There have been different kinds of RAM that have been developed through the years, and knowing how they differ from another can help you in so many ways.

Fast Page Mode (FPM) RAM

This is a kind of Dynamic RAM (DRAM) that can access data on the same page with very little latency. 486 and Pentium based systems used FPS way back in 1995.

Extended Data Out (EDO) RAM

This is a modified form of the FPM that is also known as “Hyper Page Mode”. As opposed to the FPM, the data output drivers on the memory module of the EDO RAM do not switch off when the column address is removed by the memory controller for the next cycle.

Synchronous DRAM (SDRAM)

SDRAM runs at 133MHz – thrice as fast as FPM RAM and twice as the EDO RAM. This type of DRAM runs in sync with the memory bus. Intel based chips in 2001 started supporting this type of RAM.

Double Data Rate (DDR) RAM

This one transfers data twice every cycle – making the process twice as efficient as opposed to the SDRAM. This eventually became the market standard today.

Double Data Rate 2 (DDR2) RAM

This is like the DDR, except that it’s twice faster, among some more improvements.

These types of RAM can be found in different systems, although the last two are usually the more common ones. Knowing them will help avoid hardware compatibility issues, especially when dealing with old models.

Article written by MyComputerAid.com