By Chathushka Perera
New Delhi (CWBN)_ SK Hynix announced the first ever 16 Gigabit DDR5 RAM capable of achieving higher transfer speeds and higher density. The revelation would likely to have a significant impact on other tech developments including machine learning and artificial intelligence.
Verified testing have reported that the DDR5 module is 1.8 times faster than its predecessor DDR4, with a bandwidth of up to 4,800 to 5,600 megabits per second (mbps) however, it fails to meet the module specs which stand at 6,400 mbps. SK Hynix further claims an apparent 20% drop in energy consumption.
It also comes with its own error correction code which could remove errors at the level of a single bit to improve application reliability.
The module is the result of close collaboration with SK Hynix’s international partners such as Synopsis, Renesys, Montage, Rambus and of course the better known manufacturer among them, Intel. It is expected to be driven into markets mid-2021 and would be available as 32 GB and 64 GB sticks, and a likely 128 GB stick coming out subsequently.
It is unclear whether Intel rival company, AMD, would take up the product at this time.
The DDR5 module arrives after a period of sluggish development since the revealing of DDR4 RAM in 2013 and despite the pomp of the announcement, the market for DDR5 modules is sceptical as it is not expected to provide a significant boost to normal software and would likely face bitter competition from off-spec DDR4 designs currently in the market.
