Synology at the 2025 International CES showcased updates to its popular consumer network storage products, beginning with one for its popular BeeStorage line of flash-based personal cloud devices. The new BeeStation Plus comes with 8 TB of flash-based storage—double that of the original BeeStation from 2023—and updated system hardware that includes an Intel Celeron J4125 processor with 4 GB of DDR4 memory, USB 3.2 Gen 2 type-A and type-C ports; and an updated software frontend, including the BeeProtect software that makes snapshots and other forms of backups of your machine. The device continues to lack Wi-Fi, and relies on wired Ethernet to connect to the network.

Next up, the company showed off a couple of its entry-level desktop NAS solutions under the DiskStation brand, the DS224+ (2-bay), and the DS423+ (4-bay). Both feature SATA 6 Gbps drive bays, and you can expand storage using any USB mass-storage device that plugs into its 5 Gbps USB 3.2 port. The DS224+ comes with two 1 GbE interfaces. Under the hood are a Celeron J4125 processor backed by 6 GB of DDR4 memory. The DS423+ can hold up to 72 TB of storage, and besides the four SATA 6 Gbps bays, has two M.2-2280 slots with Gen 3 wiring. The NAS can access any of its drives at up to 226 MB/s reads, with up to 224 MB/s writes. Networking interfaces include a pair of 1 GbE. Lastly, the company showcased a series of "direct-to-cloud" WLAN and PoE surveillance cameras under the C2 Camera series.

TrendForce's latest investigations reveal that the DRAM market is expected to face downward pricing pressure in 1Q25 as seasonal weakness aligns with sluggish consumer demand for products like smartphones. Additionally, early stockpiling by notebook manufacturers—over potential import tariffs under the Trump administration—has further exacerbated the pricing decline.

Conventional DRAM prices are projected to drop by 8% to 13%. However, if HBM products are included, the anticipated price decline will range from 0% to 5%.

According to a recent Citigroup analysis, CXMT, China's domestic memory chipmaker, is demonstrating significant progress in its DDR5 production yields. The company's DDR5 yield rates had reached approximately 80%, marking a substantial improvement from its initial 50% yields when production began. This progress builds on CXMT's experience with DDR4 manufacturing, where the company has achieved yields of around 90%. The company currently operates two fab facilities in Hefei, with Fab 1 dedicated to DDR4 production on 19 nm process technology and a 100,000 wafer per month capacity. Fab 2 focuses on DDR5 production using 17 nm technology, with a current capacity of 50,000 wafers per month. CXMT's DDR5 yields could improve further to approximately 90% by the end of 2025.

Despite these improvements, CXMT faces technological challenges compared to industry leaders. The company's current production process is 19 nm for DDR4 and 17 nm for DDR5, lagging behind competitors like Samsung and SK Hynix, which manufacture 12 nm DDR5 chips. This technology gap results in higher power consumption and less favorable form factors for CXMT's products. The company primarily targets domestic Chinese smartphone and computing OEM customers. Looking ahead, CXMT plans to expand its DDR5 and HBM capabilities, with a potential additional capacity of 50,000 wafers per month at Fab 2 in 2025, if market conditions prove favorable. The company is also making progress on HBM2 development, with customer sampling underway and low-volume production expected to begin in mid-2025.

An SSD from Chinese manufacturer Zhitai has demonstrated impressive performance metrics, reaching sequential read speeds of up to 14.5 GB/s. Under the hood, the TiPro9000 2 TB SSD combines domestic YMTC 5th Generation 3D TLC NAND technology with Silicon Motion's SM2508 controller. The drive's architecture features a 2 GB LPDDR4X DRAM chip and two 3D TLC NAND dies utilizing 232-layer YMTC's Xtacking 4.0 architecture. While initial testing revealed peak sequential read and write speeds of 14,527 MB/s and 13,869 MB/s respectively, these rates are sustained through the SLC cache for approximately 24 seconds. Performance testing showed distinct operational phases. After the initial burst speed period, transfer rates stabilize at around 4,000 MB/s for 325 seconds before dropping to 1,700-1,800 MB/s. The drive then demonstrates recovery capabilities, returning to 4,000 MB/s after 259 seconds.

