Advice needed on what is the best manufacturer of RAM!

Hello everyone,

After careful consideration and research, I purchased the Toshiba A505-S6960 laptop recently. It's a nice laptop, and its 4GB RAM can be upgraded to 8GB RAM, a definite plus to keep it speedy and productive in the coming years.

What I'm not sure about is what RAM manufacturer is best to go with - I think the 4GB RAM is broken up into 2 2GB RAM modules, most likely Toshiba RAM (they offer RAM in their own name on their website). Therefore, I'd have to purchase 2 4GB RAM modules to upgrade to 8GB RAM instead of just one module, BUT, I can purchase two of the same manufacturer, which may help performance instead of mixing two modules of two different manufacturers (Toshiba + Kingston/Crucial/Corsair/Patriot/OCZ, etc.).

What I'm not sure about is, is there a clear-cut better manufacturer of RAM? I've heard good things about Crucial, and customers of different sites, including NewEgg's customers, rate it highly. I know Kingston was recommended by Toshiba at one time, and it seems NewEgg's customers also rate their RAM memory modules highly as well. Toshiba RAM modules might work best with a Toshiba laptop, though there is at least one negative with them - see below.

However, Toshiba's RAM is the most expensive, costing over $500 for 2 4GB RAM modules, and only being available from their website, I believe (probably why it's so expensive), whereas Crucial's 2 4GB RAM modules can be purchased for just over $400 from Newegg.com, while 2 of Kingston's 4GB RAM modules can be purchased for about $338 at Newegg.com.

My question is, is one manufacturer superior to the other, or are all of them virtually the same? Toshiba's RAM probably works best due to its compatibility with the Toshiba laptop, but I've heard and read that other RAM manufacturers work well in them too, and both Crucial and Kingston get high marks. I've also heard that it's better to have two memory modules of the same manufacturer rather than mixing two different brands, though it can work at times.

Additionally, regarding the A505-S6960, the specs for it can be found via this link:
http://cdgenp01.csd.toshiba.com/cont...A505-S6960.pdf

My additional question includes, which one of these Kingston RAM memory modules would be the correct one?

This one:
Newegg.com - Kingston 4GB 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM Unbuffered DDR2 900(PC2 7200) System Specific Memory Model KTT800D2/4G - System Specific Memory
OR
This one:
Newegg.com - Kingston 4GB 200-Pin DDR2 SO-DIMM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Laptop Memory Model KVR800D2S6/4G - Laptop Memory

My thinking is that it would be the latter of the two; the former comes up when I input the model number that I received from the Kingston Memory Selector, but that is DDR2 900 Mhz PC2-7200, whereas mine is DDR2 800 Mhz PC2-6400, which is what the latter is, making me think that that is the correct module, not the former one.

Any help and advice on this would be greatly appreciated as well - thank you.

I don't have to upgrade the RAM immediately; this is just something I'd like to know about so that when the time comes and a hopefully lower price is offered, I'll be ready to act promptly.

Please take care, keep up the great work, and have a good day!

Sincerely,

Joe Chengery III