32 Bit OS RAM and Laptop Query

Another Query by our reader Malik on the Ask-Us page,

Dears
I want to get my self a laptop “lenovo T400″ with the P8600 CPU ,and i wanted to add 4 Gb of RAM for it where a friend of mine told me that if the CPU is 32 Bit it want use more than 3 GB is this true and if so is this a 32 or 64 bit processor

thank you in advance

Malik,
The Intel P8600 Mobile processor is an Intel x64 (EM64T / 64 bit) processor. We think your friend meant to tell you that you won’t be able to use 4 GB RAM if you install 32 bit Windows XP on your system. With a 32 bit Windows operating system, you can address only 3.5 GB of RAM at a maximum. To address more memory, you should either use 64 bit Windows XP / Vista or enable a hack called the PAE switch. You can read more details about the PAE switch here - http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/system/platform/server/PAE/PAEdrv.mspx . If you have any more queries, don’t hesitate to post it here.

The other Query by Jay

Hi! Please recommend me a laptop that is around $800.
I am about to use it for school and maybe sometimes for games.:)

I need it to be pretty fast, and comes with an OS in its package. A brand that has very good customer support, maybe easy to upgrade if possible, lasts long, and of course durable.

Thanks!

Hello Jay,

There are many good laptops you can get in $800, in fact for basic usage, you can get a laptop for as low as $500. However, if you want a laptop that would last you atleast 3-4 years, we would recommend from amongst the following:

1. Dell Studio 15
2. Dell Inspiron 1525
3. HP DV 5T
4. HP DV 5Z

The first three are Intel-based and hence offer less value than the last AMD based one in this range. The new Centrino 2 platform is out but is a bit costlier with a decent Centrino 2 model starting at $1000. We wouldn’t recommend a Centrino at this stage. The 4th offering - the HP DV 5Z is a very good option at this range. It is an AMD based system and offers great performance at a very good price. You can check out more details at the HP website -  HP Shopping

You can go with the base config at $579 and make a few changes - select the AMD Turion(TM) X2 Dual-Core Mobile Processor RM-70 (2.0GHz), and 3 GB RAM free upgrade for $100 extra which makes the total $679. If you want you can also add 256MB ATI Radeon(TM) HD 3450 Graphics - for $100 more. This fits well in your budget.

By the way, Congratulations on your new laptop.

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