Modern gaming laptops come with limited modularity or upgrade potential, often limited to SSD and RAM upgrades in particular. While modular gaming laptops exist currently that offer users the ability to switch out CPUs, motherboards, and even GPUs, they are more or less a rarity with some being a work in progress as opposed to a refined product.
G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR5 SO-DIMM Series DDR5 RAM 32GB
Crucial 8GB DDR5 SO-DIMM 4800MHz CL40 Laptop RAM
Irrespective of one’s gaming needs, the team at Game Rant has them covered with a detailed, up-to-date guide on how to pick the best DDR5 RAM for their gaming laptops below.
Kingston Fury Impact 32GB 5600MHz DDR5 RAM CL40
A Furious All-Rounder
The Kingston Fury Impact DDR5 laptop memory offers 5600MHz clocks at an acceptable CL40 latency offering that is slightly pricier than the competition but offers higher speeds as a result, making it a capable tradeoff for modern gaming laptops looking to eke out a little more performance with an XMP profile that supports (and exceeds) Intel’s 13th-gen platform needs.
For most gaming laptop owners sporting a fairly recent offering that has DDR5 support, the Kingston FURY Impact 32GB 5600MHz is an adequate performer that has a fair market price for what it offers.
It comes in a 5600 MT/s trim with a relatively low latency (CL40) offering for gaming laptops that can be scaled down to lower clocks with tighter timings on older DDR5-based laptops.
Kingston’s FURY offering comes with on-die ECC that makes it a great pickup for users needing a more stable experience for their productivity and coding needs by boosting reliability even as it brings no performance impact into play.
The FURY offering, however, is not the cheapest, withmany contenders offering as much as a 25% haircutat the cost of higher latencies but the same capacity and clock speeds in tow.
TEAMGROUP Elite SODIMM DDR5 16GB 4800MHz
An Inexpensive Upgrade
The singular Teamgroup Elite DDR5 RAM module has an entry-level DDR5 frequency of 4800 MHz, making it the ideal upgrade choice for a majority of laptop owners looking to upgrade their existing gaming laptop without spending an arm and a leg.
Users looking for a simple DDR5 RAM upgrade for their existing gaming laptop, many of which come with a single RAM module by default, can opt for the cost-effective TEAMGROUP Elite SODIMM DDR5 16GB 4800MHz instead.
The value-centric RAM offering should work with all DDR5-based laptops that support the base 4800MHz frequency even as it offers a decent CL40 CAS latency in tow for gamers and productivity users.
While with most entry-level to mid-range laptops, it should match the default memory installed, but for those users sporting a 5600MHz memory config on their more recent gaming laptop purchase, TEAMGROUPdoes offer a 5600MHz variant of the same (with a higher latency) for an additional $3at the time of writing.
KLEVV DDR5 32GB (2x16GB) 5600MHz CL46 A-DIE 1.1V SODIMM
More For Less
The RAM is ideal for users upgrading their gaming laptops with a more cost-effective DDR5 option than most OEMs would offer.It comes with a 5600MHz clock speed and significantly undercuts its competition on pricing while offering a slightly higher latency to achieve its low price tag.
Users needing a higher capacity RAM kit without wanting to spend beyond the bare minimum can opt for the KLEVV DDR5 32GB 5600MHz kit above, which comes at a $30 discount versus Game Rant’s overall recommendation, the Kingston FURY impact.
It matches the former recommendation’s clock speeds and capacity even as it loosens up the CAS latency to achieve said ratings, offering a CAS latency of CL46.
Users, however, have had some level of luck pushing tighter timings on the modules, especially at lower clock speeds. This might not be altogether surprising as the company states that it uses memory manufacturer SK Hynix’s A-Dies which does instill more trust for some discerning users.
The KLEVV DDR5 32GB 5600MHz CL46 offering above also comes with on-die ECC as it keeps voltages at 1.1V, making it a reliable, inexpensive RAM offering in a market that generally tends to be extremely competitive when it comes to pricing.
