Explore the hidden truth about extended RAM – ups and downs of this trendy feature.
You’ve probably heard or seen the terms “memory or RAM expansion” and “RAM extension” from brands. They all mean one thing: the phone’s ability to expand its memory to accommodate more apps.
But is it real or a trap? What are the consequences in using it? Here are the insights to shed light into the matter.
Disclaimer: The content in this article is solely the author’s opinion and should not be considered as professional advice or endorsement.
Android RAM in a Glance
Before we go further, check out the image below to understand Android’s memory scheme.
RAM is the fastest and most efficient memory. When you launch and swap between apps and games, RAM determines the smoothness and stability. That’s why some brands like to boast the RAM type.
The LPDDR5X RAM type on phones is a flagship memory. If your phone has it, apps should load in a breeze. Any sluggishness is more likely caused by flaws within the app itself.
zRAM is a RAM partition where compressed data are placed and they are decompressed when copied out. It’s made available in Android KitKat and is designed to give the CPU more memory. So, when you multitask, the OS can maintain those apps on the foreground without sacrificing the memory needs of other services.
What is Extended RAM
Extended RAM is a feature that enables a phone to allocate a part of its onboard storage (ROM) as a memory. Let’s say your handset comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of ROM.
When you enable the feature and set it to 4GB, for example, 4GB of the 256GB ROM will be converted into RAM, giving you a total of 12GB of RAM. It can handle certain apps that demand so much memory, in theory.
This concept isn’t new and is similar to the ones found on Linux and Windows. These OS use the feature for stability and smooth performance, which is the inspiration of the Android version.
FYI, zRAM is not extended RAM. It’s a reserved space within the physical RAM installed on your phone.
Does Extended RAM Work
Extended RAM is a placebo in general. This is because in the world of RAM, nothing is faster than the actual RAM, not even the internal storage, be it UFS. Here are the reasons why extended RAM is viewed as a downside:
- The speed of the ROM is nowhere near the speed of the RAM.
- The slower reading and writing speed of the ROM versus the RAM may raise battery consumption.
- The battery consumption associated with extended RAM may lead to higher temperatures.
- The converted part of the ROM is getting used more frequently, increasing the wear and tear and reducing the read and write cycles.
- Apps and games utilizing that ROM (converted by extended RAM) may experience more lags because of the slower speed.
Despite the downsides, the wear and tear aren’t greater than the impact of typical daily use. The phone will probably surpass its end of life cycle and the storage is still working normally with some lags here and there due to fragmentation over the years.
But converting some of the ROM to further expand the already big RAM has diminishing returns; free RAM is wasted RAM in Android OS. The feature may be seen as more helpful on phones with RAM capacities below 6GB.
Takeaway
Extended RAM is nothing new and perhaps a more “refined” version of the legacy Android memswap where SD cards have been used to boost memory performance. Those are the times of the early Android builds.
The Samsung Galaxy Mini, for instance, only has 384MB RAM and 160MB ROM; the RAM is bigger! SD card is the only way to store pics, vids, and other files and that opened the idea of memswap in the community, converting a part of the SD card to boost memory.
In the modern age, 8GB RAM is enough for most apps, including many demanding games. The best way is to buy something with 12GB RAM for the desired smoothness and stability. And know this, the Android dev team don’t recommend virtual memory:
“On Android, storage isn’t used for swap space like it is on other Linux implementations since frequent writing can cause wear on this memory, and shorten the life of the storage medium.”
Are you using extended RAM on your phone?