Dell Y506 8GB DDR4-3200 CL16 SODIMM

The Dell Y506 is an 8GB DDR4-3200 SODIMM with great latency but sad capacity. It's fine for reviving an old laptop, but the price spread is ridiculous and 8GB single-channel is a dead end. Only worth it if you find it cheap and your expectations are low.

The 3200 MT/s speed is middle of the pack, 54th percentile in our database. Nothing exciting, but it gets the job done for everyday browsing, office apps, and light photo work. The CL16 latency is the real story here, 88th percentile, which means snappy response times for a budget stick. The catch is capacity. 8GB in a single SODIMM slot means you're capped unless you add a second stick, and single-channel memory leaves real performance on the table. For a basic Dell laptop refresh, it's fine. For anything heavier, it'll choke.

Against the Corsair Vengeance LPX or G.Skill Ripjaws V, this Dell stick looks pretty sad. Those are 32GB desktop kits with similar or better speeds, and they're aimed at builders who want headroom. The PNY XLR8 and Patriot Viper Venom are even faster, pushing 3600 MT/s and beyond. The Dell Y506's only real edge is latency, and that's not enough to justify the capacity gap. If you're upgrading a laptop, a 16GB dual-channel kit from Team Group or G.Skill will run circles around this for not much more money.

Value is all over the map. In the US, we're seeing listings from USD 77 to USD 185, which is a USD 108 spread for the same stick. That's absurd. The lower end is reasonable for an 8GB SODIMM, but anything over USD 100 is a bad deal when 16GB kits from competitors aren't much more. In Europe, prices range from EUR 172 to EUR 196, and honestly, that's steep for 8GB. If you're shopping in the US, hunt for the USD 77 listing. If you're in Europe, maybe wait for a sale or look at dual-stick kits instead.

The Dell Y506 is an 8GB DDR4-3200 SODIMM stick aimed at laptops and mobile workstations. It runs at 3200 MT/s with CL16 timings, which is a solid latency profile for a budget module. But 8GB in a single stick is a tough sell in 2024, and the price spread on this thing is wild.

It's a single-rank, 260-pin module that'll drop into most Dell laptops without drama. The latency is actually a bright spot, landing in the 88th percentile. Capacity, though, is near the bottom at the 23rd percentile. If you just need to wake up an old notebook, it works. If you want real multitasking headroom, keep scrolling.

Skip this if you're building a desktop, since it's a SODIMM module and won't fit standard DIMM slots. Also skip it if you need more than basic multitasking, 8GB single-channel will frustrate you. And if you're outside the US, the EUR 172 to EUR 196 pricing is hard to justify when dual-channel 16GB kits cost about the same.

Buy this if you have an old Dell laptop with 4GB or less and you just need it to stop wheezing. The 8GB bump will make Chrome and Zoom feel less painful, and the CL16 latency helps. But if you're building a new system or you want to actually multitask, skip it. This is a band-aid, not an upgrade.