Intel has recently jumped on the DDR2 bandwagon, and the 925X and 915P/G platforms can utilize this high-end memory. DDR has been transformed into DDR2 through the doubling of internal data bus, thereby allowing next-generation memory speeds of 533 MHz and above. The DDR2 market is still limited, with only a few of the larger vendors jumping on board, but as the weeks pass, we expect that number to grow.
We're also concentrating mainly on DDR2-533 and DDR2-667, as the DDR2-400 type seems to be virtually non-existent, and higher-end speeds are just starting to emerge. Like Registered DDR, DDR2 is still something of a niche market, and it will take some time before it becomes the de facto memory standard.
The DDR2 chart is usually where the action really starts to heat up, and while we do find some noticeable price activity, it is nowhere near the level of past weeks. There were some price cuts on the DDR2 list, such as Kingston HyperX DDR2-675 256-MB which fell $21 and the pair of Crucial Ballistix DDR2-533 2x512-MB and Crucial Ballistix DDR2-667 2x512-MB, which each dropped by $14. But these cuts were accompanied by price increases, something that is unfamiliar in the DDR2 camp. Kingston HyperX DDR2-533 512-MB jumped $20, Kingston HyperX DDR2-533 2x256-MB increased $17, and Corsair XMS2 DDR2-533 512-MB rose by $14, representing a definite trend towards higher DDR2 prices. In fact, the overall price change was virtually a wash and for the first time since we added DDR2 to the guide, the total listings did not show a marked drop in retail prices.
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