Montevina with Vista could put memory makers back in the black

1 May 2008 | 10:47 BST

By Nebojsa Novakovic

IN ABOUT A MONTH, when Intel's "Montevina" chipset platform for FSB-1066 Core 2 mobile Penryns appears, it will bring along quite a few new things like usable 3-D graphics, full HD video, Wimax option and so on. One important change, to go along with faster FSB, is bringing DDR3 memory to notebooks.

Micron, Samsung and the rest are already churning out DDR3-1066 SO-DIMMs at 1 and 2GB capacities, and the 4GB ones are about to sample. In fact, you might see some custom memory vendors doing faster SO-DIMM modules with heat spreaders for the discerning crowd: DDR3-1066 CL5 doesn't sound bad.

In a dual-channel configuration, this means you could have 4 (later 8) GB of RAM on a notebook, with plenty of extra bandwidth for that integrated GPU too. Why do you need that?

First reason, Windoze Vista: it is a RAM gobbler, and if the old XP really ends up gone with the wind, you will need to fit your systems with 4GB RAM to really feel comfortable when running multiple apps - unless, of course, you're on the healthy Linux Open Office diet.

Second, Vista's Aero GUI needs that GPU to always have plenty of extra memory bandwidth, if nothing than for the frame buffer refresh. Not to mention the vaunted DX10 game compatibility - again, extra bandwidth required, that means dual channels populated.

So, you need two modules of 2GB each to truly feel at ease. And yeah, it might even bring you some extra 3Dmark oomph, as Intel shows here:

Since, at least until the end of the year, those DDR3 modules will continue to be markedly more expensive than DDR2, we have to assume the DRAM gang will make some extra money. At the recent Shanghai IDF, a Micron rep stated that, while the full DDR2 to DDR3 crossover is due sometime in 2009, the 1Gbit DDR3 die (the one used for those 2GB SO-DIMMs) will remain to be a sweet spot till 2011 - probably in its faster DDR3-1333 or 1600 iteration by then.

For now, though, that die is selling at a premium, and Montevina's DDR3 focus will surely be welcome by the embattled DRAM vendors. µ

© 2007 Incisive Media Investments Ltd. 2007