Upgrading RAM memory on an Acer Aspire One ZG5 netbook, model AOA110 results in less RAM than expected

I have tried to increase the RAM on an old netbook from Acer, an Aspire One ZG5. I went on www.crucial.com and using their built-in tool, I ordered the putatively correct module for my netbook, and I chose a 1Gb 200-Pin DDR2 SODIMM 128Mx64, PC2-5300. I followed step-by-step instructions here: http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Acer+Aspire+One+ZG5+RAM+Replacement/3781 and everything seemed to work fine.

However, booting the netbook again it became evident that the system would not recognize all the RAM that I had installed, and the BIOS itself reported only 512Mb, not quite 1Gb that I purchased. Looking into this matter further, I think I understood that the Aspire One ZG5 netbook has an additional RAM module, soldered on the motherboard, providing 512 Mb of RAM. Provided that is true, the additional RAM module would be totally unseen. Frankly I do not think that Crucial.com provided the wrong DDR2 module. What tweaks would be still needed? The computer runs on Ubuntu 13.04, but that should not be a matter of trouble as the BIOS comes first. Thank you for any fruitful suggestion, Massimo.

massimopinto

Posted 2014-05-03T16:44:36.743

Reputation: 23

Is the BIOS uptodate? – davidbaumann – 2014-05-03T17:25:22.073

Current BIOS Version is v.03305t. It looks as if this is not the most recent: http://www.acer.co.uk/ac/en/GB/content/drivers ; do you think that updating the BIOS may be crucial in this case?

– massimopinto – 2014-05-03T17:34:36.410

David: Updating the BIOS to the last version did not solve the RAM problem, but it had a nice side effect: the netbook now recognizes the battery, which was another problem in line for solution. Cheers. – massimopinto – 2014-05-03T19:37:18.387

Answers

The problem isn't your ram. The design of the Aspire One ZG5 model had a limitation of usable RAM. If you look at the following links, you'll see the maximum is only 1GB. So unfortunately there is no way to get your system to utilize all 1.5GB RAM you have installed in it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acer_Aspire_One http://www.engadget.com/products/acer/aspire/one/zg5/specs/

Nik

Posted 2014-05-03T16:44:36.743

Reputation: 24

I don't have a screenshot to share at this moment, but I ended up seeing, at the level of BIOS, 1,5 Gb recognized. This is curious. – massimopinto – 2014-07-08T09:26:30.867

Yes, 1536 Mb it is. – massimopinto – 2014-07-18T10:15:34.343

This is incorrect: the engadget.com page you link to clearly says that the system is equipped with 1GB but the maximum is 1.5GB. – David Richerby – 2015-06-08T20:26:55.267

I had a similar problem with it not recognising the extra RAM and found that it hadn't been pushed in all the way.

(I have two Acer Aspire ones and they both show 1.5 gig of RAM and they both run a lot faster.)

Angus

Posted 2014-05-03T16:44:36.743

Reputation: 21