Microsoft announced that Windows 7 would have USB 3.1 Gen 1 support, perhaps not on its immediate release, but in a subsequent Service
Pack or update. It is not out of the question to think that following a successful release of USB 3.1 Gen 1 support in Windows 7, SuperSpeed
support would trickle down to Vista. Microsoft has conrmed this by stating that most of their partners share the opinion that Vista should
also support USB 3.1 Gen 1.
Super-Speed support for Windows XP is unknown at this point. Given that XP is a seven-year-old operating system, the likelihood of this
happening is remote.
DDR4
DDR4 (double data rate fourth generation) memory is a higher-speed successor to the DDR2 and DDR3 technologies and allows up to 512
GB in capacity, compared to the DDR3's maximum of 128 GB per DIMM. DDR4 synchronous dynamic random-access memory is keyed
dierently from both SDRAM and DDR to prevent the user from installing the wrong type of memory into the system.
DDR4 needs 20 percent less or just 1.2 volts, compared to DDR3 which requires 1.5 volts of electrical power to operate. DDR4 also supports
a new, deep power-down mode that allows the host device to go into standby without needing to refresh its memory. Deep power-down
mode is expected to reduce standby power consumption by 40 to 50 percent.
DDR4 Details
There are subtle dierences between DDR3 and DDR4 memory modules, as listed below.
Key notch dierence
The key notch on a DDR4 module is in a dierent location from the key notch on a DDR3 module. Both notches are on the insertion edge
but the notch location on the DDR4 is slightly dierent, to prevent the module from being installed into an incompatible board or platform.
Figure 1. Notch dierence
Increased thickness
DDR4 modules are slightly thicker than DDR3, to accommodate more signal layers.
Figure 2. Thickness dierence
Curved edge
DDR4 modules feature a curved edge to help with insertion and alleviate stress on the PCB during memory installation.
Technology and components
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