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Memory. Every computer needs it. Every enthusiast wants the best speed money can buy. Mom and dad just want something that’ll make their e-mail work so they can look at pictures of the grandkids. Like a Baskin-Robbins store, there’s a seemingly endless line of choices to suit each ones own tastes and needs. What used to merely be something that you just bought and installed without a second thought has become more like the realm of CPUs. People hunt down specific models because a particular batch/series of memory modules that were used, due to their above-par performance and overclockability.
Memory seems to have been a popular review item recently here at GruntvillE; we’ve covered 9 different memory manufacturers and their various offerings. Given that memory seems to be a popular topic of choice in the forums, that’s probably a good thing; ensuring that our readers have as broad of a picture as possible of the memory landscape and the names that are shaping it.
Today we’re taking another look at some PC3500 memory (model D35PB12C2) from the folks at SuperTalent. These 184-pin unbuffered modules come ready to run at 433MHz DDR speeds with CAS 2 latencies. Now before you do a double-take, this memory is very similar to SuperTalent’s PC3500 memory that Sky reviewed a short time back. With the exception of silver heat spreaders, the other thing that sets these modules apart is the fact that these come in a 64M x 64 configuration, meaning that they’re 512MB modules, not 256MB. Now you’re probably asking “So what’s the point? Won’t they behave just the same as the 256MB models?” They may; they may not. You have to remember that these modules basically have double the amount of modules per chip, which means voltage patterns through the wafer are going to behave differently. Add to that the fact that we’ll only need to populate 2 slots versus the 4 required by the 256MB modules to gain a full gigabyte of RAM, and again the voltage patterns will be different. Whether or not that makes any difference towards stability or performance will have to be seen. |
