why can't we add memory to video cards?

[gururu]

If the 9800 can use 256mb with only a driver revision, why can't video card makers
put on additional memory slots on cards, so that we can add (or upgrade) memory at a later time.
I think I remember a time (~1995) when Diamond had some cards where memory could be upgraded
from 2mb to 4mb.

 

[vss1980]

Put simply, the cost of the modules would be quite high and the price of upgradable cards would be higher.

This is because A) the card would have to have design changes (pcb layout, power conversion, etc.) to incorporate the possibility of having extra memory whereas one without wouldn't, and also because B) the cost of memory is already one of the factors that makes the cards so expensive and a memory module running at say 500MHz DDR would be expensive due to the memory cost and the complex design considerations needed so that the module contact points will suffer from as little parasitic effects as possible to allow for the aggressive clock speed and memory accessing used.

Considering the trouble experienced with 200MHz DDR sticks (ie. DDR 400) I'm not surprised that upgradable graphics cards were given up on a long time ago. Another important thing to note is that a lot of graphics cards that could be upgraded usually never were....... and these days why upgrade a year down the line when probably for a little more money you could buy a card with extra memory and more power.

I dont have a problem with the idea, its just that at this particular moment in time it is not practical.

 

[dnoyeb]

There were some sound cards that upgraded with regular system memory. But I think the cost of validating those extra components
versus surface mount, negates any profits they could make. Besides, memory is so dirt cheap, their is really no justification for $100 for 256MB of RAM (uhh check that-128MB RAM)... So its right now a profit thing also.

 

[rubix]

i think they should do away with video cards completely and just have a gpu slot on the motherboard that can be upgraded much like a cpu. same for ram, it could either use the mbs ram slots or just add a seperate slot for video card ram. i guess there is some reason why this is not happening already.

 

[vss1980]

Originally posted by: rubix
i think they should do away with video cards completely and just have a gpu slot on the motherboard that can be upgraded much like a cpu. same for ram, it could either use the mbs ram slots or just add a seperate slot for video card ram. i guess there is some reason why this is not happening already.

We already do, its called the AGP slot

Seriously though, could you imagine the problems standardising something like that? Especially when different chips use different RAM such as the transition from SDR to DDR to DDR-II to GDR (I think its the name of what ATI are babbling on about lately). As it is you get one integrated unit with each part tailored to match, in what we call a graphics card.

Having a seperate GPU socket and RAM slots for it is just something to push costs up some more.

 

[giocopiano]

I thought AGP was invented by Intel for their horrible integrated graphics anyway. Nobody actively chooses to use AGP texturing system memory for performance, but integrated graphics have to.
Are the efficient architectures of consoles something ever possible with a general purpose PC?

 

[BenSkywalker]

Are the efficient architectures of consoles something ever possible with a general purpose PC?

No. Dedicated hardware has severe limitations to go along with its considerable advantages given like specs.

One of the major issues with having RAM upgradeable is that the memory bus is configured and based on the amount of RAM chips that you have. Say you were to buy a R9800Pro that shipped with 128MB of RAM but could be upgraded to 256MB. Because of the way the memory bus is implemented you would only have 128bit bus until you upgraded. This would obviously kill performance on the board making is significantly slower then the 128MB R9800Pros that are designed for a 256bit bus using 128MB of RAM. Many years ago this wan't that big of a deal, for a period of time Intel's i740 was actually fairly competitive without any on board texture memory. Today halving your mem bus would butcher your board, which is what you would need to do to have a graphics card upgradeable.

As far as having a GPU socket and upgradeable RAM, to do so would require all architectures have the same pins, same memory bus configuration and draw relatively close amounts of power. Given that today's GPUs are running 256bit busses while mobos are running 64bit for the most part the cost added to the mobo could be extreme, in the order of $50 without a graphics chip or RAM included. By the time you picked up a GPU and RAM to add to it you would likely be out ~$200 and then you wouldn't be able to upgrade your mem bus, or beyond the scope of the CPU slot supported by the mobo without upgrading your mobo. It really just isn't viable for any performance solution.

 

[Fallen Kell]

This has been done in the past with other boards (I own a sound card which you can upgrade its memory). I really think the main reason this won't happen is money. Why should the video card manufacturers place this feature on their cards? They certainly don't want to give people more of a reason to not purchase a brand new video card every couple years. The main driving force for upgrading cards is the card memory. I mean, sure there are other reasons to upgrade the card, but the main limiting factor as to when you need to upgrade is the texture sizes in applications/games exceedes the limits on your card.

They could pull a Sony, and do this using a proprietary connection which would force you to purchase the extra memory through them alone (think Sony digital camera and their memory sticks)... That would probably be the only way they would do this, and even then, most people would then probably opt to buy a new card instead of extra memory which is 2 times more expensive then it needs to be.

 

[Peter]

In the past, there have been VGA cards with expandable memory (Matrox Mystique/Millenium, ATi Rage@Work/Play series, and others).

This disappeared for two reasons. (1) practically noone bought the upgrades, making the additional effort (socket on the card, special memory cards) a waste of time and money, and (2) Socket connectors really spoil the party, electrically, when you crank up the operating frequency of the RAM.

 

[dnoyeb]

If they were built into motherboards this would slow the technological advancement as the whole industry would have to agree to change any parts of the architecture.

This would also allow other players to enter the market more easily.

They call it a GPU, but they really do not want to use it that way. If you really think about it, they could have an upgradable socket on the graphics card itself.
Then you could upgrade to the next NVIDIA GPU when you got a few extra dollars. But in truth they probably have a MUCH higher yield that CPUs so you can *upgrade*
already by cranking up the clock...