(answered a few questions myself regarding DDR4 vs LPDDR4X)
Any idea if DDR5 is going to be backwards compatible with DDR4? Historically they have not been but with a quick online search I did not find anything indicating one way or the other.
Will there be plans of offering newer / other memory architectures? eg. a version with soldered-on LPDDR4x memory, with the understanding that when you swap out the main board later for a newer CPU you’ll also be getting new RAM?
There’s really no such thing as backwards compatible RAM. There have been some examples of platforms that support two types, like Skylake supporting DDR3L/DDR4, but that is based on the memory controller and there’s no signs that Intel or AMD is planning a repeat of it.
DDR5 will not be cross-compatible with DDR4 unfortunately. Our plan in general is to continue to offer socketed memory. As we move to future CPU platforms that use new memory standards, we’ll support those.
Makes sense, thanks for the clarification @both above!
As a follow-up, Nirav @nrp, how soon is the company aiming to get new components available for the laptop? Say, a new CPU (Alder Lake) / motherboard architecture (LGA1700) launches in October (with DDR5 support). Would it be a while before that becomes available as an option, or are you aiming for a quick availability (contingent on market availability)?
I might just wait it out for the newer architecture to drop with DDR5 support since I guess that would be the standard for the coming ~3-6 years (if history is an indicator).
There’s really no such thing as backwards compatible RAM. There have been some examples of platforms that support two types, like Skylake supporting DDR3L/DDR4, but that is based on the memory controller and there’s no signs that Intel or AMD is planning a repeat of it.
Alder Lake will support DDR4/5 on both mobile and desktop.
No laptop manufacturer would support both though, as they will have different sockets so you will always have 1/2 slots empty.
