According to SK hynix, the new memory provides data transfer rates of 4.8-5.6 Gbps per pin. That's 1.8x the baseline of the previous generation DDR4 memory. At the same time, the manufacturer claims that the voltage on the bar has been reduced from 1.2 to 1.1 V, which, in turn, increases the energy efficiency of DDR5 modules. Also, ECC - Error Correcting Code support has been implemented. This feature is said to increase application reliability up to 20 times over previous generation memory. The minimum memory capacity of the board is declared at 16 GB, the maximum is 256 GB .
The new memory was developed according to the JEDEC solid-state technology association standard , which was published on July 14, 2020. According to the then announcement of JEDEC, the DDR5 specification supports twice the real channel than DDR4, that is, up to 6.4 Gbps for DDR5 versus 3.2 Gbps for DDR4. At the same time, the launch of the standard will be "smooth", that is, the first levels, as planned by the association and as shown by SK hynix, are only 50% faster in the database compared to DDR4, that is, they have a 4.8 Gbps channel
According to the announcement, the company is ready to start mass production of new standard memory modules. All preparatory stages and tests, including testing by the manufacturers of central processors, have been passed, and the company will start actively releasing and selling a new type of memory as soon as the equipment meets the specifications. Intel actively participated in the development of the new memory.
Intel's involvement is no coincidence. Hynix says that while the main consumer of new generation memory, in their opinion, will be data centers and the server segment as a whole. Intel still dominates this market, and in 2018 - it was then that the active stage of collaboration and testing of new memory began - was the undisputed leader in the processor segment.
Jonghoon Oh, executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Sk hynix stated:
SK hynix will focus on the fast growing premium server market, strengthening its position as a leading server DRAM company.
The main stage of entering the market of the new memory is designed for 2021 - it is then that the demand for DDR5 will begin to grow, and at the same time the equipment capable of working with the new memory will "fit" for sale. Synopsys, Renesas, Montage Technology and Rambus are currently working with SK hynix to build the ecosystem for DDR5.
By 2022, SK hynix predicts a 10% share of DDR5 memory, and 43% of the RAM market by 2024. True, it is not specified whether it means server memory, or the entire market, including desktops, laptops and other devices.
The company is confident that its development, and the DDR5 standard in general, will be extremely popular among specialists working with big data and machine learning, among high-speed cloud services and other consumers for whom the speed of data transfer inside the server itself is important.