DDR1 and DDR2

[ajai5777]

I have a small doubt regarding the RAM
Is there any performance difference between DDR1 400Mhz and DDR2 800MHz
specially in games...?
Suppose a new game require 2gb ram. do they mean 2gb DDR2..?
Or 2gb ddr1 will meet the same performance in that game...?

[cynosure]

While at the same speed(frequency), both DDR and DDR2 transfer the data at the same rate.
i.e the data transfer rate of DDR400 and DDR2-400 is same(3200 MBps). But DDR has the upper limit of 400MHz, which is the lower limit of DDR2- the upper limit being 1066MHz.

In case of gaming and other apps a faster memory means that the data can be transferred faster from RAM to the other components.
Like in the case of DDR2 800 MHz, the data transfer rate is 6400MBps, double of the DDR2/DDR 400MHz(3200 MBps).

A faster memory helps in faster starting/loading/reloading/exiting times in case of games.

[toofan]

+1 for the above post and one more thing. Price difference. DDR2 is quite cheap now, even cheaper then DDR1.

[ajai5777]

Ram speed has no critical role in game play?
Only help in faster loading starting etc?
Main thing is the quantity?

[cynosure]

^In a way yes. Because the level that you are currently playing is loaded onto the system ram and its upto the cpu/gpu to process the data and display it onto the screen.

Moreover, if your motherboard supports DDR then it wont support ddr2, so the only option is to increase the ram as you cannot use ddr2.

Most of the processing in games is done by the graphics card which has its own ram- faster than the ram used on motherboard. If your gfx card is outdated then even your system ram wont help.