The draft hardware requirements for Windows Vista require that for ruuning top-of-the-line Vista Aero visual effects, you require a memory bandwidth of 1,800 MB per second.

So what is memory bandwidth ? If you haven't heard the term before, you aren't alone.

Wiki defines Memory bandwidth as the amount of data per second that can be read from or stored into a semiconductor memory by a processor. If that doesn't satisfy the geek in you, here's an indepth explaination.

With all things equal, a stick of DDR memory capable of running 2-2-2-5 memory timings will make the computer operating experience seem faster than a DIMM which can only run at 3-4-4-8. This is because of the fact that when the memory receives an instruction, retrieves the data, and sends it back out in less time.