Memory mayhem.
While I was pricing DDR-2 memory with several online retailers last week, I discovered some naming inconsistencies that had me scratching my head for a while.
Since HP specifies DDR-2 PC2-4300 (533 MHz) as the highest speed of memory when configuring the xw4200, I used this as my search criteria. My first stop was Crucial.com. What I quickly discovered on their memory upgrades store page is that they don't offer PC2-4300 memory but instead sell PC2-4200 memory. Hmm, is 4200 a slower speed of memory than 4300? Is it something less than 533 MHz? I pressed further. At the bottom of Crucial's informative DDR2 page, they switch back to a naming convention of PC2-4300 to describe 533 MHz memory. Even Micron, Crucial's parent company describes DDR-2 533 memory as PC2-4300.
So which is it? 4200 or 4300? Or are they two separate speeds that deserve different names? My answers were found by coming across this excellent article from Legit Reviews titled, Behind the Scenes: DDR2 by Nathan Kirsch. Conclusion? They are the exact same memory speeds, just a thoughtless result of company marketers who played with the naming conventions by either rounding up or down to make their modules look better than the competition! Arrg.
Needless to say, in the end I purchased Kingston memory. ZipZoomFly offered it for a bit less than Crucial and I bought a 1GB kit of DDR2-533 PC2-4200 for $262. I should receive it around the same time as my HP shipment.
Since HP specifies DDR-2 PC2-4300 (533 MHz) as the highest speed of memory when configuring the xw4200, I used this as my search criteria. My first stop was Crucial.com. What I quickly discovered on their memory upgrades store page is that they don't offer PC2-4300 memory but instead sell PC2-4200 memory. Hmm, is 4200 a slower speed of memory than 4300? Is it something less than 533 MHz? I pressed further. At the bottom of Crucial's informative DDR2 page, they switch back to a naming convention of PC2-4300 to describe 533 MHz memory. Even Micron, Crucial's parent company describes DDR-2 533 memory as PC2-4300.
So which is it? 4200 or 4300? Or are they two separate speeds that deserve different names? My answers were found by coming across this excellent article from Legit Reviews titled, Behind the Scenes: DDR2 by Nathan Kirsch. Conclusion? They are the exact same memory speeds, just a thoughtless result of company marketers who played with the naming conventions by either rounding up or down to make their modules look better than the competition! Arrg.
Needless to say, in the end I purchased Kingston memory. ZipZoomFly offered it for a bit less than Crucial and I bought a 1GB kit of DDR2-533 PC2-4200 for $262. I should receive it around the same time as my HP shipment.
posted by Robert at October 12, 2004
2 Comments:
Excellent link Rob! Finally a website that spelled it all out regarding the DDR-2 naming standards. I like his writing style, straight and to the point. I also loved how he called out Corsair for trying to sell a high end products that had the same specs as the lower end one.
After this article was published, Corsair supposedly changed their ways on the memory testing. Read their response in the comments section here: http://www.legitreviews.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=647
Post a Comment
<< Home