The next generation of ATI Radeon graphics cards will benefit from the Graphics Double Data Rate version 5 memory (GDDR5), which will be commercially implemented for the first time, AMD announced on Wednesday, expressing high hopes that the GDDR5 will become the new memory standard in the industry. Samsung, Hynix and Qimonda are just few of the names that contributed to the project.

AMD said they hope to unlock new GPU capabilities, whose performance is currently limited by the rate at which data can be moved on and off graphics chips.

Rick Bergman, senior vice president and general manager of Graphics Product Group, AMD, said that “the days of monolithic mega-chips” are finally over and that AMD is now able to deliver incredible performance by using more cost-effective GPUs.

The GDDR5 supports up to 5x the data rates of GDDR3 and 4x the data rates of GDDR4, allowing more bandwidth and a narrower memory interface. This means that smaller, more cost-effective chips will now be able to deliver better performance. Bergman stressed the possibilities the GDDR5 opens to innovative game development and game play.

Speaking of games, overall this will offer gamers the possibility to play at high resolutions with high image quality settings. In addition to that, applications will have faster load times, superior responsiveness and multitasking, AMD explained.

Stream processing will also benefit from the GDDR5, while the new error detection mechanisms will help increase the accuracy of parallel calculations by identifying errors and re-issuing commands to get valid data, the company said, adding that no other GDDR to date is capable of doing that.

Qimonda’s Chief Operating Officer Thomas Seifert said they have been working closely with AMD to deliver the next generation of graphics products and to make sure that the GDDR5 is available in volume to best support these products.