Acer Ferrari 3400 Review - Page 3

Just bought myself the Ferrari 3400 and i want to upgrade it a bit!
512MB(2x256MB) --> 1024MB(2x512MB) What brand and model do you recomment?

Thank you very much!

P.S. Keep up the great work!

Baically i tried to find the same memory upgrade with member snorre (Corsair XMS3200LL 1GB )but i would really apreciate it if someone could tell me a thing or two about ddr memory!

Congrats petermit . Me too got my F3400 these days.

Before you upgrade yr memory u have to know that F3400 (also F3200) supports the following type of modules:
TECHNOLOGY: DDR SDRAM @ 333 MHz or 400 MHz,
DIMM PACKAGE: 200-pin SO-DIMM
DIMM VOLTAGE: 2.5V
TYPE: PC3200 (i.e. 400 MHz), PC2700 (i.e. 333 MHz), PC2100 (i.e. 266 MHz) and PC1600 DDR unbuffered memory

Note: If u follow the manufacturer specs for F3400, u will be suggested to buy 333 MHz (PC2700) sticks. But the CPU and the chipset support up to 400 MHz (PC3200).

Here is a list of compatible DDR DRAM modules:

1)Corsair
XMS3200 & Corsair Value Select PC3200 SO-DIMM memory
(src http://notebookforums.com/showthread...&page=49&pp=15 )

For instance:
Part #: CMXSD512-3200LL — Corsair 512MB XMS3200 512MB CL2.5 SO-DIMMs @ DDR 400 MHz


2)Transcend

For instance:
Part #: TS64MSD64V4F3 — Transcend 512MB PC3200 DDR SO-DIMM
Module details: 64Mx64 DIMM / 32Mx8 / CL3 / 16 chips
200 pins, 400MHz (DDR400), double-sided
http://www.transcendusa.com/Mem/data...4V4F3_1710.pdf

Part #: TS64MSD64V3F — Transcend 512MB PC2700 DDR SO-DIMM
Module details: 64Mx64 DIMM / 32Mx8 / CL2.5 / 16 chips
200 pins, 333MHz (DDR333), double-sided
http://www.transcendusa.com/Mem/data...64V3F_1710.pdf


3)Kingston

For F3400 they recommend
M3264C250 256MB Module
M6464C250 512MB Module
M12864C250 1GB Module
But these are at 333 MHz.

So u'd better check some of the following modules:
Part # Description
KHX3200A/512 512MB HyperX DDR 400MHz DIMM 2-3-2-6
KHX3200AK2/512 512MB Kit HyperX DDR 400MHz 2-3-2-6


4)Micron
Follow the link to see a rich list of modules with complete specs. Do not care about the die type and configs. They are not so important for the end user (of course if u dont wanna dig in the matter ).

5)Also check relevant modules from Kingmax, TMTC (Samsung) - they are cheaper and good (if u dont mind saving some money; otherwise - go for the more expensive above mentioned ).

Thank you very much djgogo! I appreciate your concern very much! I 'd like to ask you another question though! Should i leave the stock 2x256MB memory on my notebook and install another 1x512MB memory of those you recommented or should i remove the stock and insert 2x512MB? As far as i know there are 3 available memory dims on the Ferrari 3400! What about this memory:
Corsair XMS Extreme Memory 512MB PC3200 DDR 400MHz
Part #: CMX512-3700 XMS3700 512MB 3-4-4-8 184 DIMM

Will it work on the Ferrari 3400?

Like most notebooks, there are only 2 memory sockets in the Ferrari 3200/3400 and both are occupied with 2x256MB PC2700 333MHz memory sticks. If you mix PC2700 & PC3200 all memory will run at the slowest speed of the two, so I recommend you insert 2x512MB PC3200 memory for the best performance.

No, 184 pin modules isn't notebook memory and will not work. The Ferrari 3200/3400 requires 200 pin SO-DIMM modules, e.g. Corsair XMS3200 SO-DIMM 512MB PC3200 400MHz:
http://corsairmemory.com/corsair/xms.html

Part #: CMXSD512-3200LL XMS3200 512MB 2.5-3-3-6 200 DIMM

That's really awesome memory that I use in my Ferrari 3200 and should thus also work perfectly in the Ferrari 3400.

petermit, u got the right answers from snorre.

As I mentioned, u have to observe the supported memory modules, i.e speed - PC3200 (200 MHz x 2, it is multiplied by 2 because u have a DDR - double data rate) or PC2700 (166 MHz x 2), the chip pinout (200 pins) and the chip package (SO-DIMM) (small outline DIMM). Also keep an eye on the voltage. The PC2700 modules are rated for 2.5 V, and the most PC3200 are rated for 2.6 V. The 0.1 V difference should not be an issue since the motherbord got +- 0.2 V tolerance.

THEORETICAL CONSIDERATION
There is no chance of damaging yr computer (nor the memory itself) if u insert a higher rated voltage memory, since if the memory is rated higher (as is in this case) it cannot be blown supplying lower voltages; it could have been possible to blow it if, let say, it was rated for 2 V and u deliver to it 2.5 V. But in our case, the only theoretical worst case possibility is that the memory would not run; and this is without any consequences for the computer or the memory. In practice, the F3400 runs smooth with PC3200 memories, so go for it

I want to thank both djgogo and snorre for their help! You are both great guys! I spent an hour or 2 today readind the thread on Ferrari 3200 in the same forum (64 pages) and i cleared out a lot of questions of mine! I 'll wait till i buy and instal the memory and hd disk upgrades and then i 'll follow all the instuctions that snorre and the other members posted ( battery conditioning, hard disk convertion to ntfs, hd partitioning, omega drivers installation etc)! If i encounter any problems be sure that i 'll be back in the forum annoying you all with more new questions :-) xexe! Till then i 'll enjoy my new Ferrari 3400 with its stock settings!

