De Taiwanese geheugen module fabrikant Apacer, onderdeel van de Acer Group, heeft als eerste fabrikant een PC2700 DDR module aangekondigd. Deze PC2700 DIMMs maken gebruik van 333MT/s DDR333 chips en worden geleverd in een nieuwe CSP-WBGA (Chip Scale Packaging WindowBGA) chip packaging technologie. CSP-WBGA modules hebben kleinere afmetingen dan gangbare geheugen modules. Dit maakt deze modules ideaal voor gebruik in 1U servers, routers, switches en andere apparatuur waarbij efficiënt met de beschikbare ruimte omgesprongen dient te worden. Bovendien hebben CSP-WBGA chips kortere signaallijnen, waardoor de signaalstoring en interferentie wordt gereduceerd en hogere kloksnelheden mogelijk zijn. Apacer verwacht dat de PC2700 modules nog dit kwartaal verkrijgbaar worden:
Apacer, worldwide memory module leader, today announced the introduction of a new, next-generation PC2700 double data rate (DDR) memory module product line, the latest in super-fast high-performance memory offerings. Using a groundbreaking technology, and in partnership with IBM, Nanya Technology Inc. (NTC), and United Test Center Inc. (UTC), Apacer has taken a newly expanded leadership role, becoming the first to offer computer memory which supports the lightening-fast DDR333 PC2700 industry standard. Products are expected to become available by the end of first quarter 2001.
[...] Apacer has already established itself as the number one player in chip scale packaging (CSP) double data rate (DDR) memory modules. The company is now able to deliver complete CSP-WBGA solutions through a recently-established alliance with United Test Center Inc. (UTC). Memory packaged with CSP-WGBA process is more reliable and compact, meanwhile, offers important performance enhancement as the memory modules are capable of operating at higher clock speeds. This gives Apacer a strong advantage in terms of flexibility of future product development by applying CSP technology to create memory modules for the increasingly stringent demands of ever-faster computing systems.
The new CSP-WBGA process results in better electrical performance due to shortened wire lengths. The shorter wire leads reduce noise and interference, thus allowing the modules to operate at higher clock speeds than conventional memory modules, making PC2700 modules possible. And by virtually eliminating the coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) mis-match Issue by matching the expansion coefficients of the substrate and the packaging material, enhanced heat dissipation is also possible.
[...] Another key benefit of the UTC CSP-WBGA process is the ability to make much more compact in size than traditional TSSOP processes. By being able to increase the amount of memory on a given size, CSP DRAM can be applied on new space-constrained applications, such as smart phone, X-box and PDA.
CSP-WBGA solutions also helped to grab ever growing thin-server market. Memory modules for future server computers face strict height limitations as many systems have little extra headroom for memory modules. Given this limitation, without the ability to increase chip density per module, server systems would face severe memory capacity restrictions. By adopting CSP-WBGA process, Apacer is able to fit more memory chips on same-sized modules, thus making it possible to create higher capacity modules that conform to existing space limitations.