Hardware Brands

[Joseph Witchard]

How important is it for your hardware to be the same brand as your actual computer? I'm about to upgrade the RAM in my laptop, and I can get the memory I need for about $20.00 cheaper at Newegg than I can get it at from Dell. I recently had to replace my laptop screen, and Dell didn't have a good enough deal, so I bought an off-brand laptop screen from ebay. I've had it for a few months now and so far it has worked wonderfully, so that makes me think I should be all right.

It's probably not a big deal, but I just wanted to make sure that I was making the right decision.

[Four Staples]

I think you're confusing "brand" with "manufacturer." Dell does not, to my knowledge at least, make any RAM... if you bought RAM from Dell, it would be from another company that Dell uses for its RAM (Kingston, Corsair, Geil, Mushkin, etc.).

Just make sure you get the same type of RAM (DIMM, DDR, DDR2-800, etc.), and you'll be fine. In fact, it'll probably be better than what Dell will charge you twice as much for.

[Joseph Witchard]

Well, whatever it's called.

Is that true for all hardware, like drives and such? Assuming they're compatible with your computer?

[Four Staples]

Yeah, unless Dell has put some sort of barrier up that would prevent you from replacing a component, or if they use proprietary components (their HDDs and RAM shouldn't be, though).

Of course, this will almost definitely void your warranty.

[Joseph Witchard]

Thanks:)

[JunkMale]

Vendors like DELL and Packard Bell plus the others all have their stuff made for them and the factories that make these systems buy in from other 3rd party manufacturers that also supply the public with "Generic" or their own branded products.

I have never used any branded memory in my PC's and as long as you match your branded version to a generic version that will often be 1/3rd the price, you should not have any issues.

All the vendors / manufactures back in the 80's did have system specific components but this was ruled as anti-competative and manufacturers started making systems more easily upgrades and giving the customer greater scope to chose system componets or buy from other suppliers.

If someone tells you that you can not use anything other than the "Branded" product that is being sold by the very company that supplied your hardware, 99 time out of 100 they are chatting out their butt cheeks as they want your dollar.

My philosophy is simple, why pay for a branded product that costs you three times as much as the unbranded generic that has come from the same manufacturer of the branded product?

[David Harrison]

For a mediocre Dell or HP system the difference between "Dells own" and generic RAM may not be significant, but for a high performance rig, you need the top quality branded stuff.

Even if the RAM chips are initially made the exact same way, there is such a thing as speed binning.

The top chips will reach higher frequencies at lower latencies and lower voltage and are sold at a premium, the crap they sweep up off the factory floor is sold as the generic stuff.

The speed binning process also occurs in other areas, most prominently CPUs, Intel and AMD use the poorer performing parts, or those with defects in certain areas to comprise their lower product range. When the yields are good though and defects are less common, this does mean you'll get a top chip sold as a lower end part.

[JunkMale]

For a mediocre Dell or HP system the difference between "Dells own" and generic RAM may not be significant, but for a high performance rig, you need the top quality branded stuff.

Even if the RAM chips are initially made the exact same way, there is such a thing as speed binning.

The top chips will reach higher frequencies at lower latencies and lower voltage and are sold at a premium, the crap they sweep up off the factory floor is sold as the generic stuff.

The speed binning process also occurs in other areas, most prominently CPUs, Intel and AMD use the poorer performing parts, or those with defects in certain areas to comprise their lower product range. When the yields are good though and defects are less common, this does mean you'll get a top chip sold as a lower end part.

speed binning as you point out is a process of putting chips in to appropriate "Bins" like a PC3200 chip may very well overclock to the speed of a PC4800 but the chip has not been tested to that spec.

The speed binning process is not just limited to memory, it is something that is used on CPU's and other onboard components.

TBH I have never bothered to take that in to account because in any PC you will have a or many bottlenecks that cause system slowdowns. This can be problems from CPU timing to Bus Speed to Hardware devices and yes, all systems have latency which can be noticed when you have too many bottle necks.

So for the average street punter its OK to offload a bottlenecked system as these class of client will not know any better than a savvy tech head.

Horses for courses, why pay top dollar for something that has a cheaper and not so inferior counter part like a generic component.

Most big names do not own any manufactuering plants but have 3rd party manufacturers who make memory and Chips that then get badged up as being a brand name qualit item.

At the end of the day, theirs nothing wrong with generics as they have to meet standards to allow them to be sold in the shops or through vendors.

Cost does not equal quality. For some reason people buy in to this philosophy that to spend money one an item means that your product is some how superior. Why buy a Rolls Royce when a 2CV will do the same job, get you from A to B.