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2gb memory in older laptop with xp, upgrade question

Last response: in Windows 7
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Hello,
I have an older IBM thinkpad which has 2GB memory installed.
Runs XP fine.
IBM / Leveno have drivers for both Vista and Windows 7.

This laptop will be used to access classes on the Internet, play music and maybe movies.
Lite Word and other Office apps, that's about it.

I know I can fine tune memory usage through services on windows 7 better than on Vista.

But for what I plan to do with the laptop, I am wondering if there is a 'best' option?

Thanks in advance!
Laptop Expert
Windows 7 Expert

Well, I have an HP laptop which is limited to 2 gig as the memory controller is kaput, the processor is probably a bit better than yours (Intel dual core), I have W7 installed on it and it runs fine. There again, if the HDD in the Thinkpad is SATA, you could consider an SSD for about the same cost as Win7 Retail, and your machine would fly...

Thing to remember is what is the effect of haveing 2 GB of RAM. With XP you will only be able to functionally access a maximum of 3 GB. The effect I mention is what you are running will determine if RAM data needs to be cached to the HDD page file. That will slow performance somewhat. That said there is limited gains to be made with XP. Win 7 64 bit would allow for more RAM to be accessed. RAM is cheap right now but you will find you will need to replace existing RAM with new. The Thinkpad mostly only has two RAM slots. One under the keyboard and one on the bottom.
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