Samsung Electronics announced on May 14 that 21 of its DDR3 solutions have been validated on Intel Corporation's reference platform to work with Intel's next generation Double Data Rate – Version 3 (DDR3) chipsets. This is the largest number of DDR3-based solutions to have passed the validation program.

Samsung's Intel-validated solutions include 13 modules and eight monolithic devices in combinations of 512Megabit (Mb) / 1Gigabit (Gb) densities with speeds of 800 or 1066Mb/ps.

"Samsung's DDR3 memory technology is the next step in the evolution of DDR SDRAM memory technology," said Pete MacWilliams, Senior Fellow, Intel Corporation. "This technology will also provide the bandwidth headroom necessary to support Intel's platform roadmap of the future."

Samsung has worked very closely with Intel to develop the most advanced and comprehensive set of DDR3 memory solutions as early as possible in preparation for the next generation of Intel chipsets.

"The successful system performance of Samsung's DDR3 memory chips and modules on Intel's desktop platform is a clear sign that DDR3 is well on its way to becoming a key technology for desktops in 2007," said Kevin Lee, Vice President, Memory Marketing, Samsung Semiconductor, Inc.

Samsung Electronics will exhibit a high-performance desktop PC installed with 8GBs of memory, consisting of four 1333Mbps 2GB DDR3 memory modules, at Microsoft's WinHEC 2007 Conference on May 14-15. This 1333 Mbps 8GB configuration is currently the fastest speed and largest density for a DDR3 chip, making it the optimal memory solution for PCs with advanced gaming features.

DDR3 memory will provide at least twice the bandwidth of today's primary memory – DDR2 – with data transfer rates now up to 1.6 Gb/s. This will enable much improved 3D graphics, which will directly benefit users of the new Vista operating system. DDR3 also improves the efficiency of multi-threading operations, which will enhance the performance of multi-core systems. DDR3 not only allows for higher system performance, but it also uses only 1.5V of power compared to the 1.8V of DDR2, thereby extending battery life in notebooks. To further optimize system thermal management, DDR3 modules can utilize a thermal sensor on the dual in-line memory module (DIMM).

With its new DDR components and modules, Samsung continues to lead the industry with cutting-edge DRAM technology after being the first to introduce DDR in 1997, DDR2 in 2001, and DDR3 in 2005.

To meet market demand in desktop PCs, Samsung plans to begin full-scale mass production of its DDR3 chips later this quarter.