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What to pay for your desktop DDR2 RAM in late November 2008

by Tarinder Sandhu on 27 November 2008, 14:18

Tags: Crucial Technology (NASDAQ:MU), Kingston, OCZ (NASDAQ:OCZ), Corsair, G skill

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DDR2-8500 and thoughts

DDR2-1,066MHz+ (PC8500)

DDR2 doesn't usually scale much past 1,066MHz and focus for higher speeds has now moved on to DDR3

The extra bandwidth that DDR2-1,066 provides is of particular benefit when running the host CPU at higher-than-default speeds. DDR2 of this speed will generally require above-JEDEC (1.8V) voltages.

2GB kits (2x 1GB)

Kingston DDR2-1,066 - 5-5-5-15 latencies - 2.2V - integrated heatspreaders - £29.69 @ eBuyer.co.uk. (£33.60)

4GB kits (2x 2GB)

OCZ PC-2 Platinum PC2-8000 - 5-5-5-18 latencies - 2.1V - platinum heatspreaders - £55.95 @ eBuyer.co.uk (£75.20)  

Whilst the OCZ 4GB pack isn't quite DDR2-1,066MHz it does provide astonishing value, being around £20 cheaper than an equivalent set just two months ago.

Summary

It's a proven fact that 4GB of memory provides a better computing experience than 2GB, and the modest outlay is such that we'd recommend all users plump for 4GB and not pay more than £60 for any DDR2 - going above DDR2-1,066MHz rarely pays dividends.

DDR2 prices keep on dropping to levels where not upgrading is literally counter-productive. The drops are in stark contrast to the poor dollar-to-pound rate, meaning that, in fact, pricing has plummeted.

Our pick of the DDR2 bunch is the 4GB Corsair XMS2 kit, currently costing under £40.

If new-fangled DDR3 is more your cup of tea head on over to a similar article that delineates the current value proposition.


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