Is There a Need to Shift from DDR2 to DDR3?

AnandTech demonstrates in its article whether or not it’s worth upgrading from DDR2 to DDR3 memory at the moment. It has only been three years and Intel is once again leading the way for DDR3 support with its upcoming P35 chipset, the successor to the P965 chipset. P35 motherboards will be introduced on May 21st and its release will follow on June 4th, although some retailers already have them available since early May. So the question remains. Is it worth upgrading to DDR3 memory come June 4th? We have yet to see.

DDR3 was designed by a standards organization called JEDEC. The table below provides the difference between DDR2 and DDR3 (from the AnandTech article):

 

A few notable differences are the rated speed, internal banks and memory voltage. In regards to the rated speed, AnandTech reports that initial offerings will be 1066 and 1333 will quickly follow. At this point, it’s worth noting that Intel’s new processors, codenamed Wolfdale and Yorkfield will have front side buses of 1333 Mhz and will support DDR3. AMD Phenom on the other hand, doesn’t plan to support DDR3 until the demand goes up. In relation to the rated speed, AnandTech explains a new technology called fly-by and how it differs from the previous T branches seen on DDR2 modules.

Since DDR3 is designed to run at higher memory speeds the signal integrity of the memory module is now more important. DDR3 uses something called "fly-by" technology instead of the "T branches" seen on DDR2 modules. This means the address and control lines are a single path chaining from one DRAM to another, where DDR2 uses a T topology that branches on DDR2 modules. "Fly-by" takes away the mechanical line balancing and uses automatic signal time delay generated by the controller fixed at the memory system training. Each DDR3 DRAM chip has an automatic leveling circuit for calibration and to memorize the calibration data.

Furthermore, having more internal banks means less latency. DDR3 has also reduced its voltage, from 2.5V with DDR, 1.8V with DDR2 and now only 1.5V. Lesser power consumption means longer usage, better system performance and a greener PC.

With all the promising features of DDR3, it turned out that DDR3 only has a slight difference from DDR2 in the AnadTech benchmarks. There may be a slight difference in performance but improvements in DDR3 support over time will definitely kick DDR2 out of the spotlight. Add to that the price. 2 GB DDR3 kits will retail for about $480 while equivalent DDR2 kits are currently selling at under $150.

So do you need to shift now? The ones who currently have a choice are those who plan to upgrade to a new system since current and older motheboards don’t support DDR3 yet. When planning a system upgrade, consider an Intel P35 chipset. It’s backwards compatible with DDR2 so upgrading to DDR3 when it finally reaches a mainstream price won’t be a hassle. The Intel P35 chipset is future-proof and it will surely be worth every bang for the buck- at least for the next two to three years.*

* Kyle Bennet, editor-in-chief of HardOCP.com has these corrections which he e-mailed to me:

The P35 and G33 chipsets support both DDR2 and DDR3 as they have both memory controllers built in….HOWEVER we have yet to see any motherboards that support both specs, although there will likely be a couple, they are usually not popular due to the decreased DIMM footprint for each.

DDR3 and DDR2 will NOT fit in the same slots. They are keyed differently.

Thank you. -Gabriel

This entry was posted on Monday, May 21st, 2007 at 9:57 and is filed under Hardware. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.