This is the time to take advantage of the price difference / gain you can get from DDR2 compared to DDR3.  Specially if you have a DDR2 motherboard and are thinking about upgrading to use that DDR3, hold that thought.  For the price point of DDR2 theses days you may want to re-think the cost vs benefits.   After all, DDR3 is only going to make a real difference if you have all the other latest hardware that supports it and its still much more expensive than DDR2.  Today PCWizKid takes a close loo into the Patriot Extreme Viper DDR2 series memory,  specifically the PATRIOT PVS24G8500ELKR2.  This is DDR2 , 1066Mhz, 5-5-5-15 timings @ 2.1 v.

If your running a mainstream system that supports DDR2 1066 (check your motherboard specs) and your running less than that currently or only 2GB total RAM, there is no doubt that you should be upgrading to get a significant performance gain from 4GB.  The question is compared to slower speeds or latencies from older DDR2 what are the gains you can get from DDR2 1066?  Lets put to the test and compare.

Review

PCWizKid's Test System

PCWizKid only uses the top of the line latest PC components.  In this case we are using the AMD profiled Dragon Test System which constitutes the following:

- AMD Phenom II X4 810 OC @3.3ghz
- Diamond ATI Radeon HD4890 1GB OC @990/1100
- Patriot 4GB DDR2 1066 5-5-5-15
- Seagate 500GB v12 SATA HDD
- InWin 850W Commando PSU
- Cooler Master Sniper Case
- Windows Vista Ultimate 64bit (fully updated)

Specifications

Extreme Performance PC2-8500 (1066MHz)
Enhanced Latency (5-5-5-15)
Equipped with Patriot Viper Heat Shields with integrated ACC (Aluminum Copper Composite) technology
100% Tested and Verified
Lifetime Warranty
RoHS Compliant
EPP Ready
Tested and compatible with Intel P35, X38, and Nvidia NF680i and NF780i boards

Conclusion

Hard Core PC Gamers and Overclocking Enthusiats will appreciate what Patriot has done here with the design of the heatspreader.  The latest version of this DDR2 has a voltage requirement of 2.1 volts which gives room for further overclocking it and maximizing its potential.  PCWizKid was pleased with the results without even pushing the boundries and timings of this DDR2 and defenitely recommends the use of this ram in your gaming rig.  As seen in the video review, Patriot has the performance you would want and the brand's reliability comes through shining with the results we got.