"Radith" said in news:
[email protected]:
Hi All;
Just wondering why laptops don't come with RAM that's got ECC. I've
checked all the big name manufactures but none of the RAM they offer
include ECC. Although many workstations offer RAM with ECC. ?????
Thanx in advance
Radith Silva
Obviously because ECC is more expensive. You don't offer a preset
configuration that is more expensive than your competitor. End users
rarely need ECC; laptops aren't used a servers (they have other
deficiencies besides the lack of ECC). What you don't mention is if
laptops won't *support* ECC memory. Desktops you buy preconfigured also
don't come with ECC memory. That's something you have to ADD to the
order (to *change* the preconfigured system).
Actually I suspect it has to do with physical limitations of using
SODIMM (small outline DIMM) memory sticks. There is no room to add the
ECC checking chips (see
http://snipurl.com/623h for a description of
SODIMMs). For non-ECC DIMM sticks, there are 8 chips on the PCB (see
http://snipurl.com/623k) but there is room to add the ECC chip (it fills
the empty middle chip position); if you can divide the chip count by 3
or 5 then it is an ECC stick.
I went to
www.kingston.com and
www.crucial.com to hunt around to see
what SODIMMs they offered. None were ECC. Apparently there is no
market for an extraneous expense for ECC memory in laptops. ECC will
slow down the system by about 2% (see
http://snipurl.com/623t) and is
used on servers because data is king over performance (data must remain
inviolate even at the expense of performance).
If YOU can find a SODIMM that has ECC then ask that manufacturer in
which laptop that memory stick gets used.
