Supertalent May Newsletter

[Capper]

The introduction of the Intel P35 BearLake chipset ushers in with it a whole new memory technology, DDR3. As an active member of the JEDEC Association, Super Talent engineers helped define the DDR3 standards for unbuffered DIMMs, SO-DIMMs, and registered DIMMs. As DDR2 approaches the limits of what it can reach in clock speeds at around 1000MHz, DDR3 will support significantly higher clock speeds, scaling up to 1600MHz or higher in the coming year. Although JEDEC specs for DDR3 begin at 800MHz, DDR3-800 will be skipped over completely in favor of 1066MHz or faster speeds. The current drive among DRAM chip fabs toward smaller manufacturing geometries will likely result in sharp increases in DDR3 clock speeds later this year.

DDR3 operates at only 1.5 Volts, versus 1.8V for DDR2. According to Ohms Law (P = I x V), power consumption is directly proportional to operating voltage. So this voltage reduction results in a dramatic reduction in power consumption. A DDR3 module will use approximately 17% less power than a DDR2 module of the same speed. Of course, higher frequency memory draws more current, so faster DDR3 modules will still draw as much or more power than their slower DDR2 siblings.

Super Talent has been testing our own DDR3 modules for months now. We have built sample modules using several different DRAM vendors. Due to our early investment in DDR3 technology, we are now able to offer 1066 and 1333MHz DDR3 modules and kits. These products have been tested extensively on multiple P35 motherboards to ensure compatibility and reliability. Dual Channel kits have been tested as a matched pair to guarantee performance at their rated specs.

Because high-speed DDR3 modules do generate more heat, Super Talent attaches distinctive black High Efficiency (HE) cast aluminum heat spreaders to our Extreme Performance modules. Our Desktop grade modules are cooled by our Classic aluminum heat spreaders. These products will be available in June from Super Talent, and higher speed and lower latency DDR3 products will be introduced soon.

Part Number
Description
W1066UB1G7 DDR3 1066MHz 1GB module 7-7-7-20
W1066UX2G7 DDR3 1066MHz 2GB kit 7-7-7-20
W1333UB1G7 DDR3 1333MHz 1GB module 7-7-7-20
W1333UX2G7 DDR3 1333MHz 2GB kit 7-7-7-20

[polobunny]

I can't wait to see some DDR3 cas 5-5-5-15 :D
I can't wait to see bandwidth on these babies either.

[Capper]

Yeah.....I think that people are going to be a bit underwhelmed at first, much like DDR2 at release.......memory makers have a little positive to look at in that both AMD and INTEL will be adopting this in short order......new chipsets and new CPUs should make for a much warmer reception.

[polobunny]

Originally Posted by Capper

Yeah.....I think that people are going to be a bit underwhelmed at first, much like DDR2 at release.......memory makers have a little positive to look at in that both AMD and INTEL will be adopting this in short order......new chipsets and new CPUs should make for a much warmer reception.

Hey, long ago used to be a time where DDR2-400 and DDR2-533 were "common" and enthusiast memory respectively. I don't think anyone should be expecting a revolution here, only a logical progression.
In retrospect, if you compare high end DDR kits to current high end DDR2 kits you can see the bandwidth has almost doubled. It would be great in my opinion if this happens with DDR3, though maybe a bit foolish to think so.
One has to consider chipsets in this game. Progression of technology applies to those too, they're always working to find ways to improve memory controllers and whatnot. Hopefully, we really get to see bandwidth doubled. :D