Samsung cranks out next-gen Rambus memory

Samsung on Tuesday said it has begun mass production of 256-megabit XDR DRAM chips, memory based on the XDR interface from Rambus. XDR, which stands for extreme data rate, can shuttle data much faster to the processor than conventional memory, according to advocates. The chips announced today, for instance, can spit out 8 bits of data per clock cycle. Overall, they are 10 times faster than DDR 400 chips, which are commonly used in PCs today. Samsung plans to introduce a 512mb XDR DRAM chip capable of transferring data as fast as 12.8 gigabytes per second during the first half of this year.

Although Rambus memory isn't popular in PCs, consumer electronics makers like it. Sony has already agreed to put XDR memory, formerly known by the code name "Yellowstone," in the next version of the PlayStation. While Samsung is the largest memory maker in the world, Sony has typically bought memory for the PlayStation from Toshiba.