My HP 15" AMD-A6 laptop with DVD drive came with only 4 GB of memory, and was a bit sluggish when running multiple tasks. Adding this PNY 4 GB memory to the second slot (for a total of 8 GB of memory) significantly improves the performance of the computer in all aspects. The $40 spent to upgrade the unit is well worth the price, and the PNY DDR3 soDIMM does not add any heat as installed.

This RAM was put into a desktop PC. Yes, I know. It's laptop RAM. I build a mini-PC, and this IX Asus motherboard uses SO-DIMMs, which in this case is laptop memory. The RAM arrived promptly and easily slotted into the motherboard. I've been running this mini-PC for about six weeks now and have had no issue. It runs at its specified 1,600 Mhz speed.

The reason I have given a rating of only 1 is because Best Buy gave me the wrong memory for my computer. To me, the module sent was worthless and I rated it accordingly. The worst thing is that I purchased the memory online at the same time that I purchased the computer. Moreover, it was linked from and listed on the computer page as the proper memory for the machine. There was also an encouragement to buy my upgrade at the same time as the computer to be sure I got the right memory. NO! It turns out the computer itself uses low voltage (1.35V), 1600MHz memory modules. The module linked to the computer sales page was standard voltage (1.5V) 1066MHz. Because I believed it was right (from the website info), I did not feel rushed to install it in the machine. When I did, and found out it was the wrong module, it was beyond the return date meaning I was stuck with it. PLEASE check component specifications carefully before ordering. It may not be right for your machine even if a notation claims it is. I learned the hard way and hope you don't have to.

After researching the RAM Upgrade qualifications, I learned that 4gb's was all I could add. But, searching online for the right product at a convenient location, at the right price, Was My Problem.....Until I looked at BESTBUY! They had this product in stock, at a great price and at a nearby store. I went to the store, picked it up, and have been happy ever since! Installation was a Breeze! And boy, does it make a difference in my computer usage.

Let me try to explain what my rather specific title is referring to. I’ve been recording music on the computer for about a decade. Six months ago I was finally able to buy a recording program that was powerful enough to record my music properly. For a brief time I felt like a kid in a candy-store. Yet, time and time again, I kept hitting a wall because my computer’s limited memory. I was asking for more than my RAM could deliver. I was over-eager, knowing what I could do with the right musical toolset. I was at a total impasse, before I installed PNY’s - 4GB DDR3 SDRAM Memory Module. For the first time ever, after installing it, I feel as if I could do just about anything that I want on my computer. What I mean by latency is essentially this; when I would play back a song to preview/edit it, eventually it would get to the point where the audio would start skipping/glitching. I had just added too much data for my computer to process it all properly. It sounded a bit like a scratched cd that was forced to continue playing, only even worse Needless to say it was not the most favorable of conditions to work under, when editing music. I exhausted every option available to me in the audio settings and still came up wanting. I was faced with the choice of either scaling back my music (bear in mind some these songs had haunted me for nearly ten year) or expanding my memory. Needless to say I chose to expand my memory. I glad to say that I am no longer having any memory/latency issues. Before I purchased I researched the type of RAM that I needed (my laptop uses a PC3-10666 DDR3, 204-pin SoDIMM configuration). It can't be stress enough, please research beforehand. There are different types of RAM configurations and you need to be very specific when buying. A good place to start this research would be looking into your computer’s specifications. The best analogy that I can think of right now is if you were to try and plug an appliance into an electrical outlet in a foreign country (if the RAM happened to be incompatible that is). Think of RAM chip as the plug and the slot in your computer as the electrical outlet. You have match the chip up according to the correct connection (size and shape; 204-pin SoDIMM in my case) as well as the correct speed (PC3-10666 DDR3; which was the matching clock speed of my computer's stock RAM chip). I’d also strongly suggest reading up a little bit on the subject before attempting to install the RAM. However with a bit of knowledge it’s a relatively easy task to complete. Depending on how your computer is set up and with a little research on how to access the RAM slot(s) in your computer, (the computer manufacture’s Maintenance and Teardown guides are very helpful in this regard) and assuming that there is an open slot, realistically it could take around ten to fifteen minutes to install RAM; including the time it takes to boot the computer back up. With my laptop (HP Pavilion G6) I had to unscrew one screw, take off a plate, slide a latch, slip the chip in, secure the latch back in place, screw the panel back on, and then boot my computer up. My computer recognized the chip and updated accordingly all on its own. It was only a hair harder than plug-and-play technology, but with limited prep-work beforehand, it was almost as simple. The only issue I’d mention is that my computer seems to take a bit longer to wake up from Sleep Mode/Hibernate. Strange enough, it seems to boot faster when turned on after being completely Shut-down. This may just be due to something that I have set up incorrectly and may have nothing to do with the PNY Chip itself. It’s not been a large enough problem where I’ve felt the need to fix it. It seems to take around 15-20 seconds longer to wake up from Sleep Mode. I can see programs running, but it takes a little while before they become responsive. However it’s entirely possible that my computer is taking the same amount of time to boot and I’m just able to look at the desktop, opposed to before when it stayed on the windows load screen during that time while booting. After it catches up, my computer runs just as fast, if not faster, than it did on the very first day when I took it out of the box (2010). I tend to run a lot of programs simultaneously. It is not unheard of for me to have 30+ tabs open in Chrome, while jumping between MS Word, (with 3-5 files open) while using media player in the background, all without any of the applications slowing down. This is actually an exact description of the state that my computer is in while I am writing this review. The PNY Chip can handle a lot of strain. It has been able to cope with everything that I’ve throw at it and I have no reason to doubt that it’s capable of handling even more. The difference is night and day. I’m able to do things now that had taxed my computer to its limits and I don’t even have to think twice about it. I’ve used my laptop for music/photo/video editing, gaming, and I’m about to start programming on it as well. I was lucky and found this chip on sale. I have a pretty limited budget, but I can say that this is hands down one of the best purchases that I have ever made. I bought it for just under $40, but in retrospect even if I had paid full price, I would have still felt content with my purchase. I’m used to pushing the computers I’ve owned to their limit and becoming perpetually frustrated when they can’t keep up with what I would like for them to do. I've had this chip installed for around three months and I have yet to outpace my computer. I bought this PNY chip because of a very specific need, but I would wager that it could help any other healthy/compatible computer perform more efficiently as well. Forgive the lengthy review. I fretted for far too long over making this purchase (and also the prospect of having to install it). I wasted time that could have been much better spent. I’ve been wholly impressed with PNY’s - 4GB DDR3 SDRAM Memory Module. Even writing at this exaggerated length I fear I cannot fully express how much this product has changed how I am able to use my computer (and it has been all for the best I assure you). For me it was a small price to pay for the freedom of not having to compromise creatively. A fair trade if you ask me. PNY is now one of the companies on my ‘trusted list’, so to speak. If this chip happens to be the right size/speed that you need for your computer, then I would recommend it without any reservations (the lifetime warranty is one of the main reasons that I feel confident enough to be so definitive about that statement). I’d also like to mention the difference may seem subtle at first; frankly I was a bit underwhelmed until I tested my RAM using very same files that had 'broken' the system before, without any problems at all, after install the RAM. The effect can be truly profound when and where it really counts and the results are nothing short of astounding. The limits of what I can do rest only with me and not the technology. It is quite refreshing really. All things said if this is the right size/speed of RAM for your needs, then the price is well-worth what you will receive in return.