Intel shift
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The move from Intel to support speedy DDR3 memory has resulted in a boom for the technology and a slow down for the older DDR2.
Research firm iSuppli said prices of both memory forms are coming closer, which is boosting the adoption of DDR3. Chip makers are equipping their processors with DDR3-capable memory controllers while phasing out implementations of older memory forms.
At the end of last year DDR2 memory accounted for 48 percent of DRAM shipments, but the numbers are declining, iSuppli said. DDR3 accounted for 35 percent of shipments during the fourth quarter of 2009. This year it will overtake DDR2 shipments, the report said. Prices of both memory technologies will remain close as memory makers shift production between DDR3 and DDR2 to generate the most revenue. Increasing demand for DDR3 could keep its price slightly higher.
Intel made a major shift to DDR3 memory in 2008 when it introduced the Nehalem microarchitecture. AMD released DDR3-capable desktop processors early last year and is in the process of implementing DDR3-capable memory controllers in its laptop processors.
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