To throw a brief bit of maths at things, the real-world CAS latency is measured as (CAS Latency x 2,000)/Memory Speed, which in the case of the DDR5-5600 CL28 kit comes in at 10ns. For reference, that's the same as DDR4-3200 with a CAS latency of 16. Unlike the last transition from DDR3 to DDR4, DDR5 doesn't have more pins than its predecessor. Instead, DDR5 retains the arrangement with 288 pins, but the pinouts are different. As a result, the position of the notch has changed and will help prevent less-experienced users from trying to insert a DDR5 memory module into a DDR4 slot, or vice versa. That's only a small change, though. The real game-changer resides at an architectural level that you don't see on the outside of the DIMM. The MAG Z690 Tomahawk WiFi implements MSI's Memory Boost technology, consisting of optimized memory circuits to supply pure data signals. In addition, the DDR4 and DDR5 motherboards bring DDR4-5200 and DDR5-6400 support, respectively, which is more than sufficient for our needs. Test System and Methodology This set of Neo RAM from G.Skill runs at 3,600MHz, which puts it in the sweet spot for red team gaming PCs for low latency operation. As a result, this is definitely a more budget-friendly option for mid-range builds with some flair, especially if you can't afford to stretch to the Corsair Dominator kits. The other benefits to DDR5 are that it also runs more efficiently as a baseline, offers onboard power management, delivers higher die density for larger overall capacities, and has more XMP profiles, courtesy of XMP 3.0. Will DDR5 work in a DDR4 motherboard?

DDR4 memory modules sport a single 64-bit channel (72-bit if you take ECC into account). In contrast, DDR5 memory modules come equipped with two independent 32-bit channels (40-bit with ECC). JEDEC also doubled the burst length from eight bytes (BL8) to 16 bytes (BL16). The upgrades, as mentioned earlier, improve efficiency and reduce data access latency. On a dual-DIMM setup, this transformation essentially turns DDR5 into a 4 x 32-bit configuration rather than the conventional 2 x 64-bit configuration on DDR4. Like the rest of the RGB lineup, the Dominator Platinum RGB is controlled via Corsair's iCUE software suite. If you have any other Corsair RGB products, you'll be able to import and synchronize your lighting profiles across all devices. We had some issues mirroring our custom keyboard lighting profiles, but the 11 different predefined lighting link settings worked perfectly. Best suited to high-performance Intel builds, the Trident Z Royal makes for the perfect high-speed pairing. This kit will keep your CPU fed with the data it needs at a rapid rate, and it comes out among the top in every benchmark we could throw at it. CL/CAS Latency - Column Access Strobe Latency, the delay between the memory controller requesting data from the RAM and the available data; the first number listed in a kit's timings.

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DIMMs - Dual In-Line Memory Module, the physical circuit board that holds the RAM chips that plugs into the slots on your motherboard. The performance benefits vary even in more specialized workloads. For example, we compared the fastest DDR4 and DDR5 memory kits in Adobe Lightroom (DDR4-4000 C16 vs. DDR5-6400 C36) and found that DDR5 is 28% faster, but the gains in Adobe Photoshop (DDR4-3200 C15 vs. DDR5-6400 C36) and Adobe Premiere (DDR4-3600 C16 vs. DDR5-5600 C36) were less than 1% and 3%, respectively. This rugged mobile workstation weighs only 4.41Kg and is both MIL-STD-810H and IP66 certified with vibration and 120cm drop resistance. It is based on an 11th generation Intel Core though, because these platforms require a bit more time for certification and testing; so no DDR5 here; only 128GB DDR4. It does come with a bewildering array of connectors (including VGA and two 2.5Gb Ethernet connectors) and two hot-swappable 74.5WHr batteries. In our overall performance measurement, DDR5-4800 C40 was 19% and 14% faster than DDR4-2133 C15 and DDR4-3200 C22, respectively. However, the performance delta decreased when we compared it to performance DDR4. DDR5-4800 C40 was only 9% faster than DDR4-3200 C15. When we went up to DDR4-4000 C16, DDR5-4800 C40's advantage dropped to 5%. Dell has been making workstations for more than a quarter of a century, so it knows a thing or two about what makes a good device.

Corsair's Dominator Platinum has been one of the best gaming DDR4 RAM kits for quite some time now. Its sleek exterior, patented DHX cooling technology, and unrivaled performance has made it a formidable flagship over the years. Corsair's most up-to-date Dominator Platinum RGB DDR4 RAM now comes with RGB lighting using the company's Capellix LEDs, and they're pretty lovely to look at. That’s because at the time of writing, there are no DDR5 memory modules (so called SODIMM) with 64GB capacities, the current ceiling being 48GB. Mobile supercomputers or portable servers, on the other hand, are essentially desktop replacement/transportable computers with a screen and an input peripheral attached, and can offer up to 2TB of RAM (yes, RAM, not HDD). Generally, file compression sees a big benefit. Rendering doesn’t, but then some encoders, like our Handbrake test, show very decent gains. The gaming benefits when using faster RAM, however, are specific to the individual game. Some see benefits while others gain nothing. What do you get for your money? The fastest commercially-available Intel mobile CPU and the fastest laptop GPU on the market: marrying the Core i9-13980HX and the Nvidia Geforce RTX 4090 can only produce a lot of high resolution FPS when combined together. And it is not just about gaming as content creators that require a lot of RAM will also find their joy with this gaming laptop/mobile workstation.If we look at the best, DDR5-6400 C36 was 11% faster than DDR4-4000 C16. So naturally, you can minimize the difference even more if you use DDR4-4000 C14. But, unfortunately, our Ballistix memory kit was not up to the task. Modern DDR4 16GB memory modules can feature single-rank (1Rx8), or dual-rank (2Rx8) designs with 16-gigabit and 8-gigabit ICs, respectively. DDR5 16GB memory modules, on the contrary, only come in a single-rank layout with 16-gigabit chips. Therefore, we compared the single-rank 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 memory with an equivalent single-rank 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4 memory kit for an apples-to-apples comparison. Yep, they're exactly the same in terms of actual latency, but since the 3,600MHz kit is faster that's the one we'd recommend. What is the difference between DDR4 and DDR5? Intel's Extreme Memory Profile (XMP) extension evolves alongside DDR4, so now we have the third iteration of XMP. So, what has changed with XMP 3.0? Well, there are now up to five XMP profiles, and users can modify and save two custom XMP profiles directly onto the SPD.