no backstock to make a replacement. So, my choices were: 1)
take a 256MB replacement, or 2) marvel at how I had to pay shipping when
they easily could have told me they had no replacement. The laptop that
it goes into is spec'd to a maximum expansion of 128MB. I took the
256MB stock as I thought I could at least sell it on eBay and get my
shipping back.

Perhaps it's ill-advised, but I've tried the 256MB module in the laptop,
and it works to the extent that it adds 128MB to reported available
memory, and passes the POST. I'm testing it now with MemTest+ to see if
it holds up to more severe scrutiny.

Q1) Am I foolish for having tried putting the 256MB card into a spot
where a maximum of 128MB should have been allowed to go? ie, am I
risking damage to the memory or the computer?

Q2) If it passes a 24-hour Memtest+, should I trust that memory?

 

[kony]

I had some laptop memory (128MB SO-DIMM PC100 144-pin) go bad, and RMA'd
it to the manufacturer. It turns out that their lifetime warranty is
the "lifetime of the technology." I wouldn't really expect them to
replace a 20 year-old bit of hardware, but this card was only 6 1/2
years old.

If you're lucky you happened to save some kind of warranty
statement at the time of purchase. If you're unlucky they
had already schemed up this "lifetime of tech" policy at
that point in time and had included this in their warranty
statement.

After shipping the defective memory, at my expense, they told me that
they had no backstock to make a replacement.

Let them know that you aren't really concerned with their
company stock problems, only that your warranty claim be
covered.

So, my choices were: 1)
take a 256MB replacement,

Do they guarantee it compatible with your notebook, is your
notebook able to use 256MB and is it the right density?

or 2) marvel at how I had to pay shipping when
they easily could have told me they had no replacement.

Which company is doing this? At the very least it's a good
reason for the rest of us to avoid buying their products, or
to not put any weight in the supposed-lifetime warranty.

The laptop that
it goes into is spec'd to a maximum expansion of 128MB. I took the
256MB stock as I thought I could at least sell it on eBay and get my
shipping back.

So they didn't even bother to check whether they were
offering something compatible.

Perhaps it's ill-advised, but I've tried the 256MB module in the laptop,
and it works to the extent that it adds 128MB to reported available
memory, and passes the POST. I'm testing it now with MemTest+ to see if
it holds up to more severe scrutiny.

Running higher density memory at half it's capacity can work
fine, or in other cases the system won't even POST.

Q1) Am I foolish for having tried putting the 256MB card into a spot
where a maximum of 128MB should have been allowed to go? ie, am I
risking damage to the memory or the computer?

No it just can't address half of it.

Q2) If it passes a 24-hour Memtest+, should I trust that memory?

In that case it has demonstrated it is as stable as any
other module that ran ok for the 24 hour test. There is
still a small % chance the memtest testing hasn't revealed
some instability but this would be true with any module,
including if they had sent what seemed identical to what you
had RMAed to them.

 

[Grinder]

If you're lucky you happened to save some kind of warranty
statement at the time of purchase. If you're unlucky they
had already schemed up this "lifetime of tech" policy at
that point in time and had included this in their warranty
statement.

I have no documentation from the original purchase, so I'm completely at
their mercy. To their credit the made *some* attempt to honor the
warranty instead giving me the FO.

Let them know that you aren't really concerned with their
company stock problems, only that your warranty claim be
covered.

Inventory = Left hand, Tech Support = Right hand. I just laughed when
the tech used ignorance as a defense.

Do they guarantee it compatible with your notebook, is your
notebook able to use 256MB and is it the right density?

Absolutely not. The spec for the notebook explicitly states 128MB max
for the add-in module. That's reason enough for them to beg off.

Which company is doing this? At the very least it's a good
reason for the rest of us to avoid buying their products, or
to not put any weight in the supposed-lifetime warranty.
SimpleTech


So they didn't even bother to check whether they were
offering something compatible.

The do know my make and model, and knew enough that could not exactly
meet the recommendation.

Running higher density memory at half it's capacity can work
fine, or in other cases the system won't even POST.



No it just can't address half of it.



In that case it has demonstrated it is as stable as any
other module that ran ok for the 24 hour test. There is
still a small % chance the memtest testing hasn't revealed
some instability but this would be true with any module,
including if they had sent what seemed identical to what you
had RMAed to them.

Ok, that's good to know. It was my intuition that this mismatch would
either be catastrophic or irrelevant. I'll trust it as far as I can
throw it--which is across the street to the neighbor that owns it.

This the same laptop that gets a bad case of the burps when the wireless
network card is active. I bit more on that: I found some updates that
are intended to address sound card interference while using the card
bus, but applying them makes no improvement to the condition. The owner
is happy enough with the stipulation that it's either internet *or*
sound, so I guess they won't mark it down as a hack job. Still, I wish
I could have had a better outcome.

Thanks again for your opinion.

 

[kony]

Inventory = Left hand, Tech Support = Right hand. I just laughed when
the tech used ignorance as a defense.

True, but offering the lifetime warranty is in itself a
commitment to maintain the stock or continually be able to
acquire it if/when they have to make good on their
warranty. Otherwise, all warrantees are worthless as they
can just say "we didn't manufacture enough of that to cover
any warranty so the lifetime of it is over".

Absolutely not. The spec for the notebook explicitly states 128MB max
for the add-in module. That's reason enough for them to beg off.

There's the problem, in that they knew memory tech changes.

Ok, that's good to know. It was my intuition that this mismatch would
either be catastrophic or irrelevant. I'll trust it as far as I can
throw it--which is across the street to the neighbor that owns it.

Sometimes it's neither catastrophic or irrelevant, in that
the system just won't POST at all. It's been awhile since I
used any higher density 128MB DIMMs but if that's what you
had instead of 256MB, it might have not worked instead of
working as 64MB.

 

[Grinder]

True, but offering the lifetime warranty is in itself a
commitment to maintain the stock or continually be able to
acquire it if/when they have to make good on their
warranty. Otherwise, all warrantees are worthless as they
can just say "we didn't manufacture enough of that to cover
any warranty so the lifetime of it is over".

"Our memory? Sure, we absolutely, positively, without a doubt, may god
strike us dead, will probably stand behind it."

 

[Plato]

Q1) Am I foolish for having tried putting the 256MB card into a spot
where a maximum of 128MB should have been allowed to go? ie, am I
risking damage to the memory or the computer?

In theory, if you put in a larger ram card in a slot that the pc cant
see all the ram, the ram it does see should work fine, in theory.