Buckle up! Apacer launches seat belt for RAM sticks — protection for DIMMs from vibration damage

Apacer has announced a new solution for DIMM modules that won’t stay in place: rugged retention straps for RAM that keep DIMMs secure from even the highest-intensity vibrations.

Marketed towards “Edge AI” use cases, which include long-distance transport or vibration-sensitive implementations, the retention straps work by holding down DIMMs with three points of contact: two at the anchor points holding the DIMM retention arms tight to the DIMM and a third on the top and center of the DIMM. Apacer claims this three-point method beats competitors’ two points of contact, which is assumed based on squeezing the retention arms tight to the RAM.

This RAM seatbelt is made of a flame-retardant polysiloxane (silicone), which claims durability at the intense high and low ends of the thermometer, up to 200 degrees Celsius. It has also been tested to meet military-grade certifications MIL-STD-833K and MIL-STD-810G for shock and vibration resistance. Apacer’s RAM straps are compatible with all modern motherboards and will play nicely with UDIMM, RDIMM, or ECC UDIMM modules, ensuring a good fit for any deployment.

Besides the risk of losing the SEO battle to automotive “RAM seatbelts,” Apacer’s new RAM straps are an exciting novelty that may see serious use. The potential for getting lost in the sands of Google may be why Apacer seems to have leaned heavily on overusing today’s favorite marketing buzzwords like “Edge AI” and “IoT applications” like intelligent cities or self-driving fleets. Marketing to the AI market pays off, though; it’s been recently estimated that the AI industry is spending $600 billion annually on hardware, meaning advertisers are heavily incentivized to slap “AI” onto every tech product, no matter how non-electronic.

Apacer’s move to release its rugged security straps is a good sign for those concerned that the RAM market will move swiftly away from the traditional SO-DIMM form factor. The CAMM2 form factor is a new kid on the block set to hit shelves before Christmas and takes RAM from the classic tall and scalable SO-DIMM modules we’ve had for decades to a flat module that mounts parallel to motherboards, stands only millimeters high, and screws into place. The new form factor will play in laptops and consumer PCs as a super-high-speed replaceable option, but CAMM2 is not expected to replace SO-DIMM soon. Enterprise and consumer solutions like servers will keep SO-DIMM on shelves for a while thanks to its easier replaceability, smaller board footprint, and higher scalability.