Steve and thread:
Article on DDR...which, btw, apparently "rocks"
host.insidertrader.com
5/18/00 - DDR Builds Cheering Section
May. 18, 2000 (PCWorld via COMTEX) -- "DDR Rocks!" That's how Micron Technology (http://www.micron.com) 's Mike Siebert closed his presentation at the DDR Summit (http://www.silicontech.com/ddrsummit.html) here Thursday. It was an oft-repeated sentiment as representatives from throughout the tech industry considered the future of their new favorite memory standard, double-data-rate SDRAM.
The memory technology speeds performance by executing two actions per clock cycle (unlike Single Data Rate memory, which can complete only one). So far, DDR memory is used primarily in graphics boards--but that should change soon.
The summit drew speakers from firms that produce processors, chip sets, graphics boards, and memory. Notably absent was chip giant Intel, (http://www.intel.com) which has thrown its weight behind the Rambus memory standard (RDRAM), with which DDR will compete. Intel's troubled 820 chip set supports RDRAM, and the company designed its upcoming "Willamette" processor to use it.
Also absent was any real mention of RDRAM. While eager to trumpet benefits of the DDR standard, most attendees seemed unwilling to take shots at the competition. RDRAM continues to suffer supply shortages and dramatically high prices. But some in attendance, memory manufacturers in particular, will also offer RDRAM-based products.
Advanced Micro Devices, (http://www.amd.com) however, plans to stick with DDR, says Ron Huff, CPG chip set marketing manager. DDR appeals to AMD because it offers a solution that spans the PC market from top to bottom, he says.
AMD Adopts DDR
AMD plans to update its popular Athlon processor later this year and launch a new chip set called the 760 that uses DDR memory. The new memory is the most cost-effective way to improve performance of the platform, he says.
And DDR's benefits won't merely be in the benchmarks, Huff adds. Consumers will actually see better application performance on systems running DDR, he says. AMD will incorporate DDR as it expands from the consumer PC market into corporate desktops, servers, and workstations, he says.
ServerWorks (http://www.serverworks.com/home.html) is also betting on DDR, says David Dorroughs, the company's technical marketing manager. ServerWorks makes chip sets for servers, and its next-generation products will use DDR.
DDR is the way to go for servers, Dorroughs says. It offers excellent reliability, performance, power consumption, and cost. And it "leverages the industry's existing infrastructure," he adds.
Memory manufacturers on hand echo that opinion. Micron's Seibert says the technology is evolutionary instead of revolutionary, and it will be relatively easy to shift memory manufacturing plants from SDRAM to DDR. There may be a small cost premium over SDRAM at first, but it won't last long, he notes. Micron expects to begin shipping DDR in the third quarter.
Reason for Optimism
The confidence of DDR backers is not misplaced, says Sherry Garber, vice president of Semico Research. (http://www.semico.com/index.htm) She did not attend the summit, but watches the memory market.
Semico expects DDR to make significant strides in the next year, moving from about 3.9 percent of the market in 2000 to about 17 percent in 2001. That far outpaces Rambus, estimated at 2.8 percent in 2000 and 2.5 percent in 2001.
DDR appeals to memory makers because it's not nearly as difficult or as expensive to make as Rambus. Manufacturers count on cranking out high volumes efficiently, and RDRAM has proven too difficult and too costly to make. RDRAM survives primarily because of Intel's endorsement, she says.
Even if DDR makes its forecasted jump next year, SDRAM will remain the king of the memory market for some time, Garber emphasizes. Semico expects standard SDRAM to maintain about 82.7 percent of the market this year; in 2002, it could shrink to 74.6 percent.
Buy SDRAM won't fade away completely for many years, she adds. Memory tends to stick around: EDO/FPM memory still makes up 10.6 percent of the market in 2000.
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