Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance - Best bang for the buck around! (Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance 1 GB DDR II 800 MHz)

Member Name: neillya1

Product:	Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Performance 1 GB DDR II 800 MHz
Date:	21/01/09 (193 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Super fast, great warranty, cheap, reliable

Disadvantages: I really cannot think of any at all.

If, like I was, you're looking for some new RAM for your PC, and are thinking "Oh, I'll get any type, it's only RAM", then you need to think again.

I decided to go for it and buy some high quality gaming RAM instead of the cheap unbranded stuff you find around (I say cheap, this was only £10 per GB, not a bad deal), and my god did it make a difference!

I went from 2GB for eBuyer value RAM, to 4 of these 1GB sticks, and the difference in performance is amazing. Definitely the best "Cost:Performance" ratio you can get on a PC.

Although the 800Mhz DDRII RAM may not be at the forefront of technology with the recent release of DDR3, it is still the most cost effective way to improve performance.

A real life benchmark example, my framerate in Crysis (measured using FRAPS) went from 27 with the 2GB value RAM to 104 with 4GB of the Corsair XMS2 RAM in it. That is quite an increase! And not bad for £100.

And it's not just games that have improved. The start-up time of my PC (From boot to log on) has decreased from 21 seconds to 11, and even general web browsing is quicker now, as the computer can handle more at once.

Be warned though, if you are buying 4GB you must have a 64-bit OS (I use XP 64-bit, although this is hard to find now. Vista would be your best bet). If you only have a 32-bit OS, only 3-3.5GB will be recognized by your system.

Also, I wouldn't go for the low latency versions of these, as they cost around £5 more per stick, but you can just adjust the latency yourself in the BIOS and save a fair bit of money.

Installation is super easy (as with all RAM), just slot it in the correct slot and hey presto, it's done!

The lifetime warranty is a much welcomed edition, although I haven't heard any reports of a single one of these sticks going wrong! I've had mine in for around 12 months now, and they're still going strong, despite daily (and rather punishing) use.

Definitely a must buy!

Summary: A must buy, whether you use your PC for gaming or office work, these will speed up it a LOT.

Processing/Quality:
Reliability:
Installation:
Noise:
Speed: