InnoGrit's low-wattage 12 nanometer IG5666 controller popped up on the T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD series earlier in the year, but attention has turned to another consumer-grade design. Parent company—Yingren Technology—is not well known outside of China, although its InnoGrit brand has started to make inroads within Western markets. The enterprise-level YRS900 PCIe 5.0 SSD controller was announced last September—this open-source RISC-V-based solution was designed/engineered to "align with U.S. export restrictions." According to cnBeta and MyDrivers reports, a new YRS820 controller has successfully reached the mass production phase. This is a PCIe 5.0 consumer-grade controller, likely derived from its big sibling (YRS900).

According to InnoGrit presentation material, their new model is based on: "RISC-V instruction architecture, adopts a 4-channel PCIe 5.0 interface, is equipped with 8 NAND flash memory channels, supports NVMe 2.0 protocol, has an interface transmission rate of 2667MT/s, can be paired with 3D TLC/QLC, and supports a maximum capacity of up to 8 TB." Company representatives stated that the YRS820 controller is destined to be fitted on high-end consumer parts—the AI PC market segment is a key goal, since the YRS820 is able to: "accelerate data processing for specific applications and have high stability, consistency and security." cnBeta highlighted some anticipated performance figures: "YRS820 achieves sequential read 14 GB/s, sequential write 12 GB/s, random read and random write up to 2000K IOPs and 1500K IOPs respectively." InnoGrit did not reveal a release timetable, since their latest consumer-grade controller is going through a validation process. The company is currently collaborating with domestic NAND flash memory and DRAM manufacturers, as well as other industry bodies.

T-FORCE, the gaming brand of Team Group Inc., the world's leading memory and storage provider, today announced the release of the new generation of Gen 5 SSDs, the T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSDs. This much-anticipated SSD is powered by InnoGrit's newest 12 nm, multi-core, and low-wattage IG5666 controller, equipped with a patented ultra-thin graphene heatsink and has read speeds of up to 14,000 MB/s. Supported by smart cooling and state-of-the-art error correction technologies, the T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD provides gamers with the next level of peak performance.

The T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD features InnoGrit's latest 12 nm, IG5666 controller, which has multiple cores and low power consumption. The SSD's read speed maxes out at 14,000 MB/s, and equipped with an enhanced controller feature called Security Isolation that utilizes isolation technology to protect data from external attacks, providing a reliable, multi-faceted defense. The GE PRO SSD also supports smart power management and thermal regulation technology, which detects different workload conditions through internal temperature sensing and automatically adjusts the power management mode to prevent overheating. The T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD enhances data transfer accuracy by correcting data errors with the brand new 4K LDPC (Low-Density Parity-Check Code) technology. It also supports Team Group's patented S.M.A.R.T. monitoring software, allowing gamers to monitor the health and performance of the SSD at any time.

T-FORCE, the gaming brand under the leading memory and storage provider Team Group Inc., is committed to excellence in product research and development while constantly pushing the boundaries of limits. Today, Team Group is announcing the new Generation of Gen 5 SSD, the T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD which uses the PCIe Gen 5 x4 interface and NVMe 2.0 standard. The new multi-core, low-wattage Gen 5 SSD is designed for extreme storage speeds and is perfect for gamers and users who desire the ultimate performance.

The T-FORCE GE PRO PCIe 5.0 SSD is powered by InnoGrit's new 12 nm, multi-core, and energy-efficient IG5666 controller, paired with a high-performance 2,400MT/s NAND flash that supports DRAM and SLC caching with read speeds up to 14,000 MB/s. It features a smart thermal regulation technology that utilizes internal temperature sensors to automatically adjust performance and prevent overheating. It also supports 4K LDPC (low-density parity-check code) technology, which ensures data transfer accuracy. This allows the T-FORCE GE PRO SSD to provide excellent and stable performance, extending the product's lifespan. With Team Group's patented S.M.A.R.T. monitoring software, users can easily keep track of the SSD's health at any time.

T-FORCE, the gaming brand of the leading memory and storage provider Team Group Inc., continues to push the boundaries of product development. Today, T-FORCE is launching four new gaming SSDs, the T-FORCE G70, G70 PRO, G50, and G50 PRO, which all use the PCIe Gen 4x4 interface. The SSDs feature international manufacturer InnoGrit's controller, which provides outstanding stability.

The G70, G50, and their PRO variants are available in the M.2-2280 form factor and come with patented ultra-thin graphene heat sinks. The G70 PRO also comes with an aluminium alloy heatsink, giving users an additional cooling option. Since every SSD cooling module in this series is compatible with the PS5 SSD expansion slot, both PC and console gamers alike can enjoy the high performance of these brand-new PCIe 4.0 SSDs. The T-FORCE G70 and G70 PRO SSDs have read speeds of up to 7000 MB/s, while the G50 and G50 PRO SSDs can clock up to 5000 MB/s. The T-FORCE G70 and G50 SSDs support SLC cache technology, and their PRO variants support both DRAM and SLC caching, giving players options to fit their needs. All four M.2 2280 SSDs use controllers produced by international manufacturer InnoGrit, which provide excellent stability and peace of mind for gamers.

Alibaba's T-Head unit, responsible for the design and development of in-house IC design, has announced the first domestic SSD controller based on the PCIe 5.0 specification standard. Called the Zhenyue 510, the SSD controller is aimed at enterprise SSD offerings. Interestingly, the Zhenyue 510 is powered by T-Head's custom Xuantie C910 cores based on RISC-V instruction set architecture (ISA). Supporting the PCIe 5.0 standard for interfacing, the SSD controller uses DDR5 memory as a cache buffer. Regarding the performance, there are no official figures yet, but the company claims to have 30% lower input/output latencies compared to competing offerings. T-Head claims the SSD has an IO processing capability of "3400 Kilo IOs per second, a data bandwidth of 14 Gbytes/s, and an extremely high energy efficiency of 420 Kilo IO per second for every Watt".

This is an essential step towards Chinese self-sufficiency as T-Head has designed various ICs for processing different tasks. Still, now Alibaba's chip design unit has a domestic design for storage as well. Claiming low latency figures, the Zhenyue 510 is suitable for enterprise workloads like big data analysis, as well as AI inference/training systems workloads. The development of Zhenyue 510 started in 1H 2021, and it took the company more than two years to complete the design and validation of the chip to prepare it for deployment. This is the second Chinese-made SSD controller after Yingren Technology (InnoGrit) announced their chip in September.

During the China Chip Storage Future 2023 Storage Industry Trend Summit, Yingren Technology, widely recognized as InnoGrit outside of China, announced the initiation of mass production of its enterprise-level YR S900 PCIe 5.0 SSD controller. Marking a significant breakthrough, the YR S900 stands as China's first domestic PCIe 5.0 SSD controller. Operating on an open-source RISC-V architecture, the YR S900 is engineered to align with U.S. export restrictions, ensuring a seamless design and manufacturing process of the SSD controller. While Yingren Technology remains discreet about the specific process node to produce the YR S900, it's known that the controller embodies a versatile design, with compatibility extending to mainstream NAND from eminent manufacturers, and exhibits an impressive synergy with NAND from Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC).

The YR S900 is a quad-channel controller, offering sequential read and write speeds peaking at 14 GB/s and 12 GB/s, respectively, and is equipped with InnoGrit's third-generation ECC engine to optimize 4K LDPC encoding and decoding. This collaboration with Kioxia's XL-Flash results in a low 4K random read latency of 10us, highlighting its potential to deliver higher data throughput, increased stability, and extended service life. The YR S900 encompasses a comprehensive feature set, including FDP, SR-IOV hardware virtualization, CMB, and a range of data encryption algorithms. While the mass production of the YR S900 underscores a monumental stride in SSD solutions within China, it remains to be seen whether adopting this new Chinese technology will enter markets beyond China.

Essencore KLEVV brought in a formidable lineup of new PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSDs and DDR5 memory for gamers and overclockers, at the 2023 Computex. The lineup is led by the KLEVV CRAS V RGB series of DDR5 memory that comes in high-end speeds of DDR5-6000 (30-36-36-76 @ 1.35 V), DDR5-6400 (32-38-38-78 @ 1.35 V), DDR5-7200 (34-44-44-84 @ 1.40 V), DDR5-7600 (36-46-46-86 @ 1.40 V), and DDR5-8000 (38-48-48-128 @ 1.55 V). These modules feature both Intel XMP 3.0 and AMD EXPO SPD profiles. The KLEVV BOLT V series form the company's mid-range, offering speeds of DDR5-6000 (30-36-36-76 @ 1.35 V), DDR5-6400 (32-38-38-78 @ 1.35 V), and DDR5-6800 (34-40-40-80 @ 1.35 V). Both XMP 3.0 and EXPO are to be found even with these modules. The company interestingly also has standard modules for DDR5-4800 and DDR5-5600, which make do with just 1.1 V. We also spied KLEVV's odd-capacity 24 GB and 48 GB CRAS V RGB modules.

The storage lineup for Essencore is led by the KLEVV CRAS C950 PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSD, and the CRAS C910 Gen 4 SSD. The CRAS C950 comes in 1 TB, 2 TB, and 4 TB capacities, and uses a Phison E26-series controller paired with 3D TLC NAND flash. The 1 TB variant offers up to 11.5 GB/s sequential reads, with up to 8.5 GB/s sequential writes, while the 2 TB and 4 TB models do up to 12 GB/s sequential reads, with up to 11 GB/s sequential writes. The drive uses a chunky passive aluminium heatsink to keep cool. The CRAS C910, on the other hand, comes both as a bare drive (without heatsink), and as the CRAS C910 RGB, where it features a heatsink with an RGB diffuser. The drive uses an InnoGrit IG5220 controller, comes in capacities of up to 1 TB, and offers speeds of up to 5 GB/s sequential reads, with up to 4.8 GB/s sequential writes.

