RAM

This is the easiest place you can make an improvement with almost any Mac. iMacs have a user-accessible memory slot located on the bottom edge of the display, between the built-in speakers. It’s as simple as removing three screws, and then replacing the computer’s existing memory with large capacity, compatible RAM units. MacBooks and MacBook Pros are also easily upgradeable when it comes to memory, and require only the removal of the bottom case or a memory area cover, depending on your model.

Remember to make absolutely sure that the RAM you’re buying is compatible with your computer. You can do this by finding out which Mac you have, by doing the following:

1. Go to the Apple menu in the top left corner of the menu bar.
2. Click on “About This Mac.”
3. Click on the “More Info…” button.
4. Take note of the Model Identifier in the Hardware Overview that opens. It should say something like “iMac12,2″ or “MacBook3,1.”
5. Go to EveryMac.com and enter that identifier to get the complete specs for your machine, including what type of RAM it uses and the maximum amount it can support.

If you’d rather make it easier on yourself, you can go to OWC and browse for your model in the Memory section of their online store. Note that this does require that you at least know when you bought the computer, but you can find that out using the method described above.

Note that some Mac mini models and MacBook Airs make upgrading the RAM yourself very difficult or impossible, in which case you might want to consult with an authorized Mac service provider.

Hard Drive

RAM is easier to upgrade, but for Lion, a hard drive change could make the biggest difference. They can be a bit trickier to upgrade, and nearly impossible if you have an iMac, but for most Mac notebooks, the process isn’t very challenging. If you’re unsure how to change your hard drive, check the official Apple manual for your computer, which you can identify using the method described above.

There are a few options available to you here. Like Dave Greenbaum, you could choose to go with a solid-state drive. This is the best possible option, but it’s also the priciest, and you get relatively little storage space for your money.

Another option is to supplement your existing HDD by installing a separate, smaller capacity SSD as your startup volume. If you have a MacBook Pro, this isn’t too difficult to do. Weldon Dodd provided an excellent walkthrough of how he achieved this with his own computer. Lion requires a minimum of 8 GB of free space on your drive, but a 40 GB drive that you can get for around $100 is probably as small as you should go, even if you don’t plan on keeping anything else on there.

Finally, you can also get the best of both worlds in a single drive, using a hybrid drive. Seagate makes a hybrid drive that provides 500 GB of storage, along with a 4 GB flash storage module. It manages to achieve a 32 MB cache with a 7200 RPM drive speed, and provides much better performance than a traditional drive, in my experience, plus it’s way cheaper than a standalone SSD. Boot times, app launch times, and wake from sleep times all drastically improved after I installed this in my MacBook Pro.

The most expensive of the above-mentioned options probably won’t cost you more than $500, and that’s only if you opt for a relatively capacious SSD. Noticeable improvements shouldn’t cost you more than $100, which is a great deal shy of the $1000+ you’d spend on a brand new Mac. Any other suggestions for DIY improvements that could make transitioning to Lion that much more satisfying?

* Ed. Please remember that DIY modifications to Apple equipment is done at your own risk, and voids your AppleCare warranty.

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The new chip is a single-package solution, comprised of 16 32Gbit (4GB) chips combined on a 32nm platform. In case anyone out there needs help with the math, this announcement also paves the way for a 128GB iPod touch, which would finally bring it almost up to par with its aging disc-based predecessor, the iPod classic.

Toshiba doesn’t mention Apple by name in its product announcement regarding the new high-capacity flash modules, but it does mention that they are “designed for application in a wide range of digital consumer products, including smartphones, mobile phones, netbooks and digital video cameras.” It seems Apple would make for a great higher profile customer to use the new tech in its products in those categories.

It’s not completely beyond the realm of possibility to imagine Toshiba’s new storage modules making their way into Apple’s much talked-about tablet device, either. If indeed we will see the tablet in 2010, many now expect it to arrive either in Spring or sometime during the second quarter of 2010, which does fit with the proposed production roll-out of the 64GB flash device. Samples of the new module are shipping now, with mass production expected to begin in Q1 2010.

If Apple’s device is keeping a slim profile, as recent potentially leaked video seems to suggest, and if it owes more to its iPod and iPhone brethren than to the Mac line, it stands to reason that Apple would opt for this kind of storage option over a more traditional HDD or SSD. If the device is indeed the multimedia wunderkind many blogs and analysts are predicting it will be, I’d probably pay extra for additional storage configuration options that would allow me to bump up the storage capacity to 128GB, too, which would be an easy option to include using the new modules.

While it was inevitable that 64GB flash modules would come to pass, it’s nice to have confirmation that they’ve in fact arrived, and well in time for the launch of the next iPhone revision this upcoming Spring. Tablet or not, Apple’s smartphone at least is poised to outpace the competition in terms of onboard storage by an even greater margin than it currently enjoys.

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According to the newspaper, complaints are mounting among NAND flash producers that Apple is using its position as one of the biggest buyers on the block to artificially drive down prices with ethically questionable business practices. And suppliers can’t do anything about it, since that would mean risking a very lucrative arrangement.

Apple’s apparent plan is shrewd from a business perspective, but ethically questionable, though not, apparently, illegal or in violation of any industry regulations. A senior industry official, who wished to remain anonymous, described the process as follows:

Apple has asked Korean semiconductor makers to produce a certain amount of chips for its digital products, only to actually purchase a smaller volume eventually. The company doesn’t make immediate purchases, but waits until chip prices to fall to the level the company has internally targeted.

