Another gig of DDR2 or upgrade to DDR3?

[Luchian]

Hello there. My system is a little bit old. I have a Q6600 processor ( socket 775) and 3 Gb ddr2 at 800 Mhz. I would like to add another 1 Gb ddr2 there ( I have now 2 gb +1 gb. So I will take out that 1 gb and put a 2 gb one) to be 4 gb ddr2. But now come´s the tricky part : should I buy a 2 gb ddr2 800 mhz ( to have 4 gb ) or does it worth it to buy a new motherboard that supports ddr3 and buy me 4 gb ddr3 at 1600 mhz ? Does it worth financiarlly ?
1. First option : buying a 2 gb ddr2 800 mhz - cost: 30 €/40 U.S.$
2. Second option : buying new motherboard that support´s ddr3 + 4 gb ddr3 1600 mhz -
-cost: around 110 €/150 U.S.$
I am using my p.c. just for surfing web, gaming ( nothing hardcore ) , watching movies, listening music etc. So, just a regular user but who like´s new games released ( playing them at a resolution no higher than 1280x1000).
In my case, will I notice a big difference if I would purchase the ddr3 ?

 

[Mizzou]

Unless you are running a 64bit version of Windows you won't be able to address the full 4 gig of memory. That aside, don't believe it's really worth investing in another motherboard for socket 775 as it is coming to the end of it's life cycle. Might want to consider upgrading a core component like your graphics card that could be carried over to your next system.

 

[red1776]

To add to what Mizzou said, If you are not doing resource intense things, you are not going to see an appreciable difference in performance unless you pair the additional ram with a faster CPU, GPU, etc.
If you are running a 32 bit OS, adding another GB of memory is going to yield you somewhere between 0 and .25 Gb more of 'usable' memory. (memory mapping on 32 bit systems)

 

[Luchian]

Thank you very much. So, the motherboard thing is eliminated. I am running a 64 bits Windows but I´m really not sure if it´s worthing to buy another 1 gb ddr2. Anyway thank you very much for the replyes.

 

[CamaroMullet]

IMO, for the tasks that you do primarily you won't see much difference in performance ( if any ) adding that gig of ram. I agree with Red, wait until you can get a new cpu, gpu, mobo, etc...