Patriot Memory introduced some truly unique memory and storage products at the 2023 Computex. The company showed us what is probably the world's first PCIe Gen 5 NVMe SSD with a DRAMless architecture. It also runs surprisingly cool for the kind of performance that's being claimed. The untitled Patriot Gen 5 SSD uses a Maxiotek MAP802A-F1C DRAMless controller that features a PCI-Express 5.0 x4 host interface. The drive comes in capacities of 1 TB, 2 TB, and 4 TB. The performance on offer easily matches or beats some of the early Gen 5 SSDs based on Phison E26. You get sequential speeds of up to 12 GB/s, with up to 10.5 GB/s sequential writes.

The company also showcased the Viper PV553, a more traditional Gen 5 SSD that uses a DDR4-based DRAM cache that can be as large as 4 GB for the 2 TB model. At this point we don't know which controller is powering this drive, but it's confirmed that it uses a DRAM cache, and needs active cooling. The performance on offer is up to 12.4 GB/s sequential reads, with up to 11.8 GB/s sequential writes. A side-effect of Gen 5 SSDs picking up traction in the market is that Gen 4 SSDs with fairly powerful specs are taking up mainstream pricing. The Viper VP4300 Lite is one such drive, it is a revision of the VP4300 from 2021. This drive uses an InnoGrit-sourced controller paired with 3D TLC NAND flash, DDR4 DRAM cache, and sequential transfer speeds of up to 7.4 GB/s reads, with up to 6.8 GB/s writes. It comes in 500 GB thru 4 TB capacities, and unlike the original VP4300, lacks a heatsink.

Chinese InnoGrit has proved to be something of a competent contender in the high-end SSD controller market and at Computex 2023 the company was displaying an early sample of its upcoming IG5666 consumer focused PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSD controller. At the moment the company has taped out the controller, but aren't happy with the physical size of the chip and will be doing another tape out for a more optimised chip. Innogrit is using a 16 nm node for the controller, which might be part of the reason why they're having a hard time to get it the right size, but there's also cost reasons that have to be taken into consideration.

Based on the early samples, InnoGrit is expecting it to reach sequential speeds of up to 14 GB/s read and 11 GB/s write. Random performance is said to reach 3 million read and 2.5 million write IOPs. The controller should support up to 16 TB of NAND flash and it supports all common types of NAND up to a speed of 2400 MT/s. The IG5666 is based on the same Tacoma architecture as InnoGrit's IG5669, which is targeting enterprise use, yet delivers similar performance.

A trend we've seen in the 2023 Computex is that SSD manufacturers aren't advertising their feisty Gen 5 NVMe SSDs with the elaborate cooling solutions that they sorely need, but rather as bare drives, with the cooling options marketed separately. In practice, manufacturers could get retailers to bundle Gen 5 SSDs with a selection of their coolers. This lets them trim some of the criticism of just how hot SSDs have gotten over just one generation. Team Group showed off its T-Force Cardea Z5 lines of M.2 Gen 5 NVMe SSDs. There are two distinct lines with the same names. One of these comes with a maximum sequential read speed of 12 GB/s, while the other comes with 14 GB/s. Both have their respective 1 TB, 2 TB, and 4 TB capacity variants. Both use 3D TLC NAND flash. The under-the-hood difference between the 12 GB/s and 14 GB/s versions of the Cardea Z5 is that while the 12 GB/s variant uses a Phison E26-series controller, the 14 GB/s one uses an InnoGrit IG5666 controller. Team Group intends to eventually re-brand the 14 GB/s variant as the Cardea Z54A series.

Team Group also announced a handful cooling solutions to pair with these Gen 5 SSDs. The most striking of these is the T-Force Siren, an all-in-one (AIO) closed loop liquid M.2 NVMe SSD cooler, with as 120 mm radiator. The name is a bit of a misnomer, as SSD coolers with 20 mm fans is what a siren might sound like. Obviously, this cooler is overkill, and helps the SSD deliver its best performance, but there are other options from the company. The T-Force AirFlow I uses two copper heatpipes that run through the base-plate, pulling heat from the controller, NAND flash, and DRAM, and pushing it through an aluminium fin-stack arranged vertically. This is then ventilated by a 30 mm fan. The T-Force Airflow II uses a slightly different approach, with a single thicker heat pipe arranged in a C-shape, with radially-projecting finnage that have the appearance of a cylinder. At the other end of this is a 30 mm fan.

