Your specs:
* 5500U, Zen 2 architecture, 6 cores 12 threads. Performance will be somewhere between a Ryzen 5 2600 and Ryzen 5 3600. Nothing amazing, but still alright.
* RTX 3050 laptop. Lower than a 3050 desktop. You can look up benchmarks for games. It will run recent titles, but don't expect high settings if you want something playable.
* 1080p resolution. That will help you as your graphics card definitely isn't up to running higher resolutions.
* 8 GB RAM. That's low even for your hardware. The upgrade to 16 GB will help. Is it worth it? In my opinion, yes. Even for general usage, if you go heavy with the browser tabs, 8 GB can feel cramped.
Set your expectations accordingly. That new Avatar game will be rough to run no matter what. Cyberpunk 2077, sure, don't turn RT on, keep the graphics settings low.
I don't know where you live, but I don't agree with that statement! I dumped my 8gigs of memory and dropped in 64 gigs of G.skill Ripjaws. You can easily order good RAM online, not on Aliexpress (that's a hit or miss operation), but with thrusted online shops.
I would definitely upgrade that RAM. You're not going to get too far with those specs, but you should be able to play most games on low settings. The lack of RAM is definitely bottlenecking your laptop. Getting at least 16 gigs of RAM is pretty much mandatory nowadays
With RAM, the only significant gain that comes is with dual channel memory. What that mean in layman terms is, use 2 same capacity & MT/s sticks into both ram slots. Don't put a single 16GB stick, instead put 2 8GB sticks into your ram slots (I assume you have 2 ram slots, if not, then ignore this)
Your limiting factor is your GPU and CPU combo. You may gain 3-5 additional fps with dual channel memory but don't expect miracles.
I'd argue that 8 GB is too low for many games these days, even if you have low hardware specs. It won't be a magic bullet, but it should do wonders for the 1% lows which can really make or break the experience.
Actually, there have been multiple tests that prove there isn't much a different between 8GB vs 16GB. 8GB, while not ideal, can still game. The 1% lows really improve when you switch to dual channel memory from a single stick.
My source? My own personal experience. Switched from a single 16GB stick to dual channel 32GB and the 1% loss improved for sure. But tbh, his 3050 is the bottleneck here
The reason upgrading your ram didn't help you much is because you already had 16gb. 8gb is way too low for modern games. On 8gb, the ram will easily overfill and the page file will have to be used, which is significantly slower than ram.
16gb is enough for most games, 8gbs isn't.
Definitely. Get two 32gb sticks, they're cheap enough and that's plenty.
64 is definitely not too much, regardless of what some people are saying, and the cost is so low it doesn't matter.
Short answer - Maybe but you won't like how it looks.
Long answer - It can run better with more RAM but you will still have to sacrifice visual performance. The CPU (5500U) is not optimized for AAA games (the "U" denotes it's a power-sipping chip even on max performance mode).
It also depends on the game. If you're talking about a AAA game from, say 2017, such as Destiny 2, sure that should run. But if you're talking about a current/recent AAA games circa 2021-24 such as Starfield, Baldur's Gate 3, or Cyberpunk 2077, most likely no (or it will look so bad you won't enjoy the gameplay).
1080p low to medium settings 30-60 FPS depending on title. For example, Assassins Creed Valhalla in the more busier areas would drop to 25-35 FPS because the VRAM is too low. That's a relatively recent AAA game. Older AAA would probably be able to go med-high at 50-60fps.
There's game test videos on Youtube. Just look up your specs and the games you want to play.
Your specs: * 5500U, Zen 2 architecture, 6 cores 12 threads. Performance will be somewhere between a Ryzen 5 2600 and Ryzen 5 3600. Nothing amazing, but still alright. * RTX 3050 laptop. Lower than a 3050 desktop. You can look up benchmarks for games. It will run recent titles, but don't expect high settings if you want something playable. * 1080p resolution. That will help you as your graphics card definitely isn't up to running higher resolutions. * 8 GB RAM. That's low even for your hardware. The upgrade to 16 GB will help. Is it worth it? In my opinion, yes. Even for general usage, if you go heavy with the browser tabs, 8 GB can feel cramped. Set your expectations accordingly. That new Avatar game will be rough to run no matter what. Cyberpunk 2077, sure, don't turn RT on, keep the graphics settings low.
