DDR4, Windows 9...

[coolpurplefan]

I hope I don't annoy anyone with this question but does anyone know what else is coming out in the next year? I know USB 3.0 has already come out.

 

[razel]

USB 3 came out a while ago... unless you meant it came out as gay.

DDR4 looks good since Intel's Broadwell looks like it supports it.
Windows 9 is looking like 2015. But Win 8.1 update 1 will be out in a few months.

I'm sure Tech site like Anand know what's coming out but they could be under NDA. To best guess what's coming out this year, take a look at the trade shows. CES 2014 was in January. Computex, Google I/O and MS Build are coming up.

 

[biostud]

DDR4 will come out around Haswell-E so probably 2H14.

 

[Ken g6]

Maxwell, from nVidia, is here - but only at the low end in 28nm. Maxwell on 20nm may be coming later this year.

I really don't know what AMD is up to. :ninja: Seems like mainly more APUs.

"Haswell refresh" is coming. Probably won't amount to much. Broadwell K on the desktop is looking less likely.

I just want a K chip with Crystal Well on the desktop. Is that too much to ask???!!!

 

[vailr]

There's also an improved/faster USB 3.0 specification waiting implementation.
And: AMD has shown how a Display port could be used as sort of a multi-function "poor man's Thunderbolt" port.

 

[mfenn]

I just want a K chip with Crystal Well on the desktop. Is that too much to ask???!!!

Apparently.

 

[piasabird]

I haven't seen enough data on DDR4 implementation.
Will the DIMM be the same size?
Will the CPU's use the same socket size?
Will there be a different Power Requirement?
So this might indicate nothing can be upgraded using the same motherboard.

So much for a green computer???

 

[Ken g6]

DDR4 will require a new motherboard for sure. Since memory controllers are on the CPUs now, you'll need a new CPU too. Wikipedia suggests 1.0–1.2 V for DDR4.

 

[coolpurplefan]

So much for a green computer???

Ha, I just remembered something. Someone with a Haswell processor may need a new power supply because of the energy-saving feature. http://www.anandtech.com/show/6953/sea-sonic-and-corsair-power-supplies-certified-for-haswell

Also, with Windows 8, you get USB 3.0 support so that means a new case as well.

lol this is getting funny.

 

[piasabird]

Almost every build I have done, I just went and purchased new case and new power supply. I have noticed switching to new RAM usually has little or no benefits at first. It takes a while to get the RAM right and make it faster than the previous version. I want to see at least a 10% improvement before I upgrade. I don't do gaming so that is not much of a factor.

With RAM almost every processor and OS uses DMA to access ram in the background freeing up the processor to do other tasks. So the processor needs to have a faster bus speed before it gets real improvement. Turbo boost was nice also. However, if you have a dual core why not activate it for an i3 also? A dual core i3 CPU can run 4 threads. So just increase the cache size and give it turbo boost.

I have an i3 4330 that has the HD4600 IGP with 4 megs of cache and runs at 3.5 Ghz. It seems to run pretty fast to me. I don't do any gaming so that is not an issue. It was on sale when I purchased it.

I think the low voltage haswell CPU's only applies to CPU's that are ultra low power models like you would see on laptops or embedded products.

 

[ShintaiDK]

Ha, I just remembered something. Someone with a Haswell processor may need a new power supply because of the energy-saving feature. http://www.anandtech.com/show/6953/sea-sonic-and-corsair-power-supplies-certified-for-haswell

Also, with Windows 8, you get USB 3.0 support so that means a new case as well.

lol this is getting funny.

No they dont need a new PSU. Also its a feature mainly for laptops.

Example on the desktop:

Desktop mobo makers also got C6 and C7 disabled at default. Pre Haswell too. Both are extended sleepmodes, not "idle". And in the above case, the PSU itself is wasting atleast the first 10W in any mode at that pwoer draw.

C0: Active core execution instructions
C1/C2: Stops the core from executing instructions, lower voltage. C2 further lowers voltage. Doesn't exist in all processors. Core clock is turned off.
C3: Flushes L1 cache, lower voltage. Doesn't exist on all CPUs.
C4: Partially flushes the L2 cache and turns off the PLL. Introduced with Pentium M.
C6(Deep Power Down): Introduced with Penryn, flushes and turns off L1 and L2 caches, clock and PLL. Lowers voltage down significantly. With Nehalem, power gating allows voltage to go to zero
C7: Extension of C6 to work for the L3 caches

 

[mfenn]

Almost every build I have done, I just went and purchased new case and new power supply. I have noticed switching to new RAM usually has little or no benefits at first. It takes a while to get the RAM right and make it faster than the previous version. I want to see at least a 10% improvement before I upgrade. I don't do gaming so that is not much of a factor.

The real consumer benefit to new RAM technologies is denser DRAM chips, which means higher capacity DIMMs. Like you said, that's usually not apparent until it's been around for a while.