Computer crawling when you've got 10 Chrome tabs, Excel, Teams and Outlook all open at once? That's RAM. One of the cheapest upgrades you can do — usually $90–$280 fitted, same-day on most laptops and PCs. Pairs brilliantly with an SSD for the two best upgrades you can make to an older machine.
RAM (Random Access Memory) is your computer's short-term working space. Anything you've got open right now — Chrome tabs, Excel sheets, Teams call, that PDF you forgot about — lives in RAM while you're using it. The processor reads and writes to RAM thousands of times a second.
When you run out of RAM, Windows starts shuffling open programs to the much slower hard drive (called "paging"). That's when the freezes, beachballs and 100% disk usage warnings happen. Even with an SSD it's noticeably slower, and on a spinning drive it's painful.
More RAM means more apps and tabs running smoothly at the same time. It's a flat upgrade — you won't notice it when one app is open, but the moment you have 5+ things going (which most of us do all day), it removes the bottleneck completely.
Get a Free Compatibility Check →10 Chrome tabs, Excel, Teams, Outlook, Spotify — all running without freezes. The single biggest cure for "slow when busy".
Often $90–$180 total. Compared to a new laptop at $1,500+, the value is hard to beat if RAM is your actual bottleneck.
RAM + SSD together is the gold standard older-PC rescue. We often quote both at once for one fixed price.
Most upgrades are 30–60 minutes of bench work. Drop in mid-morning, collect by afternoon.
If two or more of these sound familiar, you're almost certainly out of memory:
Honest sizing — no point fitting 64GB to a machine that only needs 16GB, and no point fitting 8GB to a machine doing serious work.
Bare minimum for Windows 11 and basic web/email/Office use.
Today's sweet spot. What most users should be running.
For real workloads — creative work, gaming, business power-users.
Pro tier. Specialist use only — most people don't need it.
We'll talk through what you actually do on the machine before recommending a size. No upsells — if 16GB is enough, we won't quote 32GB.
You don't pick the type — your motherboard does. Here's roughly what's in what.
The older standard — machines roughly 2008–2015.
The mainstream standard from ~2015–2022. What most upgrades fit.
The newest standard, in 2022+ machines (Intel 12th gen / AMD Ryzen 7000+).
DDR3, DDR4 and DDR5 modules are physically different and not interchangeable. We confirm exactly what your machine uses before quoting — no compatibility guesswork.
Quick job, done properly — compatibility check, quality memory, full testing afterwards.
All prices include the memory itself, fitting, testing and GST. Fixed-price quote confirmed before any work.
| Capacity | Type | Total Fitted Price |
|---|---|---|
| 8GB (single stick) | DDR3 / DDR4 laptop or desktop | $90–$120 |
| 16GB (single stick or 2x8GB) | DDR4 — most common | $130–$170 |
| 32GB kit (2x16GB) | DDR4 — power user sweet spot | $180–$230 |
| 32GB DDR5 kit | Newer Intel 12th gen+/AMD AM5 | $220–$280 |
| 64GB kit (2x32GB) | DDR4 or DDR5 — pro/creator | $260–$420+ |
| Compatibility check only | If you'd rather supply your own RAM | $60 (free if we fit) |
Diagnosis is free. If your machine isn't worth upgrading, we'll tell you honestly. Pair with an SSD upgrade for the full speed bump — combo discounts available.
Compatibility check, fitting, testing — usually a 30–60 minute bench job. Drop it in, pick it up the same day in most cases.
Tell us your make and model on the phone (or bring it in). We confirm what type of RAM you take, how many slots, what's already fitted, and the max your motherboard supports. Then a fixed quote.
Quality brands only — Crucial, Kingston, Corsair, G.Skill. Speed and timings matched to whatever's already in your machine so you get full dual-channel performance.
Memory installed cleanly, machine powered on, BIOS checked to confirm full capacity is recognised. Boot into Windows, verify in Task Manager, MemTest stress run if requested.
Pick up a noticeably more responsive machine. Workmanship covered for 90 days; the RAM itself usually has a manufacturer lifetime warranty.
Local techs, quality memory, fast turnaround, honest sizing advice — no upselling RAM you don't need.
Drop in, talk to the tech doing the work, collect the same day where possible. No couriers, no waiting weeks.
We ask what you actually do on the machine before recommending a capacity. No upselling 64GB to someone who needs 16GB.
Crucial, Kingston, Corsair, G.Skill — proven brands with proper lifetime warranties. We don't fit no-name RAM that fails in months.
Memory + fit + testing in one number. No "we found extra problems" creep — the quote is the price.
If your laptop has soldered RAM or isn't worth upgrading, we'll tell you. We'd rather lose the sale than fit RAM to a doomed machine.
Our work covered for 90 days. The RAM itself usually carries a manufacturer lifetime warranty.
RAM is half the story. An SSD is the other half — together they're the best older-PC rescue going.
Drop in from anywhere — every suburb in the region covered.
Quick answers to what Townsville customers ask before booking a RAM upgrade.
Typically $90–$280 fitted including the memory itself. A simple 8GB or 16GB DDR4 upgrade is at the low end. 32GB or 64GB DDR5 kits with fresh installation land at the top. We give a fixed-price quote covering the RAM + fitting + testing before any work.
On a desktop PC it's reasonably DIY-friendly if you've worked inside a tower before. On a laptop it's harder — many newer laptops have RAM soldered to the motherboard and can't be upgraded at all, others need partial disassembly that voids warranties if done wrong. We can tell you over the phone if your model is upgradeable, and if you'd rather do it yourself we'll quote just the supply of compatible RAM.
Technically yes, but it's a recipe for instability, blue screens and lost performance. Best practice is to use matched pairs of identical RAM (same brand, capacity, speed, timing). Where we add memory to an existing stick we always match speeds and timings as closely as possible; where we can't, we recommend replacing the kit entirely.
You don't choose — your motherboard does. DDR3, DDR4 and DDR5 are physically different and not interchangeable. Roughly: DDR3 is in machines from ~2008–2015, DDR4 in ~2015–2022, DDR5 in 2022 and newer. We confirm exactly what your laptop or PC takes before ordering, so there are no compatibility surprises.
Depends entirely on the machine. Most modern laptops top out at 32GB or 64GB. Mainstream desktops 64GB or 128GB. Older machines (2014ish) typically cap at 16GB or 32GB. We look up your exact model's max supported RAM and slot count before quoting — no point fitting 64GB if the motherboard only sees 16GB.
If you're currently on 8GB and trying to play modern AAA games — yes, a lot. Most modern games want 16GB minimum. 32GB helps for streaming, modded games or running Discord plus the game plus a browser. Past 32GB the gains shrink fast — for pure gaming, more than 32GB rarely helps unless you do video editing or virtual machines on the side.
Yes. Laptops use smaller SO-DIMM modules and usually have 1 or 2 slots, with some newer ultrabooks having RAM soldered to the board (not upgradeable). Desktops use full-size DIMM modules with 2 or 4 slots and almost always allow upgrades. Both are quick same-day jobs when the machine supports it — we confirm compatibility before quoting.
Call now or request a quote online. Most RAM upgrades fitted same-day — cheap, quick, and a noticeable difference the moment you power on.
Mon–Fri 8am–5pm · After hours by arrangement · All Townsville suburbs