Although RAM upgrades for newer Macs are almost ridiculously cheap, memory for older systems is sometimes prohibitively expensive. Recognizing this issue, Sonnet Technologies has announced a “64MB for $64” program for buyers of its Sonnet Crescendo/7200 or Crescendo/PCI processor card upgrades. Hoping to sweeten the pot a bit for owners of older Power Macs capable of using these upgrades, Sonnet has created the deal to offer RAM at a special price.
Under the terms of the agreement, users who buy one of the upgrades can purchase up to four of the 64MB DIMM units for $64 each — a price that may appeal to buyers who can be charged up to $160 for similar products elsewhere. Of course, with memory prices in such continual flux, keep your eye out for good deals.
The Crescendo/7200 upgrade card is designed to enable a computer once thought impossible to upgrade — the Power Mac 7200 series, whose CPU is soldered to the motherboard — with a PowerPC G3 or G4 processor. The Crescendo/PCI model is designed to fit older “beige” PCI-based Power Macs that feature upgrade-friendly daughtercard CPU configurations. More details about both products are available from Sonnet’s Web site.
The DIMMs are new using refurbished components, and are configured as 64MB (8 x 64); 60ns; 5 volt; 4K Refresh; 168-pin; Fast Page Mode (FPM). The DIMMs will work both in DIMM sockets on the Crescendo 7200, as well as motherboard DIMM sockets on Power Mac 7200, 7500, 7600, 8500, 8600, 9500 and 9600 models, and other systems with identical memory requirements.
Sonnet president and CEO Robert Farnsworth said that his company wanted to make memory more affordable, considering stocking up DIMMs on older Macs can sometimes cost as much as the CPU upgrade. Farnsworth said that it’ll be particularly important for customers who want to use Mac OS X on their upgraded systems, with Sonnet’s recently released OS X installer software.
This offer is being made available to Sonnet customers in the USA and Canada and is good on any Crescendo/7200 or Crescendo/PCI system purchased from June 1 through August 1. Eligible customers must mail a completed form found online, along with the UPC code from the eligible Sonnet product package and a copy of the receipt showing the date of purchase. Orders must be received by September 30.