ddr

Coin-ops are few and rare these days, but that doesn't mean that the memories and quarters spent are gone forever...well, maybe the quarters. In either case, this week's Freeware Friday involves dodging speeding tickets, pulling off 99-hit air combos, and dancing like it's a revolution. Sorry folks; accessories/fight sticks/steering wheels/dance pads not included. … Read more

Nvidia and Rambus have settled a longstanding patent license dispute.

The agreement covers a "broad range" of chip products offered by Nvidia and settles all outstanding claims, including resolution of past use of Rambus' patented innovations, the companies said. The term of the agreement is five years.

Though neither financial nor technological details were disclosed, the dispute between the two companies has not exactly been private.

In 2008, Rambus sued Nvidia, accusing the graphics chip supplier of violating 17 Rambus-held patents on memory controllers. At that time, Rambus claimed that chipsets, graphics processers, and media communication processors across … Read more

IBM and Micron Technology are beginning to produce a new memory chip based on technology designed to boost memory speeds 15-fold.

The technology, the companies announced today, will be used to make a Hybrid Memory Cube chip that will be commercially manufactured by Micron, the largest manufacturer of memory chips in the United States and one of the largest in the world. IBM plans to manufacture and supply the "controller" silicon that will be used in the memory as well as in the 3D-chip technology.

The joint efforts are designed to result in memory chips that realize the … Read more

This is an update of a deal I posted a few months back.

A RAM upgrade is a great way to make your PC run faster, especially if you run a lot of programs simultaneously. More RAM means less reliance on the comparatively sluggish hard drive.

If you own a desktop system, here's one of the best memory deals I've ever seen: TigerDirect has the Kingston KHX1333C9D3B1K2 8GB desktop RAM kit for $24.99, plus around $2 for shipping. That's after a $20 mail-in rebate (PDF).

The kit includes a pair of 4GB, 240-pin DDR3 sticks … Read more

Everyone remembers Tetris. Students from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology have brought new life to the classic game game by attaching a pair of 6-foot colored LED arrays to Dance Dance Revolution mats.

The life-size game is displayed on the LED arrays instead of a television set. To rotate or change the position of the brick, you'll have to step on the preassigned pads on the DDR mats. Of course, instead of dancing, you'll just be hopping around trying to control your brick, making you look rather silly.

Watch the video to see the whole concept in action:

The students have also provided instructions here, so anyone with the right coding knowledge and equipment can build a setup like this too.

(Source: Crave Asia via Engadget) … Read more

Ultrabooks will adopt lots of cutting-edge laptop technology, not unlike what Apple did to perfect the design of its MacBook Air, according to research from TrendForce.

The first Ultrabooks from Lenovo, Toshiba, and Asus already tap into some impressive technology. Lenovo's 0.6-inch thick U300s, for example, boasts a "breathable" keyboard to reduce heat and RapidDrive solid-state drive technology to deliver a 10.5-second boot time.

Apple's MacBook Air has been the highest profile example of a laptop that continues to push the envelope on design with novel display, battery, and motherboard designs. "Intel, along … Read more

Thought I'd take a reader request today. Cheapskate fan Tom told me that he's looking to upgrade the RAM in his desktop, and wanted to know if I could steer him to a good deal on 4GB modules.

Your wish is granted, Tom! Buy.com has the Kingston HyperX Genesis 4GB DDR3 memory module for $29.95 shipped. A $10 mail-in rebate (PDF) drops the price to $19.95, which makes this one of the best deals on a 4GB stick (with these specs, anyway) I've ever seen.

The HyperX is a 240-pin DDR3 module with a … Read more

Apple's upcoming refresh of the MacBook Air will get more than just new Intel processors. A Japanese report says the flash drives will get updated storage tech too.

Apple's flash drives--also referred to as solid-state drives or SSDs--in the upcoming MacBook Air will use a technology called "Toggle Mode Double Data Rate NAND Flash" 2.0 (Toggle DDR 2.0) according to Macotakara, a Japanese-language Apple enthusiast Web site.

The standard is supported by Toshiba and Samsung. Both companies currently supply flash drives for the MacBook Air.

Here's how Toshiba describes the technology: "Toggle … Read more

Micron Technology tomorrow is set to disclose a hybrid memory technology that it claims will boost performance 20-fold over the memory chips used in PCs today.

Micron, the largest manufacturer of memory chips in the U.S., says the "Hybrid Memory Cube" can tap into the full performance potential of DRAM--or dynamic random access memory--resolving a longstanding problem referred to as the "memory wall."

Targeted initially at networking and high-performance computers, the technology will be rolled out at an investor conference in Phoenix, Ariz.

"Where DRAM is positioned in the system, you really get into … Read more