Have a nice day!

Just got my Ferrari 3400. Everything seems good and I changed the stock HD with the Hitachi 7k60 like everyone else. One question those, how do you enable the A.B.E.L (or A.B.L.E...not sure) without a floppy drive? How can I enable it? Also, anyone knows any good labtop coolers since the laptop runs kinda hot after awhile. Thought the coolermaster coolpad is good, but open for suggestion.

he guys just got my ferarri 3400.
i wonder why i just get 2 hour for batery life and 1 hour for playing game such a need for speed underground 2 (800*600 with full grap detail)..
i already install the newest driver for amd dan radeon and it seem no diferent from the old one.

is this normal?? i already set my power scheme at laptop and portable.. what is the diferent betwen laptop portable and max baterry??

by the way can you tell me how to check the speed processor ? what program did you use??
i check add and remove program and it says atlon 64 driver runs rarely (strange it mean i don't have driver for athlon to run speed in step wise).

You enable A.B.L.E. (Advanced Power Options) with the Feature Tool that is also included on the Ultimate Boot CD that you can find here:
http://www.ultimatebootcd.com/

See also my post here:
http://notebookforums.com/showthread...650#post458650

Check out this heat-pipe based laptop cooler from Nexus:
http://www.nexustek.nl/tdd3000.htm

No cables or noisy fans

Typical settings and their explanation is provided below:

Home/Office Desk : This scheme is suited to most home or desktop computers that are left plugged in all the time.
Portable/Laptop : This scheme is designed for extended battery life for portable computers on the road.
Presentation : This scheme keeps the monitor on for doing presentations.
Always On : This scheme keeps the computer running so that it can be accessed from the network. Use this scheme if you do not have network wakeup hardware.
Minimal Power Management : This scheme keeps the computer on and optimizes it for high performance.
Max Battery : This scheme is extremely aggressive for saving power.

What these do not talk about is the CPU "Throttle Mode" of the processor under each scheme. The various throttle modes are:

None:-- Always runs at the highest performance - maximum frequency
Adaptive:-- CPU frequency depends on the demand - can vary from minimum to maximum.
Constant:-- Always runs at the lowest performance to conserve battery
Degrade:-- Starts at lowest performance state, and then starts reducing performance further as the battery gets lower - this is used to maximize the battery life.

The CPU throttle modes used under various power schemes are:

Power scheme ---------------------- AC ---------- Battery

Home/Office Desktop --------------- None --------- Adaptive
Portable/Laptop -------------------- Adaptive ----- Adaptive
Presentation ----------------------- Adaptive ----- Degrade
Always On-------------------------- None --------- None
Minimal Power Management --------- Adaptive ----- Adaptive
Max Battery ------------------------ Adaptive ----- Degrade

With Windows XP SP2 only Max Battery will enable the AMD PowerNow! battery saving feature. See also my post here:
http://notebookforums.com/showthread...650#post458650

AMD PowerNow! Dashboard and MobileMeter that you can find download links to in my post here:
http://notebookforums.com/showthread...768#post403768

@snorre

i wonder how long your batery can hold up??

if more than 2 hour may i know what is your personal setting ..
need more advice cause my batery is already depleted before 2 hours reach, make me confuse what wrong with my lapy...

Try treating it with some high quality car wax (no polish!).

See my post here:
http://notebookforums.com/showthread...924#post349924

You'll find everything in my battery life tweak/optimization guide, see here for a quick reference to all my guides:
http://notebookforums.com/showthread.php?t=41052

I would like to check with the users of the F3400, is it normal for your HDD to reach temps of 48-50 degress under heavy usage?

Granted I live in a tropical country but it seems a little hot.

Evilmerlin: Yes, that's normal on most new Acer notebooks with a similar chassis due to only passive hard drive cooling. If this really bothers you I suggest that you replace the hard drive with one that generates less heat and/or use a good notebook cooler.

need some advice here.

i've goot 801 mhz speed down for my processor after i set my power scheme at max batery. but it won't speed up to 2 ghz when i'm playing game. it seem stuck in 801 mhz so my game run more slowly.

on other countrey if i set my power scheme at portable/laptop it shown 1.6 and 2 ghz. it never speed down to 801 mhz. and it seem hold in 2 ghz.

what shoul i do to keep speed down for doing ordinary lapy stuf and speed up for gaming and stuf. should i change power scheme everytime i need max batery life??

I am using the Nexus cooler. And it does not seem to help. The left palm still got quite hot during the gaming. The main source of heat is the memory module, ATI M9700 and the hardisk. Hence, I installed two 2 fans under the cooler. One is right under the hardisk while the other is right under the memory module of the base. Both fans blow air up. With this setup, I am able to control the temperature of the hardisk to 45 degree during gaming. And it really helps!

I am still considering whether the cooler master coolpad will be better. Check this out http://www6.tomshardware.com/mobile/20041216/index.html