With DDR4, memory technology takes a quantum leap forward with higher speeds, increased densities and lower power consumption. 

At CES 2013, Crucial became one of the only companies to successfully demonstrate their upcoming mass market Ballistix DDR4 modules.  While the memory is “only” running at 2133MHz, we can expect speed increases to well over 3GHz as companies begin to develop overclocker-friendly modules.

The benefits of DDR4 are numerous but they won’t be fully realized until Intel releases supporting Haswell processors.  Like today’s Ivy Bridge, Haswell will initially be released as part of a platform which incorporates DDR3 memory but the architecture will eventually include DDR4 support for some markets.  With that in mind, a full rollout of DDR4 is still some time away but that hasn’t stopped Crucial from beating their competitors to the punch.

One of the major selling points of DDR4 is its low power envelope, making it a perfect fit for the mobile market.  By operating at just 1.2V (reduced voltage options will push this number even lower) it offers up to a 20% savings over DDR3 while still operative at 2133MHz.  DDR4’s individual IC densities have also been improved while space requirements have fallen dramatically, allowing more DRAM components per module.  This will result in 16GB DIMMs and are we’ve heard of companies who are currently working on 32GB modules.

Crucial provided a number of charts with their presentation, which are attached below.