Sam OliverResponding to a query about the amount of RAM in the iPad 2, analyst Kakeun Lee claimed on Twitter (via Google Translate) that the new iPad will double the amount of RAM in last year's model. He also revealed that the new A5 processor features LPDDR2 memory, which is a speed boost from the LPDDR1 RAM in the first-generation iPad.
If true, the inclusion of 512MB of RAM confirms reports that the iPad 2 would pack the same amount of memory as the iPhone 4. Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo of Concord Securities also told AppleInsider that the RAM in the iPad 2 would run at a higher clock speed of 1,066MHz for greater memory bandwidth than the 800MHz memory in the iPhone 4.
Kuo also indicated back in January that the iPad 2 would have LPDDR2 RAM at a speed of 1,066MHz, corroborating Lee's more recent claims. Kuo said the memory would be supplied by both Samsung and Hynix.
512MB of RAM would be equal to the amount found in the iPhone 4, released last June. The amount of RAM supposedly in the new iPad is also half of the 1GB found in the Android-powered Motorola Xoom.
Apple prefers to avoid detailing technical specifications of its devices, instead focusing on features and usability. But the company did reveal on Wednesday that the new A5 processor is a custom-designed 1GHz dual-core chip with the same low power consumption as last year's A4.
The report also contradicts what a representative in London demoing the iPad 2 reportedly told Gizmodo: that the new iPad has the same 256MB of RAM as last year's model. However, the site was then told by another public relations person that they couldn't confirm how much RAM is in the new A5 processor.
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266 Comments
Well BS that we need to get this info from a fourth party. Further it is BS in the sense that Apple does publish many specs for the iPads but prefers to screw over the consummer with respect to this one important parameter.
RAM is very important, if Apple has stayed with 256MB the upgrade would be worthless. From the day it debuted iPad one has suffered from the lack of RAM.
That's an odd way to put it. Is this just strange wording, or is it really the case that the RAM is integrated with the CPU?
Yes the RAM is integrated into the SOC, so its part of the CPU itself.
Honestly 512 isn't enough. If I'm buying a new iPad less than a year later, I want it to be able to handle stuff thats more memory intensive than what my phone can do. 1 gig should be the minimum. I'm still buying the new iPad, but 256 isn't enough on the current model, and 512 will soon not be enough on the new one.
Well BS that we need to get this info from a fourth party. Further it is BS in the sense that Apple does publish many specs for the iPads but prefers to screw over the consummer with respect to this one important parameter.
RAM is very important, if Apple has stayed with 256MB the upgrade would be worthless. From the day it debuted iPad one has suffered from the lack of RAM.
Gosh, imagine how much more I could have used my iPad these past ten months if it only had 512 MBs of RAM, instead of 256.
That's an odd way to put it. Is this just strange wording, or is it really the case that the RAM is integrated with the CPU?
Yes the A5 is a system on a chip which includes the high speed RAM.