PNY Unleashes Next-Gen DDR5-4800 RAM Ahead Of Intel's Alder Lake Launch
Memory makers are not necessarily waiting around for next-gen platforms to arrive before unveiling or releasing DDR5 RAM modules. PNY certainly is not. The company announced it is adding DDR5-4800 memory kits to its lineup "to support the growing lineup of motherboards" that will be compatible with the DDR5 standard.
As of right now, there's not a single consumer motherboard or platform that supports DDR5. However, such products are right around the corner, starting with Intel's upcoming Alder Lake launch. Alder Lake is set to be Intel's major push into hybrid (or heterogeneous) computing, and its accompanying 600-series chipset will support next-gen technologies, including DDR5 memory and PCI Express 5.0.
Looking further down the line, AMD also has plans to support DDR5 memory, when its Zen 4 processors launch sometime next year. It will take some time for DDR5 to truly supplant DDR4 in the landscape (Alder Lake will support both memory standards), but not a whole lot of time, according to PNY.
"With the Intel Alder Lake CPU launching late 2021, Intel’s CPUs will be the first to support the DDR5 standard, but with growing support from other CPU manufactures, DDR5 will likely overtake DDR4 in popularity by 2023," PNY predicts.
It will be interesting to see if that happens. The tech industry at large is currently grappling with a shortage of silicon. Graphics cards have been especially difficult to find in stock at anywhere close to MSRP, and if that continues into 2022 (or beyond), then some people who may have been planning a system upgrade or brand new build could conceivably delay those plans. That in turn stunt the adoption of DDR5 among consumers, in the short term.
DDR5 is the future, though, and PNY is ready to get the party started. Its first kits adhere to JEDEC's official specifications, which call for a 4,800MT/s transfer rate and 1.1V. As time goes on, expect to see faster kits for overclocking, just as we saw with DDR4 (the JEDEC specification for DDR4 is 3,200MT/s, though some ultra-high end kits even exceed 5,000MT/s).
Another potential benefit is the inclusion of on-die Error Correcting Code (ECC) support. This has almost exclusively been the domain of data centers and some workstations (much to the chagrin of Linus Torvalds), and with the introduction of DDR5, it will gain significant traction into the consumer space as well.
"We’re excited to add cutting-edge DDR5 technology to our product portfolio. While we are launching our first DDR5 models in the Performance line, we will also be supporting gamers, content creators, and enthusiasts in their on-going quest for PC performance by launching models under our XLR8 Gaming brand. These models will feature higher frequency speeds, aggressive out-of-the-box overclocking, stylish heat spreaders and RGB illumination," said Michelle Bolchune, director of marketing at PNY.
To that end, PNY says its XLR8 Gaming DDR5 4800MT/s modules are being tested by various motherboard makers, ahead of mass production of these kits in the fourth quarter of this year.
