by Rob Williams on May 16, 2006 in Miscellaneous
Corsair once again wants the top spot in the DDR market, and they have it. The 4400PRO is the only 2GB kit available at these speeds, which is reason enough to check them out. Well, they prove very fast as we had hoped, despite the somewhat loose timings. Let’s take a deeper look.
This past March, the annual CeBit conference in Hannover, Germany was held. During that time, Corsair unveiled two new high-end kits. Not playing architecture favorites, one was a DDR kit and the other a DDR2 kit. We took a look at the latter kit a few weeks ago. The 1GB 8500 is undoubtedly some of the fastest memory on the market. Even months after CeBit, there are very few other manufacturers out there willing to take the step up to the 1066MHz plate.
The kit we are taking a look at today became an instant ‘hit’ so to speak, because it was a kit that power hungry users and enthusiasts crave. To my knowledge, Corsairs 4400PRO kit are the absolutely only 2GB 550MHz modules on the market. That gives them an immediate benefit. Like the 8500PRO, this 4400PRO kit proves that Corsair not only wants to have the fastest memory on the market, but does have some of the fastest memory on the planet.
Last fall, we reviewed Corsairs 2GB 3500PRO kit, which became one of the most wanted kits of the holiday season. That memory proved to have very fast stock speeds, and also had enough flexibility to please enthusiasts. This 4400PRO is similar to that kit, but should prove much faster. Why should you consider this kit over last Falls 3500PRO? Probably because most e-tailers sell the 4400PRO for only a few dollars more!
Closer Look
So what do we get? Well, the modules arrived in the green backed blister pack that every DDR1 PRO kit is encased in. The PRO modules are not ordinary by any standard, because they are the only modules out there that include LED lights at the top. These are activity lights that flicker depending on how much of the memory is currently being used. I am not usually into ‘flashy’ computer equipment as such, but this proves to be extremely cool looking in any computer. Especially if you are a modder and take pride in your setup.
The heatspreaders are much larger when compared to others on the market, which could be due to the fact that there are LED’s slapped in there. They are designed for great heat dissipation also though, and it seems to do quite a good job. Because of the sheer speed of these modules, you may want to consider a fan to keep them cool. I have done a lot of stress testing at stock speeds without a fan and have had no problems, though. But to overclock further and push more voltage into them, a fan would be highly recommended.
On the front sticker of the modules, you can read the timings, model, speed and revision number. Overall, these are some of the coolest looking modules on the market. The PRO series heatspreaders are not new, but they still continue to impress.