Question Regarding RAM Upgrade

Greetings!

Okay, I know that this is probably a question only a noob (like me!) would ask, but I'm considering a RAM upgrade and I have a couple questions regarding what my comp already has.

My system...

HP Pavilion 513n
Intel Celeron 1.8 GHz CPU
256 MB RAM
2 DIMM/DDR slots available

I accessed my AwardBIOS Setup Utility and here's what I found in the memory section...

Installed Memory 256 MB/PC2100 (I know what this means!)
Memory Bank 0 256 MB DDR SDRAM
Memory Bank 1 None

Here are my questions... does this mean I can install SDRAM boards in my system as opposed to straight DDR boards? Can I install two 256 MB SDRAM boards (one per slot) or would one 512 MB board be a better choice?

Any assistance would be appreciated! Please excuse my "newbie ignorance"!

 

your computer takes DDR-SDRAM, not the old SDRAM.

the easiest and probably most beneficial thing for you to do would be to get another 256MB stick of pc2100 DDR ram and put that into your second slot. that should give you a nice little performance increase since windows likes extra memory (especially XP)

 

To add to what InYearsToCome said, you can also get PC2700 or PC3200 RAM if it is less expensive. (chances are, you can get PC2700 for the same or less money as the PC2100) The PC2700/3200 RAM will just run at the same speed as your PC2100 stick.

 

SDRAM = 168 Pins, Has 2 notches in pcb board
DDR-SDRAM = 184 Pins, Has 1 notch in pcb board

They physically can not fit into each other's slots.

 

Go here:

http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/index.asp

It'll tell you exactly what you have, what you can upgrade to, how many available slots, what combos you can use to reach the maximum RAM for your PC, etc.
It'll even give you several choices of RAM to choose from and you can buy it right on their site if you want.

I've used this site many times.
Linda