Crucial RAM 64GB Kit (2x32GB) DDR5
The High Capacity Value Play
The Crucial RAM 64GB kit DDR5, rated at 4800 MT/s is the ideal RAM for professional gamers who don’t compromise when it comes to laptop speed and performance.It consists of a two-pack kit, with each stick being a 32GB RAM module, each with a CAS latency of 40
Users primarily wanting high-capacity RAM for their gaming needs, often in tandem with creation needs, mods, or streaming requirements can opt for the Crucial RAM 64GB Kit (2x32GB) DDR5 that clocks in at speeds of 4800MHz even as it retains a CAS latency of CL40.
This makes it one of the cheapest kits on the market for laptops in terms of price per gigabyte of storage on offer. It does also offer wide compatibility with most modern gaming laptops, but users needing a 5600MHz variantcan grab theirs for an additional $15 in spendat the time of writing.
While Crucial’s offering is not the fastest in the business in terms of clock speeds or latencies, it doesn’t have to be. considering the price tag it currently commands, as it comes across as a highly respectable high-capacity option for creators and mid-range gaming laptop owners alike who need the extra RAM in play.
G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR5 SO-DIMM Series DDR5 RAM 64GB
Pulling Out All The Stops
The G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR5 SO-DIMM is one of the fastest high-performance laptop DDR5 memory kits that money can buy right now. It offers lower latency than many of its peers thanks to the use of screened IC chips as well as G.SKILL’s selective binning process.
For users wanting the same 64GB of RAM that the Crucial kit offers above but with more performance-centric bells and whistles, the G.SKILL Ripjaws DDR5 SO-DIMM Series DDR5 RAM 64GB is an excellent, if pricy kit that gets the job done and then some.
It offers the same 5600 MT/s clock speed that the former offers but delivers it at a much more respectable CL40 latency. It skips on-die ECC, however, and works with gaming laptops that support the standard at 5600MHz via its XMP profile, even as AMD-based laptop owners report similar success on their gaming laptops with said memory offering.
The G.Skill offering comes with excellent warranty and customer support, even with its positioning as a reliable premium memory provider that caters specifically to gamers with the Ripjaws lineup does help matters considerably, making it a no-brainer high-capacity performance-centric memory candidate from Game Rant.
The Entry-Level Value Play
The Crucial 8GB DDR5 SO-DIMM 4800MHz CL40 Laptop RAM is a singular stick that can be used to upgrade existing work and gaming laptops as an inexpensive add on.It has a respectable CAS Latency of 40 and is readily available at multiple retailers as a simple, cost-effective memory upgrade or replacement for entry-level or mid-range laptops.
For users looking to increase their gaming laptop’s RAM offering with a simple upgrade, the Crucial 8GB DDR5 SO-DIMM 4800MHz CL40 Laptop RAM happens to be one of the cheapest SKUs in the business, clocking in just over $20 at the time of writing even as it offers wide compatibility across the board with all current gaming laptops that support the DDR5 standard.
Crucial backs its offering with a lifetime warranty, but it might pay users to keep a unit spare for more demanding tasks, especially given the low replacement cost. This makes it an ideal upgrade or memory swap for gamers looking to get more out of a memory-restricted gaming laptop or one that needs a replacement in the future.
While Crucial’s offering isn’t the fastest in the business, it doesn’t have to be, given its positioning as an entry-level RAM replacement, even as the price tag appeals to most users in the market for one. For those needing a 5600MHz stick in the same capacity, Crucialhas them covered for only $1 moreat the time of writing.
Gaming Laptop RAM Upgrades: Why Are They So Common?
For most users, it does make sense to splurge on higher-end internals while gimping on the components that can be upgraded later down the road.
Manufacturers also continue bucking this trend essentially by offering lower-cost or minimum-spec gaming laptops that offer 8GB or 16GB of RAM and a smaller SSD in tow, allowing users to upgrade down the road without adding to costs upfront.
This means that many users are in the market for a RAM kit almost immediately after purchasing a gaming laptop while others are looking for an upgrade after a certain period of time or a replacement for faulty memory.
FAQ
Q: Can I Use Desktop RAM on a Laptop?
Desktop RAM sticks are different from those designed for laptops, meaning they can’t be used interchangeably. Their size and pin numbers differ, so they can’t fit into each other’s slots.
Q: What Is the Difference Between DDR4 And DDR5 RAM?
While both DDR5 and DDR4 RAM are viable in modern gaming PCs and laptops alike, DDR5 RAM offers higher data rates, maximum capacity, and lower power consumption, making them a natural successor to the latter memory standard.