Random performance specifications are equally impressive, with the manufacturer claiming up to 2 million IOPS for reads and 1.6 million IOPS for writes. The TiPro9000's performance metrics position it competitively among top-tier PCIe 5.0 x4 drives. This shows the capabilities of Chinese-manufactured YMTC NAND memory technology paired with Silicon Motion's controller expertise, putting a lot of faith in China-made NAND Flash. With growing needs for AI and big data applications, performant storage systems are becoming key to many systems. However, Chinese companies still need a solid (pun intended) controller to compete with Western technology to complete storage manufacturing. Alibaba is working on a RISC-V-based controller, while InnoGrit has also been sampling controllers. We have yet to see commercial applications based on these two.

BIOSTAR, a leading manufacturer of motherboards, graphics cards, IPC solutions, and storage devices, introduces the Storming V 16 GB / 8 GB DDR4 memory ideal for budget-friendly, casual home entertainment systems.

The Storming V DDR4 memory is an excellent choice for modern home entertainment systems, combining outstanding performance with affordability. Designed for casual entertainment and gaming, it delivers exceptional speed and stability, handling popular mid-range titles effortlessly to provide smooth gameplay and rapid data transfer rates. With a strong emphasis on practicality and performance, the Storming V DDR4 is the smart choice to elevate your everyday computing and entertainment experience.

Netlist, Inc. today announced that it won a $118 million damages award against Samsung Electronics Co., LTD., Samsung Electronics America, Inc., and Samsung Semiconductor, Inc. (together "Samsung") in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. The award resulted from a jury trial which involved three Netlist patents: U.S. Patent Nos. 7,619,912, 11,093,417 and 10,268,608. The infringing products were all Samsung DDR4 RDIMMs and DDR4 LRDIMMs. Netlist filed the complaint against Samsung in August 2022.

The federal jury's unanimous verdict confirmed that all three Netlist patents had been infringed by Samsung, that none of the patents were invalid, that Samsung willfully infringed those patents, and that money damages were owed to Netlist for the infringement of all three patents.

TrendForce's latest investigations reveal that the global DRAM industry revenue reached US$26.02 billion in 3Q24, marking a 13.6% QoQ increase. The rise was driven by growing demand for DDR5 and HBM in data centers, despite a decline in LPDDR4 and DDR4 shipments due to inventory reduction by Chinese smartphone brands and capacity expansion by Chinese DRAM suppliers. ASPs continued their upward trend from the previous quarter, with contract prices rising by 8% to 13%, further supported by HBM's displacement of conventional DRAM production.

Looking ahead to 4Q24, TrendForce projects a QoQ increase in overall DRAM bit shipments. However, the capacity constraints caused by HBM production are expected to have a weaker-than-anticipated impact on pricing. Additionally, capacity expansions by Chinese suppliers may prompt PC OEMs and smartphone brands to aggressively deplete inventory to secure lower-priced DRAM products. As a result, contract prices for conventional DRAM and blended prices for conventional DRAM and HBM are expected to decline.

GEEKOM, a Taiwanese tech company also known as the Green Mini PC Global Leader, just released its first model powered by an Intel Alder Lake-N series SoC. The GEEKOM Mini Air12 Lite is a tiny desktop PC with an Intel N100 quad-core processor, DDR4-3200 RAM, a PCIe Gen 3 SSD, and support for dual displays. The mini PC is now available on Amazon and GEEKOM's official website.

The Mini Air12 Lite measures 135.5 x 115.5 x 34.5 mm (0.5L) and weighs about 1 kilogram. It features a single SO-DIMM slot which supports up to 16 GB of DDR4-3200 MHz memory, and an M.2 2280 slot that can accommodate a PCIe 3.0 or SATA SSD of up to 1 TB. The mini PC runs on a licensed copy of Windows 11 Pro out of the box.

AMD Ryzen 7 5800X3D has hit end-of-life, according to a ComputerBase.de report. Introducing the new 3D V-cache technology, the 5800X3D breathed life back into the Socket AM4 platform as Intel debuted its 12th Gen Core "Alder Lake" processors, while there was still some time to go before AMD could mount up a defense with Ryzen 7000 "Zen 4." AMD figured out a way to augment the 32 MB on-die L3 cache with an additional 64 MB stacked cache that appears as a contiguous 96 MB addressable block to software. Having such a large fast cache next to the CPU cores greatly enhances performance in gaming workloads.