Team Group's gaming brand, T-FORCE's Z54A series, develops the pioneering new generation PCIe Gen 5 SSD with outstanding performance, with read and write speeds up to 14,000 MB/s and 10,000 MB/s, respectively. Team Group exclusively cooperates with globe-leading advancing storage supplier, InnoGrit Corporation, producing the ultra-fast PCIe SSD products for certain high-performance fields, such as computers, workstations, data centers, servers, gaming consoles, video making, and editing.

T-FORCE offers the most comprehensive heat-sink solutions for the M.2 SSD, tailored for the heat sinks of the ultra-fast Gen 5 PCIe SSD. The circular AIO liquid cooling systems with a Taiwanese invention patent (I778726) bring a group of high-level computer users the solution to the problem of low speed caused by the high-temperature operation of the PCIe M.2 SSDs. The solution that the T-FORCE M.2 SSD brings has the ability to perfectly release performance and extend the lifespan of SSDs. It is the product of the SSD heat sink that brings the benefit of saving power to the new generation.

A disturbing trend among entry-level M.2 NVMe SSDs is a complete disregard from manufacturers for consistency in the brands and types of the various key components of the drives. The companies simply advertise a certain set of performance and endurance numbers, which serve as ends to reach by whatever means (of controller or NAND flash combos). This was recently illustrated with the Kingston NV1, which presents an extreme case of "hardware lottery." You can get either a SMI or Phison controller, and either a TLC or QLC NAND flash (combinations thereof).

Cutting through all this, ADATA is making a reassuring guarantee with regards to its recently announced entry-level NVMe product, the XPG Atom 50. In an exclusive comment to TechPowerUp, the company said that all XPG Atom 50 drives in the market will come with a consistent combination of controller and NAND flash. The drive combines an Innogrit IG5220 RainierQX controller with Micron "B47R" 176-layer 3D TLC NAND flash chips, a combo ADATA guarantees it will never break. We recently reviewed the 1 TB variant of this drive, and found it to offer excellent performance leveraging PCIe Gen4, at a price you'd typically find PCIe Gen3 drives at.

XPG, a fast-growing provider of systems, components, and peripherals for Gamers, Esports Pros, and Tech Enthusiasts, today announces it will be on location in Las Vegas during the 2022 CES show (Jan. 5-8). Under the theme of 'Dawn of a New Xtreme,' it will be showing off the latest products from XPG and ADATA including gaming systems, peripherals, accessories, and components, such as the newest DDR5 memory, PCIe 5.0 solid state drives (SSD) and the latest state-of-the-art Platinum PSU.

XPG's and ADATA are gearing up to bring next-generation performance to gamers and other users with its latest PCIe Gen5x 4 SSDs and DDR5 DRAM. At the booth, visitors will get a first look at the XPG LANCER RGB DDR5 and CASTER RGB DDR5 that deliver next-level performance of up to 6000 MT/s and 7000 MT/s, respectively. ADATA's industrial-grade DDR5-4800 U/SO/R-DIMM memory with on-die ECC & PMIC will also be on display.

Phison was first to market with a client-segment PCI-Express gen 4.0 NVMe SSD controller, and as a result, the first wave of gen 4.0 M.2 SSDs have been dominated by the E16-series controller. At CES 2020, we got to see some of the first drives based on PCIe gen 4.0 controllers from other manufacturers such as Silicon Motion and InnoGrit, thanks to ADATA. With begin with the company's latest-generation XPG SAGE M.2 NVMe SSDs with PCI-Express 4.0 x4 interface, which come in capacities of up to 4 TB, and which are powered by InnoGrit "Rainier" IG5236 controller, belting out sequential transfer speeds of up to 7,000 MB/s reads, with up to 6,100 MB/s writes, and up to 1 million IOPS 4K random access. The drive supports the latest NVMe 1.4 protocol.

Next up is the XPG Indigo, another M.2 NVMe PCI-Express 4.0 x4 drive positioned a notch below the XPG Sage. This one uses Silicon Motion's fastest PCIe gen 4.0 client-segment controller, the SM2264. With capacities of up to 4 TB, the drive offers up to 7,000 MB/s sequential reads, up to 6,000 MB/s sequential writes, and up to 700,000 IOPS 4K random-access performance. Lastly there's the XPG Pearl, a high cost-performance model powered by the mid-range SM2267 controller which has a PCIe gen 4.0 x4 interface and DRAM cache, comes in capacities of up to 4 TB, but offers a slightly tamed performance that's comparable to E16-powered drives: up to 4,000 MB/s sequential reads, up to 3,000 MB/s sequential writes, and up to 400,000 IOPS 4K random access. The new-gen XPG Sage, XPG Indigo, and XPG Pearl will release later this year.