-4

I guess this question does not only apply to my particular situation, but in case these details matter: I have Dell XPS 15 9550 laptop, and I bought a 16GB RAM, 256GB SSD version with plans to buy more RAM and SSD later. Now I am thinking of an upgrade, and I wonder how do I pick hardware which is compatible with my laptop, and which is good/fast enough? To clarify, I am not asking how to install hardware - that differs perhma41gs6afr8n-tf laptop, and for mine there are plenty of vides already. However, they do not discuss how to pick hardware - and that's what my question is about.

  1. How can I check which RAM is compatible with my laptop? In CPU-Z I saw that my RAM is 2x8GB, and I'm going to buy 2x16GB. This is a screenshot: it's big an of low quality, so instead of pasting it here, The part number is hma41gs6afr8n-tf, which suggests that it is a Hynix RAM. Now, I can also see that mine is DDR4-2133 (1066MHz), but if I search for Hynix 16GB I see only DDR3 versions, also with 1600MHz. So:

    • Is DDR3 worse than DDR4? Should I proceed looking for DDR4 version?
    • Do I have to find a RAM with exactly 1066MHz, and what does 2133 mean?
    • How can I look for compatible RAM of other companies, e.g. Kingston?
    • Even if I look for Hynix RAM, how can I make sure that it will be the size that fits my laptop? I saw that my laptop RAM modules are quite slim, whereas most that I saw on internet are quite wider.

  2. My CPU-Z does not show anything about the SSD, as you can see on the link. However, in the Device Manager I could find that its part number is NVMe THNSN5256GPU7 NV. Apparently it is a Toshiba module, however I can't see any other characteristics of it, and neither I have found a lot of info on internet about it. Same questions apply: how can I pick an SSD compatible with my laptop, how do I make sure it is fast enough and it has the right size?

enter image description here

I am happy to get any help on my question. I have already tried crucial, however I had an impression that they only sell their own products, so compatibility check with them provides quite limited information.

SBF
  • 247
  • 1
  • 3
  • 9
  • 1
    You are asking an off-topic question (hardware shopping). Please read [On-Topic](http://superuser.com/help/on-topic), [How do I ask a good question?](http://superuser.com/help/how-to-ask) and [What types of questions should I avoid asking?](http://superuser.com/help/dont-ask). – DavidPostill Jun 02 '16 at 21:09
  • Your laptop does not support 32GB of RAM. Your laptop uses DDR4, so why are you looking at DDR3 memory, it can't be used. You already have the fastest DDR4 memory that your system supports. What DDR4-2133 means exactly is well documented. – Ramhound Jun 02 '16 at 21:11
  • 1
    @DavidPostill: I had a different impression, since [this question](http://superuser.com/questions/18995/how-can-i-tell-what-ram-will-fit-my-computer) was answered and got quite some upvotes - in my case I only provide more thorough description of the situation I'm in. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:12
  • 1
    @Ilya The question you link to was asked in 2009. Such questions may have been on -topic then but not any more. – DavidPostill Jun 02 '16 at 21:14
  • @Ramhound: according to [crucial](http://eu.crucial.com/eur/en/scanview/5027F60F31D926C3) my laptop supports 32GB RAM, and has all its suggestions are DDR4 (which you've questioned in the first version of your comment), not to mention that same info is provided in CPU-Z screenshot, which is attached above in the link. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:14
  • @DavidPostill: by all means, if the community does not accept question, there is no sense to fight for that - but from your first link, my question is about computer hardware, and I am not asking about product recommendation (in the list of off-topics that's the closest I've found) - merely how to find out which hardware is compatible. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:16
  • Try the Hardware Recommendation stack exchange. Otherwise, most of this can be answered by doing some googling. –  Jun 02 '16 at 21:18
  • @Ramhound: if you have read my question, you should have noticed that I already have 2133MHz DDR4 8GB memory - so your advice to purchase it confuses me. *why are you looking at DDR3 memory?* I don't, I just wrote that that's the only Hynix versions I've found. *Your system wouldn't support 2x16GB* Dell explicitly says that it will, and so does crucial. Dell also sells a 2x16GB version of this laptop, with the same motherboard, cpu etc. Can you elaborate on your statements, please? – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:23
  • @SiXandSeven8ths: I'm not looking for hardware recommendations, I want to know how can I check whether hardware is compatible with my laptop. Truly, most of the things can be answered by googling, or I can go ahead and read several manuals, however I used to think that SE network is about more experienced people providing their help. It is pretty much like saying on the math.SE that most the math questions asked there were already solved by somebody, or can be found by googling as they appear in a couple of math books. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:26
  • Honestly, I did not expect such reaction - being informed that the question is off-topic (even though it's not clear from the on- and off-topic list), and getting unsupported statements that directly contradict information from the manufacturer. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:28
  • So then, to answer your question, you need DDR4 memory, can only support up to 32GB. What else is there? –  Jun 02 '16 at 21:33
  • @SiXandSeven8ths does it have to be 1066MHz? Can I install RAM with 3200 MT/s, or does it have to stay 2133? How can I make sure that the physical size of the module fits my laptop when I order it online, is it an additional characteristic I should look for in modules description? – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:42
  • I've never known laptop memory to be of different sizes. And you'd have to check with Dell to see if you have to stay at 1066MHz. If this is some custom job, then you'd have to get the scoop from the source, Dell. –  Jun 02 '16 at 21:44
  • @SiXandSeven8ths yeah, I was going to contact them, but since I'm used to solve such things myself, thought I'd rather learn it from experts here. I'm quite lagging on hardware compatibility side as I did not read about it for years, and many things are not clear to me now. If it does not work here, I'll contact dell. – SBF Jun 02 '16 at 21:47
  • Possible duplicate of [How can I tell what RAM will fit my computer?](https://superuser.com/questions/18995/how-can-i-tell-what-ram-will-fit-my-computer) – karel Nov 28 '19 at 03:00

1 Answers1

1

Dell XPS 15 9550 supports 32 GB ( 2 x 16 GB). Refer: http://downloads.dell.com/manuals/all-products/esuprt_laptop/esuprt_xps_laptop/xps-15-9550-laptop_reference%20guide_en-us.pdf

For compatible RAM upgrades for your Dell XPS 15 9550, click below link: http://www.memorystock.com/memory/DellXPS159550.html

Your laptop supports only DDR4. No other memory type can be interchanged as it will not fit physically as well.

  • Thanks! Do you have similar information about SSD? – SBF Jun 04 '16 at 09:46
  • You can refer this: http://www.ihowfix.com/how-to-disassemble-dell-xps-15-9550-to-upgrade-ram-ssd-hdd/ pci express gen3 x8 –  Jun 10 '16 at 17:59