The 5800X3D was able to match the gaming performance of Intel's flagship Core i9-12900K despite being based on the generationally older "Zen 3" microarchitecture, and being restricted with older DDR4 memory. It would go on to be an incredible upgrade option for those still on the Socket AM4 platform, giving them performance in league with Intel's 12th- and 13th Gen processors. As of this writing, US retailer Newegg no longer has the 5800X3D in stock. Amazon has it, and so do some of the smaller retailers. Across the pond, the chip is vanishing from European retailers. In the absence of the 5800X3D, users still have the option of the Ryzen 7 5700X3D and the 6-core 5600X3D, which were both launched in the last year.

In the past 13 years, global data production has surged, increasing an estimated 74 times. (1) Looking forward, McKinsey projects AI to spur 35% annual growth in enterprise SSD capacity demand, from 181 Exabytes (EB) in 2024 to 1,078EB in 2030. (2) To address this growing demand, ScaleFlux, a leader in data storage and memory technology, is announcing a significant expansion of its product portfolio. The company is introducing cutting-edge controllers for both NVMe SSDs and Compute Express Link (CXL) modules, reinforcing its leadership in innovative technology for the data pipeline. "With the release of three new ASIC controllers and key updates to its existing lineup, ScaleFlux continues to push the boundaries of SSD and memory performance, power efficiency, and data integrity," points out Hao Zhong, CEO and Co-Founder of the company.

Three New SoC Controllers to Transform Data Center Storage
ScaleFlux is proud to unveil three new SoC controllers designed to enhance data center, AI and enterprise infrastructure:

TrendForce's latest findings reveal that weaker consumer demand has persisted through 3Q24, leaving AI servers as the primary driver of memory demand. This dynamic, combined with HBM production displacing conventional DRAM capacity, has led suppliers to maintain a firm stance on contract price hikes.

Smartphone brands continue to remain cautious despite some server OEMs continuing to show purchasing momentum. Consequently, TrendForce forecasts that Q4 memory prices will see a significant slowdown in growth, with conventional DRAM expected to increase by only 0-5%. However, benefiting from the rising share of HBM, the average price of overall DRAM is projected to rise 8-13%—a marked deceleration compared to the previous quarter.

Altera, an Intel Company, today unveiled an array of FPGA hardware, software and development tools that make its programmable solutions more accessible across a broader range of use cases and markets. At its annual developer's conference, Altera revealed new details on its next-generation, power- and cost-optimized Agilex 3 FPGAs and announced new development kits and software support for its Agilex 5 FPGAs.

"Working closely with our ecosystem and distribution partners, Altera remains committed to delivering FPGA-based solutions that empower innovators with leading-edge programmable technologies that are easy to design and deploy. With these key announcements, we continue to execute on our vision of shaping the future by using programmable logic to help customers unlock greater value across a broad range of use cases within the data center, aerospace and defense sectors, communications infrastructure, automotive, industrial, test, medical and embedded markets," said Sandra Rivera, CEO of Altera.

Back in July, we polled our readers to find out what PC main memory type they are using, with the choices consisting of DDR5, DDR4, and DDR3. Nearly two months into the poll and close to 36,000 responses later, an interesting picture is emerging. DDR4 memory emerged a clear winner, with a simple majority of our readers—58.2% of them—responding that they're using it. The latest DDR5 memory type is a distant second, with close to one-third of the respondents or 32.5% picking it. The old DDR3 memory type attracted an impressive 9.3% of the vote.

There could be many reasons why DDR4 remains the king—the AMD AM4 platform remains current, as AMD continues to release processors for this platform. Intel's LGA1700 platform supports DDR4, and there's a fairly wide selection of DDR4 motherboards for this platform, letting enthusiasts save on memory costs by carrying over their old memory or opting for cheaper memory. DDR5 at 32% isn't too discouraging, considering that the standard has been around just 3 years now, compared to the 9 years of DDR4.

