VA panels will continue to dominate. They will get a bit faster and
a bit brighter. But with any luck, the biggest change will be access
to the same screen tech from 20 21, just a little cheaper.
SYSTEM
MEMORY
THE STATE OF MEMORY IN 2022
THE TRANSITION FROM DDR 4 TO DDR 5
HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN
DDR5 MEMORY IS at the start of its likely five-year lifespan. This
exciting, speedy memory has sure put a smile on our faces. It has
been a while now since we had a new version of RAM—just over
seven years, in fact. To put that into perspective, it was the same
year the Amazon Fire TV Stick was released and the same year
that Intel’s first 14nm chips were released.
So, it’s about time we got an upgraded RAM series. At the
start of a new generation of memory, the same questions fly
around PC enthusiasts’ heads. Should you upgrade to this new
memory, should you wait around for prices to drop, and how does
it compare to the previous DDR4 RAM? All of these are important
things to consider, especially if you are in the process of upgrading
your setup or buying a new system. As it’s released before the
new year, 2022 should see widespread adoption of DDR5 usage,
with the following year hopefully making DDR5 the most popular
choice of memory, pushing DDR4 off its pedestal.
Like most generational changes, one of the main upgrades is
the increase in capacity. When DDR3 was phased out for DDR4,
2GB and 4 GB sticks were fairly common configurations. You
could get 8GB sticks of DDR3 but this wasn’t routine and when
DDR4 came in, this capacity became the standard across its
lifespan. This wasn’t a huge upgrade in capacity, but for next-gen
DDR5, that is set to change. On the face of it, the single-DIMM
capacity for DDR5 is greatly improved over DDR4. You can expect
individual DIMM sticks with up to a whopping 128 GB capacity,
and potentially even more in the future. Compared to the 32 GB
maximum capacity on the consumer market for DDR4, that’s four
times greater.
Voltage also alters this time around, reducing from 1 .2V to 1 .1V.
Where the real change is found is how DDR5 handles power. With
DDR4, the motherboard handled the memory power. This time
around, the VRM has moved from the mobo to the stick itself. The
memory kit manufacturer now controls the voltage regulations
instead of the motherboard company. It simplifies motherboards
but makes DDR5 more complex and unsurprisingly more
expensive. Some 3 2GB kits running at DDR5’s minimum speeds
have been seen for sale for around $300. That’s nearly double the
price of similar DDR4 kits, but it’s no shock. A new generation of
memory is always expensive at launch.
Another big change is of course the speed. The current
minimum RAM speed on DDR5 starts at 48 00MHz and goes all
the way up to 6 400MHz. You can get higher than 4800 MHz from
DDR4, but the bandwidth speeds will certainly be quicker on the
newer generation. With core counts increasing on CPUs, these
chips require greater memory bandwidth. One architectural
change on DDR5 is that it will be split into two sections, each
with its own independent 32-bit channels per stick. This now also
moves the key in the pins to the center of the DIMM sticks. This
means that the standard 2 x 6 4-bit channel DDR4 system will
change to a quad 3 2-bit channel layout with DDR5. Combine this
change with greater capacities and faster RAM speeds, you can
expect performance almost twice as fast as DDR4, with lower
latency speeds and increased bandwidth.
With Intel’s Alderlake chips releasing at a similar time and
supporting both PCIe 5. 0 and DDR5 straight out the box, AMD’s
AM5 socket is sure to follow suit with a release sometime in- With Windows 11 also just being released, there are quite
a few generational changes all happening at once. This will make
2022 an interesting year and expectations for PC upgrades are
promising. As we said earlier, we expect to see a flood of DDR5
DIMM sticks hit the market and gradually become the mainstream
choice of RAM. New variants will arrive throughout the year with
greater capacities and speeds. If you are about to buy a setup,
then, DDR5 will currently feel quite pricey. It could pay to wait a
while. But without any doubt, DDR5 the future of memory and will
take over from DDR4. It’s just a matter of time.
DDR5 promises up to double the
performance of DDR4. As a new
tech, it will be expensive in 20 22,
but will be the future of memory