Now we are nearing the end of 2007, my dual core, DDR2 PC is almost a year old. It's time to throw that ancient dinosaur (2006 - so long ago) into the nearest landfill and replace with an eighty core DDR3 beast, powered by plutonium alone.

But before I click the 'confirm order' button, is it really worth it? DDR3 is undoubtedly faster, but have a good look at current memory pricing. On Scan, the cheapest 1GB sticks of unbranded 800MHz DDR2 memory are 18.79 (including VAT). Absurdly cheap. Cheaper than any DDR1 sticks. You can now buy 4GB of ram for less than £80. This time last year, that would have set you back around £400. It seems manufacturers kept hold of last years price tags and just clipped them onto their new DDR3 sticks, for 4GB of the cheapest DDR3 is priced at £420.

One of the first rules in the computing world is that memory prices are volatile, but I have never seen such a rapid drop in price. Urban legend (which means probably a complete lie) is that whenever China wants to raise global memory prices, they simply aim a missile at Taiwan, and in the resulting chaos you pay more for a new PC. Well, they must have had a different agenda for their arsenal this year, because prices are 80% less than they were.

There are plenty of reasons for this flooded market. Vista requires approximately 10TB of RAM just to get past the login screen, but it hasn't sold as well as some had hoped. Then there is the problem of needing an entirely new platform for DDR2, which means most adopters will be those who buy a new PC.

But what if I had this choice one year ago, and I wanted to upgrade my single core computer that I replaced last year? Would I choose a superbly performing and future proofed DDR3 system or well performing and stupidly cheap DDR2 system? I'd probably go for the latter, and the remainder of my disposable income could instead be spent on something more healthy than computer equipment.

Of course I secretly want a new DDR3 system. So I am hoping that this by time in 2008, the story will repeat itself, with a stick of DDR3 costing next to nothing. Memory manufacturers probably aren't.