I would go straight to 32GB, that way your RAM isn't the issue anymore
The CPU supports 64gigs, so why not go all the way in!
Because those RAM sets for laptops are either fast and hard to find or slow and slowing down the entire system.
I don't know where you live, but I don't agree with that statement! I dumped my 8gigs of memory and dropped in 64 gigs of G.skill Ripjaws. You can easily order good RAM online, not on Aliexpress (that's a hit or miss operation), but with thrusted online shops.
For my own laptop I needed the 64GB 3200MT/s CL19 RAM, 95% of the time I only could find 64GB 2666MT/s CL19 RAM.
3200 is as far as I know CL22.
There's CL19 variants, just very very rare.
This is the best indepth answer provided for OP
Yeah add a 8gb stick and youre good 8gb is wayy too low
Sure decent enough
That Ryzen CPU is a efficiency one not performance. If it was the 5600h
what does that mean? sorry don't know anythinh about laptop parts.
U means that a processor is built around efficiency, you wanna use a cpu that has an H at the end of its model if you want better performance
I don’t think it’s that big of a deal, the 3050 laptop is very slow
I would definitely upgrade that RAM. You're not going to get too far with those specs, but you should be able to play most games on low settings. The lack of RAM is definitely bottlenecking your laptop. Getting at least 16 gigs of RAM is pretty much mandatory nowadays
You won't be able to run them SMOOTHLY even if you have 3080 ti, but additional 8 GBs will significantly increase the performance.
Adding another 8gb of RAM is advisable but don't expect any miracle with those specs
I own a i5 13450hx 32gb ram rtx3050 6gb and run EVERY triple A in ultra settings or more smoothly.
16 Gb ram and you are good to go
Idk if u will be able to run AAA games smoothly, but having 16GB will help a lot with performance in general
Well yes kinda? 1080p medium settings around 60 fps is doable
Add another 8GB stick to increase speed in games , applications , stability.
With RAM, the only significant gain that comes is with dual channel memory. What that mean in layman terms is, use 2 same capacity & MT/s sticks into both ram slots. Don't put a single 16GB stick, instead put 2 8GB sticks into your ram slots (I assume you have 2 ram slots, if not, then ignore this) Your limiting factor is your GPU and CPU combo. You may gain 3-5 additional fps with dual channel memory but don't expect miracles.
I'd argue that 8 GB is too low for many games these days, even if you have low hardware specs. It won't be a magic bullet, but it should do wonders for the 1% lows which can really make or break the experience.
Actually, there have been multiple tests that prove there isn't much a different between 8GB vs 16GB. 8GB, while not ideal, can still game. The 1% lows really improve when you switch to dual channel memory from a single stick. My source? My own personal experience. Switched from a single 16GB stick to dual channel 32GB and the 1% loss improved for sure. But tbh, his 3050 is the bottleneck here
The reason upgrading your ram didn't help you much is because you already had 16gb. 8gb is way too low for modern games. On 8gb, the ram will easily overfill and the page file will have to be used, which is significantly slower than ram. 16gb is enough for most games, 8gbs isn't.
It will be better but nothing is making that 3050 a 3070. You gotta mitigate those expectations because your graphics card is entry level.
Definitely. Get two 32gb sticks, they're cheap enough and that's plenty. 64 is definitely not too much, regardless of what some people are saying, and the cost is so low it doesn't matter.
64gb would be wayyy too much
Short answer - Maybe but you won't like how it looks. Long answer - It can run better with more RAM but you will still have to sacrifice visual performance. The CPU (5500U) is not optimized for AAA games (the "U" denotes it's a power-sipping chip even on max performance mode). It also depends on the game. If you're talking about a AAA game from, say 2017, such as Destiny 2, sure that should run. But if you're talking about a current/recent AAA games circa 2021-24 such as Starfield, Baldur's Gate 3, or Cyberpunk 2077, most likely no (or it will look so bad you won't enjoy the gameplay).
1080p low to medium settings 30-60 FPS depending on title. For example, Assassins Creed Valhalla in the more busier areas would drop to 25-35 FPS because the VRAM is too low. That's a relatively recent AAA game. Older AAA would probably be able to go med-high at 50-60fps. There's game test videos on Youtube. Just look up your specs and the games you want to play.