COLORFIRE has introduced the new Aries series memory modules. The new Aries memory will be sold in kits, with the main specifications being DDR4 3600 8 GB x2 and 16 GB x2, all with a timing of CL16. It also includes DDR5 variants, offering DDR5-6000 16 GB x2 and 6400 16 GB x2 at different frequencies. The Aries memory, positioned above the previously released Scorpio series, features optimized timing and the addition of DDR5 standards. By incorporating zodiac elements into the memory design, COLORFIRE is continuing to experiment with its product offerings.

COLORFIRE, a brand by Chinese hardware maker COLORFUL, is tailored to cater to younger users and a range of different styles. The products align with diverse elements like cute, anime, and trendy lifestyle themes. COLORFIRE has successfully captivated users with its "Cyber Rua Cat" theme, launching the highly popular MEOW series, which includes VGA, motherboards, memory, SSDs, and a full range of peripherals such as speakers and headphones.

Marvell Technology, Inc., a leader in data infrastructure semiconductor solutions, today launched the Marvell Structera product line of Compute Express Link (CXL) devices that enable cloud data center operators to overcome memory performance and scaling challenges in general-purpose servers.

To address memory-intensive applications, data center operators add extra servers to get higher memory bandwidth and higher memory capacity. The compute capabilities from the added processors are typically not utilized for these applications, making the servers inefficient from cost and power perspectives. The CXL industry standard addresses this challenge by enabling new architectures that can efficiently add memory to general-purpose servers.

Intel introduced a line of 14th Gen Core "Raptor Lake Refresh" Socket LGA1700 processors for the embedded systems market. A highlight of these chips is that they come with their "Gracemont" E-core clusters disabled, and are pure P-core chips. It's interesting that Intel targets these chips for the embedded systems segment, but isn't building these in the non-socketed BGA packages carried over from its mobile platforms. Intel is addressing nearly all performance market-segments with these chips, including the very top. The Core i9-14901KE processor leading the pack is an 8-core/16-thread chip with eight "Raptor Cove" cores sharing the full 36 MB L3 cache available on the "Raptor Lake-S" die, a maximum boost frequency of 5.80 GHz, base frequency of 3.80 GHz, and processor base power of 125 W. The chip features an iGPU. The "K" in KE denotes that the chip supports overclocking.

Next up, is the Core i9-14901E, the 65 W sibling of this chip, which lacks an unlocked multiplier, and boosts up to 5.60 GHz, with a 2.80 GHz base frequency. Things get interesting with the Core i7-14701E, because the differentiator between the Core i9 and Core i7 SKUs is E-core count, and here we see the i7-14701 retaining the same 8-core/16-thread pure P-core configuration as the Core i9 chips, but with a touch lower frequencies of 5.40 GHz maximum boost, and 2.60 GHz base.

ADLINK Technology Inc., a global leader in edge computing, and a global supplier of industrial PCs and motherboards, announces the launch of the new IMB-C Value Series of ATX motherboards, extending the IMB series motherboard range with new, more affordable, options for users seeking high-performance at a lower price point. The IMB-C value series comes with processor options ranging from Gen 10 to Gen 14 Intel Core i9/i7/i5/i3 and includes features such as 2.5 Gbe, PCIe 4.0, DDR4, and USB 3.0, to suit applications in warehousing, industrial automation, smart manufacturing, and new energy.

The IMB-C series expands the IMB ATX motherboard range, providing a cost-effective alternative to the high-performance IMB-M series. Tailored for budget-sensitive projects without sacrificing essential features, the IMB-C models support DDR4 and PCIe 4.0, catering to applications that require solid performance with cost efficiency. Conversely, the IMB-M series is designed for top-tier performance, supporting DDR5 and PCIe 5.0, ideal for cutting-edge industrial use. The IMB-C series offers a comprehensive portfolio from Intel's 10th to 14th gen processors. Specifically, the IMB-C46 and IMB-C46H models come equipped with the Q470 and H420E chipsets respectively, optimized for 10th Gen Intel Core processors. Meanwhile, the IMB-M47 with the Q670 chipset, and the IMB-M47H with the H610 chipset, both support the 12th to 14th gen Intel Core processors, aligning with advanced system requirements and higher performance expectations.