Samsung and Hynix are the major Korean players in the NAND flash game. Both refused to officially comment regarding the supposed bully tactics, as did Apple’s Korean office. An unidentified industry source claims that the practice is common knowledge among all involved, though.

No one believes the practices are tenable in the long term, since they erode good-faith relationships with key suppliers, who might conceivably refuse to play along if Apple continues to press too hard for too long. Rather, industry watchers believe the tactics to be a short term strategy aimed at temporarily reducing the costs of high capacity NAND flash chips. The lowered price would allow them to build iPhones with much higher capacities quickly and cheaply, which some see as a good strategy for staying ahead of competition by Android and others.

Apple could also be preparing for a time when it isn’t in a position to command the prices from suppliers it currently does. For a long time, it was one of the few companies that actually built significant storage into its cellphone handset, but many other companies are now following suit. Apple’s share will dwindle, percentage-wise, even if its user base continues to grow worldwide. This could be an anticipatory attempt to lay hands on as much hardware as possible, as cheaply as possible, before the industry becomes more competitive and demand far outpaces supply.

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BTG claims some of Samsung’s flash chips violate patents it owns on multilevel NAND Flash memory, according to Macworld. While BTG isn’t directly accusing Apple of the infringements, this is a potential headache for the company since so many of its devices employ Samsung’s chips for internal storage.

The MacBook Air, first-generation iPhone 8GB, third-generation iPod shuffle 4GB, and second-generation iPod touch 16GB all use Samsung’s NAND memory. It is not yet known whether Apple would be implicated in a settlement/compensation agreement should the complaint be upheld.

BTG is a “licensing company” that holds the title to many patents. Its parent company, also called BTG International, is “a pharmaceutical company based in London,” reports Macworld. I won’t say this could sound like an example of a “non-practicing entity” if you won’t.

Other brands named in the complaint that use Samsung’s chips include: Dell, Sony Vaio, Lenovo, PNY and Transcend. BTG seems to know the first rule of crafting a lawsuit: Don’t stop naming names until your list of offending companies reads like a Who’s Who of the computing industry.

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With the recent launch of the iPhone 3GS, many are curious as to exactly what makes up the guts of the new device and what it costs Apple to build it. A recent teardown by industry analyst iSuppli reveals the iPhone 3GS, while at first glance is very similar to its predecessor, actually includes some unique changes to the hardware. According to the research, the total cost of the new iPhone 3GS 16GB is about $179, which is only $5 more than the previous generation 8GB model when it was released around this time last year.

Of course, when comparing this figure to the cost of the new iPhone, it’s important to remember that it doesn’t include what Apple charges carriers, which subsidize the price to the end user in exchange for signing new contracts. Additionally, this figure is for the cost of the device itself, and does not include packaging or other accessories included in the box.

From a hardware perspective, there are a few new changes, including the replacement of two separate chips (one for Wi-Fi and another for Bluetooth) and with a newer, single-chip solution. The new “digital compass” is composed of the existing accelerometer and a new azimuth sensor by AKM Semiconductor. The accelerometer allows the device to determine the iPhone’s orientation, while the azimuth sensor allows the device to determine its location in relation to magnetic north. The processor in the 3GS has also been bumped to 600MHz, up from the 532MHz processor found in the iPod touch and the 412MHz processor found in the previous-generation iPhone 3G. The new iPhone 3GS processors are, according to FCC filings, capable of higher speeds (in the 800MHz range) but have been clocked lower, likely for better battery performance.

Another interesting item to note is that the flash memory, displays, touchscreen assemblies and processors are still the most expensive components of the device. According to the breakdown by iSuppli, these were primarily manufactured by Samsung and Toshiba. However, keep in mind that Apple does source displays and memory from several vendors, which could skew these figures slightly.

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I don’t recommend moving the app to your Applications or Utilities folders since it’s a one-shot deal for most folks and you can always re-download it the next time you need it.

Double-clicking the app icon runs a program which dumps an html file on your system (it put mine in file:///var/folders/NZ/NZ2aeHCxEy4bRcChWavt0++++TI/-Tmp-/sysoutput_utf8.html) and opens that up in your browser – you may want to make a note of where it stored yours and make an effort to remove it once you’re done with the tool.

It turns out that the all the utility does is put the contents of the output of system_profiler -xml (you can run that yourself from a Terminal.app session) into a hidden text area and submits it all to Crucial. As a result, the fine marketers at Crucial now know the details of your whole system, including printers, drive layout, etc. This is great marketing info for them and their partners, so you may want to think twice about using the tool if you are at all concerned about potential privacy issues.

The report is similar to what they provide from a PC scan and includes details of your current configuration and upgrade paths.

The utility is a Universal Binary so it should work fine on older systems. (I may be setting up an older PowerBook for my son in the near future, so I am in the market for an upgrade on that system unlike the result you just saw for my MB Pro, but I’ll probably be skipping the Scanner for that one).

If you don’t mind Crucial knowing all your system secrets, give the utility a try and drop a note in the comments to let us know if they identified your configuration properly. Also drop a note if you have suggestions on alternate ways you use to find the information required to upgrade your Macs memory. I may do a compilation post with the results (full credit if you leave that in the comment) if we receive enough good entries.

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