Not much.

Netbook makers are starting to ship netbooks with new Intel Atom N455 and N475 processors that support DDR3 memory. They have the same clock speed and other features as earlier Intel Atom processors. The only difference is that they use DDR3 RAM instead of DDR2. But what does that mean in terms of actual performance?

Sascha from Netbook News.de managed to get his hands on a shiny new Acer Aspire One 533 netbook with an Atom N455 CPu and he pitted it in battle against a similar netbook with an Atom N450 chip. While the new model definitely had lower memory lataency and higher memory bandwidth, the difference wasn’t huge. And more importantly, Sascha says that you probably won’t notice much difference in terms of day to day usage — you’d probably need a faster CPU for that.

Still, if you fancy some more details, check out NetbookNews.de for more charts.

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6 replies on “How much difference does DDR3 RAM make in netbooks?”

  1. I think the newest is the use of DDR3 in phones and netbooks.  I think it is the nm spec that matters.  Robert Lichota

  2. I have had my DDR3 netbook for 1 year and very happy with it.  When all set up properly, works good.  New generation memory and chip make all the difference, not so much as specs.
    Robert Lichota

  3. Cannot really get rid of the notion that it is the programs that matter these days. Android vs, windows, windows 7 vs vista, etc…

  4. It’s a well known fact that only the true die-hard gamers see much of a difference between DDR2 and DDR3. There’s that small of a difference. It’s worth a few frames per second in your favorite 3D game. The casual user surfing the net or reading some emails, which is what netbook users typically do, won’t notice the difference.

  5. Sort of a weird point of view? He has tried very hard to compare apples with apples, but is that the buying scenario? Is it even the major point from consumers?

    From a non technical point of view and from a consumer point of view the question is “How much better is this new thing to what I bought two years ago or what I have now?” Or “ Is it worthwhile to upgrade now…is this a big enough jump?”

    1. “From a non technical point of view and from a consumer point of view the question is “How much better is this new thing to what I bought two years ago or what I have now?” Or “ Is it worthwhile to upgrade now…is this a big enough jump?””

      Another question worth posing is, “How much of a price difference will an upgrade down the road or at present in an lower production quantity older technology cost over more currently produced newer ram technology?”.

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