Thoughts
DDR2 memory is here to stay. Intel has decided that future scalability is more important than immediate performance. Corsair's 1GBye DDR2 Twin2X pack debuts in at a blistering DDR533 speed. Just in case it sounds slow, that's high-end, premium DDR territory. What's more, Corsair is already marketing DDR2 that runs at, wait for it, an effective speed of 667MHz.Compared with regular DDR on a clock-for-clock basis and considered in pure performance terms, DDR2's higher latencies will make it look poor in comparison. Users who quickly adopt Intel's LGA775 platform won't necessarily experience a performance boost if migrating from S478. Intel reckons that the sacrifice is worth long-term, guaranteed CPU speed and FSB increases.
Corsair's been quick in releasing sets of compliant DDR2 modules to the general public. Its XMS2 range is widely available right now. Specific to the review modules, the most disappointing aspect has to be the generic-ish 4-4-4-12 latencies. XMS modules are famed for bucking the trend by offering low-latency timings, albeit at a price premium. That's not the case here. The 1Gbyte pack is priced at around £265. Other reputable DDR2 manufacturers offer similar packs at up to £50 less.
In summary, then, Corsair's 1Gbyte DDR2 memory pack does exactly what it says on the heatspreader. That's not enough for it to receive a recommendation, however, as others offer the similar modules at a lower price point and Corsair's very own DDR2 667MHz memory inevitably overshadows it.
This product is now end of line, and now has been replaced with the TWIN2X1024-5400C4PRO product.