TrendForce reports that a recovery in demand for general servers—coupled with an increased production share of HBM by DRAM suppliers—has led suppliers to maintain their stance on hiking prices. As a result, the ASP of DRAM in the third quarter is expected to continue rising, with an anticipated increase of 8-13%. The price of conventional DRAM is expected to rise by 5-10%, showing a slight contraction compared to the increase in the second quarter.

TrendForce notes that buyers were more conservative about restocking in the second, and inventory levels on both the supplier and buyer sides did not show significant changes. Looking ahead to the third quarter, there is still room for inventory replenishment for smartphones and CSPs, and the peak season for production is soon to commence. Consequently, it is expected that smartphones and servers will drive an increase in memory shipments in the third quarter.

IBASE Technology Inc., a global leader in embedded computing solutions, proudly unveils its first ultra-compact 2.5" single board computer (SBC) designed for edge computing applications. The advanced IB200 SBC offers exceptional graphics processing performance with the AMD Ryzen Embedded R2000 Series. Featuring 4 cores and 8 threads integrated with the AMD Radeon Vega graphics controller, it delivers twice the CPU core count compared to the R1000 Series.

The industrial-grade IB200 SBC ensures a seamless multimedia experience with two HDMI 2.0b ports supporting 4K display and a dual-channel LVDS with a resolution of 1920x1200 @ 60 Hz. It offers a comprehensive set of connectivity options, including dual Intel I226IT Gigabit LAN ports, four COM, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) ports with PDPC support, three USB 2.0 headers, and one M.2 2280 M-key and one M.2 2230 E-key slot, ensuring flexibility in storage selection and speed. Additionally, the board is equipped with TPM 2.0 and a SATA II interface, making it a versatile solution for various industrial IoT applications.

On June 4th, COMPUTEX 2024 was successfully held at the Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. Mnemonic Electronic Co., Ltd., the Taiwanese subsidiary of Longsys, showcased industry-leading high-capacity SSDs under the theme "Embracing the Era of High-Capacity SSDs." The products on display included the Mnemonic MS90 8TB SATA SSD, FORESEE ORCA 4836 series enterprise NVMe SSDs, FORESEE XP2300 PCIe Gen 4 SSDs, and rich product lines comprising embedded storage, memory modules, memory cards, and more. The company offers reliable industrial-grade, automotive-grade, and enterprise-grade storage products, providing high-capacity solutions for global users.

High-Capacity SSDs
For SSDs, Mnemonic Electronic presented products in various form factors and interfaces, including PCIe M.2, PCIe BGA, SATA M.2, and SATA 2.5-inch. The Mnemonic MS90 8 TB SATA SSD supports the SATA interface with a speed of up to 6 Gb/s (Gen 3) and is backward compatible with Gen 1 and Gen 2. It also supports various SATA low-power states (Partial/Sleep/Device Sleep) and can be used for nearline HDD replacement, surveillance, and high-speed rail systems.

The next-generation PC DDR6 memory standard (not to be confused with GDDR6), will offer a 10-times increase in bandwidth over DDR4, according to a presentation by Synopsys, a major vendor of memory controller and PHY IP blocks. The initial draft of DDR6 specification by JEDEC is expected to be ready within 2024, with version 1.0 of the spec ready by mid-2025. Speeds (data-rates) of DDR6 start at DDR6-8800, and range up to DDR6-17600 in the first generation; with future generations of DDR6 going all the way up to DDR6-21333 (or 21 Gbps). This is exactly 10 times the bandwidth of DDR4-2133, the initial speed of DDR4 that debuted with 6th Gen Core "Skylake" processors, almost a decade ago. It hence makes sense for a memory specification 10 years since to offer such a linear scaling in bandwidth.

Synopsys also talks about LPDDR6 in this presentation, the future low power memory standard for thin-and-light computing devices and smartphones. LPDDR6 will have an introductory data-rate of LPDDR6-10667 over a 24-bit memory channel, with two 12-bit sub-channels. The highest defined data-rate for LPDDR6 is expected to be LPDDR6-14400 (likely 14466 MT/s). Besides generational increases in bandwidth, both PC DDR6 and LPDDR6 are expected to introduce several security and energy-efficiency features, including an "efficiency mode" that reduces idle power draw for the memory devices.

