DDR2 ?The Right Memory Solution for Desktop, Server, Mobile and Workstation Platforms

This presentation was devoted to Intel?s main memory direction for desktop, workstation, server and mobile platforms, to the advantages of the DDR2-667 for the upcoming multi-core platforms, the status of the new DDR2 800, and the market readiness for the new speeds and new bandwidths. This is the current company roadmap for the next few years:

As Craig Barrett said in his keynote presentation earlier today, by the end of 2006 80% of processors will be dual-core, and they will be exactly the ones benefiting from the new memory in the first place.

As you can see, Intel is still using SDRAM and RDRAM in limited applications, such as set top boxes, communication and embedded products.

Intel?s next generation desktop and workstation products due in Q2 will only support DDR2. Intel is transitioning them over to new memory technology right now. They still sell a lot for the older technologies in the emerging markets, though, that is why you can see DDR memory still there for the entire period of time we are considering.

DDR2 400 and DDR2 533 have been released in desktop and workstation market segments. In the server field though Intel now supports only DDR2 400.

As far as the mobile market is concerned, OEM and white-box supplies are all on DDR2 already. It is certainly very popular on Centrino platforms.

In Q2 of this year Intel will be adding DDR2 667 support to its platforms, as you can see from the roadmap. In the end of this ?beginning of the next year new DDR2 800 is coming. Right now Intel?s primary concern is to make sure that it is robust and ready to go into the platforms that will be contemporary in those days. And in early 2006 we will also see new fully-buffered DIMM modules picking up (FB-DIMM).

Intel goes though a 7-step process to make sure that the new technology is supported. DDR2 667 is at the end of this process as you can see from the screenshot above. Intel tests thousands of systems and tens of thousands of units of memory for reliability and robustness during this validation procedure. We have to make sure that these are robust platforms. DDR2 800 is at the prototype stage right now. The specification is not closed yet. There are still quite a few challenges: for instance, it requires tighter AC timing values and improved DIMM and mainboard designs. Once the specification is closed Intel will get some prototype parts meeting the specs for testing and validation at the chipset and board level.

Currently there are 12 DDR2 667 DRAMs validated from 4 suppliers: Micron, Samsung, Hynix and Infineon. And quite a number of DIMMs validated from the above mentioned 4 suppliers and a few others, such as Elpida, Nanya, Kingston, Corsair and a few others.

DDR2 in the desktop segment brings significant improvements in integrated video and audio quality, as extra bandwidth ensures better media playback and higher 3D performance. Since dual-core architectures are going to pick up in the desktop market very soon, DDR2 can also contribute to higher performance of threaded applications and simultaneous work of multiple applications in the background of a played movie or music file.

In the mobile segment we will see more memory performance and at the same time lower power consumption (the transition to faster models of DDR2 will be accompanied by a huge drop in power). DDR2 enables average power savings of up to 120mW compared to what we get while using regular DDR.