Upgraded DDR3 / RAM stick but still no performance change

My laptop used to have just 4 GB of RAM. I can't buy a new laptop or a new graphics card. So I just bought an 8 GB DDR3, which is also known as memory stick or RAM stick. Now my Control Panel says I have 8 GB of RAM. I am expecting better overall performance (Internet, browsing, surfing, videos, games, etc.) but I don't notice much improvement. The frame rate in my games is averaging 5-21 frames/second, which is hardly better than what used to be 1-19 FPS. Start up, Internet browsing and surfing, etc. and generic use are also still slow.

I'm sure my hard drive isn't too full, it doesn't even have half of it used, and I regularly close / stop unnecessary processes in Task Manager. And I have my anti-virus on.

What is wrong with my laptop?

@chewbacc1980: My CPU / processor is AMD E2 3800 with 1.3 GHZ, and my laptop is Toshiba Satellite C55DA, and my graphics card / GPU is AMD Radeon 3280.

I'm thinking that CPU might also have a big impact on performance, and that 1.3 GHZ is weak. But now with 8 GB of RAM I am expecting significant increase in performance.

Don't expect ram to be game changer. It can help fix a bottle neck it creates when not much of it is originally present but it won't increase your systems over all ability besides allowing you to use larger files and open more tabs. You laptop is slow because well it's like a $300-$400 dollar laptop at it's highest possible price. What were you honestly expecting from a laptop that I'm sure you could find for $280 ? You have an every day computing laptop that probably can't even do streaming all that well let alone run games.

@ribstaylor1: I am far too poor to buy anything more expensive than my current laptop. And it costed $299.99, even cheaper than what you expected.

Should have saved for something around $500 you could have gotten one around that price on sale that would at least play games at low medium settings. The one you have now literally can't play games. It's not what it was built for and the parts aren't meant for it. Sorry I know it sucks Im currently typing on a tri core CPu with an integrated 6150se and it can't even play games newer then the beginning of the generation of xbox 360. Some RTS games it can handle but other then that It can't do it, and the ones it does it doesn't do well at all. Yours is worse off then mine sadly. You'll have to save up if you want to get into pc gaming.

@ribstaylor1: I know... my laptop is extremely low-spec. I *CAN* afford around $1000 or even $2000 but that will be a VERY big, huge deal for me. $400 to $900... that would be less of a deal.

Also, if most powerful laptops today have 8 GB RAM, then I upgraded mine to 8 GB so isn't that already like buying a new laptop, just less costly? Or maybe CPU also has a huge impact on performance, does it? Because I didn't (and can't right now ) upgrade my CPU.

My original question is, does upgrading (doubling, specifically) RAM significantly improve performance? Yes or no? Thanks everyone for your advice/s.

In your laptop no it won't make a difference because your CPU is to slow for most things. You also don't have a dedicated graphics cards you graphics are integrated so your CPU is doing all the work and it's all ready on the low low end of the spectrum of capabilities.

You also won't be able to upgrade your laptop beyond adding more ram or a larger hard drive. You'll have to invest in a whole new machine if gaming on a laptop is what you wish to do. Sorry to say it but that laptop was an over all bad investment. And they generally are when you start to get into the under $500 dollar category. It's all ways better to just spend a bit more on a pc as cheeping out generally hurts a lot more in the long run over spending a tad more then you wanted to originally. The hassles, and time wasted with issues like trying to make things run are for sure worth investing a couple of hundred more to not have those headaches.

@chewbacc1980:

For your computer it will not do anything. Its a extremely low spec PC. Ram will not do anything in your case.

It's like, buying a new laptop because of 8GB RAM? Definitely not! CPU and GPU are VERY important if you're looking for performance (specially for gaming). Also, you might have bought 8GB kit for nothing. If you're using a 32 bit windows, it won't let the system use more than 4GB unless it's a 64 bit OS.

No, it does not improve performance. Where did you get the idea to upgrade your RAM? You only add more RAM when you are running out of RAM. Adding RAM does not increase performance in the way that you were hoping. Adding a new CPU and GPU would increase performance. It is best to stay away from laptops in general. They offer shit performance, limited upgradibility and are expensive compared to a desktop PC. Only buy a laptop if you absolutely need the portability. If you do get a system with good components, 8 GB of RAM is definitely recommended for the latest games.

Think of it as moving from a 2 lane road to a 4 lane road. It allows more cars to drive through, but if there is only a couple cars driving on the road, it isn't going to make a difference. The rest of your laptop isn't strong enough to really take advantage of 8gb of ram in most cases.

8 GB of RAM means you shouldn't be staring at a frozen desktop/windows because the rest of the PC is waiting for the hard drive to finish crunching (due to insufficient RAM). That's about it with more RAM for me.

Most of the other issues depend on the CPU and GPU.

For browsing the Internet you don't need more than 4Gb, installing 8Gb of RAM will not boost your games performance, if you do not own 8Gb of RAM these days you're basically handicapping yourself from not be able to run modern games - that's it.

That's true for the most part. But, it also depends on the computer/surfing habits. I make do with 5 or 6 tabs on my browser. My kid always have a gajillion browser tabs open in addition to multiple Photoshop files. I had to upgrade her PC to 8 GB because it started to lag badly when it had just 4 GB.

LOL, well you would agree that's not the average user, specially with Photoshop on the background.

You need to learn to shop better.

I was able to get a laptop off ebay about three months ago for $315.00 that had an intel i5 3230m and a Nvidia 650m.

It's able to play any game fine with some at max settings like the new Alien Isolation game, albeit at 1366x768 but I didn't originally buy the laptop to play games so I am just happy it is that capable to begin with.

The laptop you got could be better used as a door stop when it comes to playing current or even last gen games.

@RyviusARC: He most likely got it at best buy or future shop.

In your case...no. Your problem was never the 4GB of RAM. That processor and the GPU are likely holding you back as far as performance. If I had to guess the main thing causing your problems while just surfing the web would be that processor. There really isn't much you can do with that particular laptop.

If your not working with much of a budget, you could keep an eye on Ebay and try and find an older refurbished laptop that has a dedicated graphics card (if possible). I bought an old Ibuypower laptop for around $140 and it plays games like mincraft and the Sims4 just fine.

As others have said, your laptop is bad. More ram won't help when all the other parts are crap.

Look second hand. I got a high end HP Probook (2011 model) for £200, added an SSD and upgraded from 4GB to 8GB ram, total cost was £350 to get a well built business class laptop with 5 hour battery with an i5, 8GB ram and SSD. Those specs new would have been £600+.