EK, a leader in premium liquid cooling solutions, proudly unveils the EK-Quantum Momentum² Quad RAM Module Set D-RGB, an advanced cooling solution meticulously designed for effective thermal management of DDR4 and DDR5 memory modules. This comprehensive set includes a water block capable of covering four RAM sticks with aluminium heatsinks, integrating high-quality cooling efficiency with dynamic RGB lighting to enhance both the performance and visual appeal of any high-end computing setup. The system is specifically engineered to support configurations with four RAM sticks, optimizing cooling for modern high-performance memory arrays.

Enhanced Cooling and Sophisticated Design
The EK-Quantum Momentum² Quad RAM Module Set D-RGB accommodates both single and double-sided DDR4 and DDR5 memory modules, ensuring versatility across different RAM configurations. It features four sleek, black, anodized aluminium heatsinks with an elox finish for enhanced durability and corrosion resistance. This treatment not only improves the heatsinks' appearance but also boosts their thermal conductivity and cooling effectiveness.

Following in the wake of an earthquake that struck on April 3rd, TrendForce undertook an in-depth analysis of its effects on the DRAM industry, uncovering a sector that has shown remarkable resilience and faced minimal interruptions. Despite some damage and the necessity for inspections or disposal of wafers among suppliers, the facilities' strong earthquake preparedness of the facilities has kept the overall impact to a minimum.

Leading DRAM producers, including Micron, Nanya, PSMC, and Winbond had all returned to full operational status by April 8th. In particular, Micron's progression to cutting-edge processes—specifically the 1alpha and 1beta nm technologies—is anticipated to significantly alter the landscape of DRAM bit production. In contrast, other Taiwanese DRAM manufacturers are still working with 38 and 25 nm processes, contributing less to total output. TrendForce estimates that the earthquake's effect on DRAM production for the second quarter will be limited to a manageable 1%.

A Chinese Topton company has brought new life to the AMD Vega graphics architecture by integrating it into a Network Attached Storage (NAS) motherboard. The Topton N9 NAS motherboard features the Intel Core i7-8705G processor, a unique chip that combines Intel CPU cores with AMD's RX Vega M GL graphics. The Intel Core i7-8705G, initially released in 2018, is an unusual choice for a NAS system. This 14 nm processor features four cores, eight threads, and a boost clock of up to 4.1 GHz. What sets it apart is the integrated AMD RX Vega M GL GPU with 20 Compute Units and 4 GB of HBM2 memory.

The Topton N9 NAS motherboard is designed for the 17×17 cm ITX form factor and offers a range of features like maximum support for 64 GB of DDR4 RAM, M.2 NVMe/SATA and SATA 3.0, eight Intel i226-V controllers for 2.5 Gbit networking, USB 3.0, USB Type-C, and HDMI 2.0 connectivity. While the Intel Core i7-8705G may not be the most obvious choice for a NAS system, the Topton N9 motherboard demonstrates how this unique processor can be repurposed to provide affordable computing power. The integrated AMD RX Vega graphics offer capabilities beyond typical NAS requirements, making this motherboard suitable for various applications, such as home firewalls and routers. The collaboration between Intel and AMD in creating the Kaby Lake-G processors was a rare occurrence in the industry. The Topton N9 starts at $288.56 without a fan/cooler, and adding another $20 bumps the price to $308.46.

On February 26, 2024, AMD received new research related to an industry-wide DRAM issue documented in "ZENHAMMER: Rowhammering Attacks on AMD Zen-based Platforms" from researchers at ETH Zurich. The research demonstrates performing Rowhammer attacks on DDR4 and DDR5 memory using AMD "Zen" platforms. Given the history around Rowhammer, the researchers do not consider these rowhammering attacks to be a new issue.

Mitigation
AMD continues to assess the researchers' claim of demonstrating Rowhammer bit flips on a DDR5 device for the first time. AMD will provide an update upon completion of its assessment.