Closer Look:

Kingston's Value RAM comes lock, stock, and no RAM sinks. That's part of the best way to keep the cost low and offer up something very dependable at the best price. I've personally used many a Value RAM in the past which has never failed to operate. That particular kit is going on 4 years now without so much as a day of instability. The Kingston PC3-8500 Value Ram Kit simply comes with two very clean looking memory sticks weighing in at 1GB each. The memory modules on the PCB have shrunk a bit as the fabrication process has improved. Smaller fabricated modules usually equate in to lower power use and lower heat.

KVR1066D3N7K2/2G

2GB Dual Channel

Due to the lower voltage needed to operate, DDR3 runs much cooler and doesn't always require a RAM sink. At 7-7-7 timings and operating at 1066MHz using just 1.5V, there isn't much heat generated at all. It's really odd trying to explain that these modules are the budget end of the spectrum when you consider that they are built with true 1066MHz modules. Essentially, these should provide some room for overclocking where the previous DDR2 1066MHz modules were limited. The Kingston Hyper X series are different in that the higher frequencies and voltages when overclocked require a RAM sink as more of a preventive measure.

1.5V Low Voltage

Small ICs

Alas, the kit is a very simple clean presented kit on the common green PCB. Perhaps someone has asked this question before. Has anyone ever seen a memory kit that wasn't mounted on green PCB? It's just a concept idea, but it would obviously dress up even the lowest grade of kits. One thing marketing has always shown, looks can kill and tend to sell nicely. Other than offering up the best budget minded price to performance, the kit has a pretty simple goal: perform flawlessly till your next upgrade.

Green PCB w/o RAM Sinks

A Lot of Unused Real Estate

If you look closely at the ICs, you can see that they are Elpida modules. We've seen this name before used by various memory manufacturers mainly because they are more inexpensive DDR2 sticks compared to Micron. The newest Elpida ICs start at 800MHz and top out at 1333MHz. The timings range from 8-8-8 to 9-9-9 depending on the IC's and the kits sold. With the exception of DDR2 kits using 4-4-4 timings, the more aggressively timed DDR3 modules haven't made it on their webpage likely indicating that they are still working on them as many other vendors are currently doing. This doesn't mean they are weaker modules by any means. In fact, tests comparing DDR2 Micron and Elpida based modules yielded very close stock scores. It's overclocking and higher stock frequencies that Microns have been able to out pace Elpida.

ELPIDA ICs

Being that Elpida makes DDR3 modules comparable to anyone else thus far, the results shouldn't be much different. I honestly don't expect a lot of difference with the more fine tuned P35 motherboards whether its Elpida or Micron. The biggest results will naturally be overclocking. Previous DDR2 Elpida chips didn't afford any good overclocked frequencies no matter how much voltage was given to them. As a matter of fact, they typically allowed for a mere 50 to 100MHz at best over their rated spec. The one thing you really need to keep in mind is that this is a Value RAM kit and not the standard enthusiast batch. If you want those kinds of modules, then you'll have to move up to the HyperX series. The bottom line for the ELPIDA modules is that they are at least certified stable and reliable.

Got News? Send 'em in!