Conclusion:
Benchmarking does not reveal all the benefits of having more memory, or from having faster memory, installed in your system. By looking at the default speed test results from a 1GB kit of DDR2-667 and the 2GB of Transcend DDR2-800, one might think it is a wasted effort to conduct such an upgrade. I found that many applications were more efficient with the 2GB kit installed, and in particular I noticed a boost in Adobe Photoshop and Microsoft Excel. Many newer games on the market are also optimized to run on 2GB of memory, and a boost will be seen in that setting, as well.
Overclocking was surprisingly impressive. Without touching the timings at all, and with only an increase in voltage from 1.80V to 1.85V, this kit was able to climb to DDR2-960 speeds. Although unstable at 1000 MHz, I did get into Windows, and can tell that with a bit of tweaking, and perhaps some more voltage, these modules could handle it. Another thing that might help with overclocking is some sort of cooling. Many may find heatspreaders to be all about presentation, but slapping a set on these memory modules might be worth the money!
As mentioned in the introduction, this is currently Transcend's fastest DDR2, but do not fear, they have DDR2-1066 on the horizon for those who demand even more speed. There is no guarantee, but a similar overclocking profile would sure be interesting!
Another positive feature, and one that many memory companies are offering, is the lifetime warranty. It's just nice to know that the manufacturer is willing to stand behind the rather large investment you've made in their product.
The downside to the two 1GB Transcend DDR2-800 modules tested is that they aren't really for the computer enthusiast market. Although they performed well and overclocked with ease, they feature rather loose timings and just look rather boring. Although we've heard it before that "looks really shoudn't matter and it's what is inside that counts", it applies here about as well as it does to people. If there is a memory kit with similar features and a shiny heatspreader, you can guess which one will get the attention of the average gamer or overclocker.
I checked the Transcend USA website store, since they sell direct and they are generally competitive with other stores carrying their goods. One 1GB stick of this DDR2-800 memory was listed at $182, making a 2GB dual channel kit $364. This seems a bit high.
A search or PriceGrabber only finds one store carrying this memory, but the price of about $163 (US) brings you much closer to reality. Settings yourself up with a 2GB dual channel kit then works out to be about $326, which is still high, but not ridiculous. Other brands of dual channel DDR2-800 2GB kits with the same timings sell for as little as $240, and then others with better timings might sell for well over $400. Constructing a dual channel kit with these individually packaged 1GB modules might not be the most economical route to take, but if you can find a good deal, it would be worth pursuing.
Pros:
» Respectable performance
» Overclockable - could be awesome with correct settings / cooling
» Lifetime warranty - even if overclocked
Cons:
» Not very sexy
» Timings are not aggressive
» More expensive than other kits
Special thanks to Transcend USA for providing the Transcend 2GB (2x 1024MB) DDR2-800 Memory to Bigbruin.com for review!
Please drop by the Bigbruin.com Forum and feel free to post any comments or questions.
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