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Tag: dram

  • Samsung Develops Mobile DRAM with Wide I/O Interface

    Samsung announced the development of 1 gigabit mobile DRAM with a wide I/O interface, using 50 nanometer class process technology. The new wide I/O mobile DRAM will be used in mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablet PCs.

    The new 1Gb wide I/O mobile DRAM can transmit data at 12.8 gigabyte (GB) per second, which increases the bandwidth of mobile DDR DRAM (1.6GB/s) eightfold, while reducing power consumption by approximately 87 percent. The bandwidth is also four times that of LPDDR2 DRAM (which is approximately 3.2GB/s).

    To boost data transmission, Samsung’s wide I/O DRAM uses 512 pins for data input and output compared to the previous generation of mobile DRAMs, which used a maximum of 32 pins. If you include the pins that are involved in sending commands and regulating power supply, a single Samsung wide I/O DRAM is designed to accommodate approximately 1,200 pins.

    Following this wide I/O DRAM launch, Samsung is aiming to provide 20nm-class* 4Gb wide I/O mobile DRAM sometime in 2013. The company’s recent achievements in mobile DRAM include introducing the first 50nm-class 1Gb LPDDR2 DRAM in 2009 and the first 40nm-class* 2Gb LPDDR2 in 2010.

    According to iSuppli, mobile DRAM’s percentage of total annual DRAM shipments will increase from about 11.1 percent in 2010 to 16.5 percent in 2014.

  • iSuppli Reports Strong DRAM Market Growth

    The DRAM industry in the second and third quarters of 2009 posted the strongest sequential growth in revenue and pricing seen in at least five years, indicating that the recent market rebound is real and is likely to continue into 2010, according to iSuppli.

    Global DRAM revenue rose by 35 percent in the third quarter compared to the second quarter, according to a preliminary estimate from iSuppli. This follows a 34 percent increase in the second quarter.

    The revenue rise in the second quarter brought an end to a three-quarter losing streak that began in the third quarter of 2008. Revenue had fallen by 19 percent in the first quarter of 2009, plunged by 38 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008 and decreased by a moderate 1 percent in the third quarter of 2008.

    Meanwhile, global DRAM Average Selling Prices (ASPs) rose by 21 percent in the third quarter compared to the second, following a 19 percent rise in the second quarter.

    Pricing declined by 10 percent in the first quarter of 2009. The second quarter marked the first sequential increase in DRAM pricing since the fourth quarter of 2006.

    “Third-quarter results from major suppliers show that the DRAM industry recovery is no mirage,” said Mike Howard, senior analyst, DRAM, for iSuppli.

    “The continued increase in prices comes as another indicator that the DRAM market is emerging from what has been a long and painful slump.”

    iSuppli says the global DRAM market has been declining on an annual basis since 2007. Revenue decreased by 7.5 percent in 2007 and plunged by 25.1 percent in 2008.

    Despite the strong recovery in the second and third quarters, extremely weak conditions in the first quarter mean that global DRAM market revenue is set to decrease by 12.9 percent in 2009, according to the company’s preliminary estimate.

    The market’s strong performance in the second and third quarters likely presage continued strength in the DRAM market.

    “Third-quarter earnings from Samsung, Micron and the Taiwanese DRAM manufacturers point to increasing sales and further progress toward profitability,” Howard said.

    “Samsung achieved profitability during the third quarter, while Micron’s results indicate the company is on its way back to the black. Recent sales results from the Taiwanese DRAM companies are also positive for DRAM. Collectively, the five Taiwanese DRAM suppliers—Inotera, Nanya, Powerchip, ProMOS and Winbond—saw monthly revenues increase rise by 15 percent per month for the last three months.”

    iSuppli expects supply levels to remain fairly consistent in the fourth quarter. DRAM demand is expected to improve in 2010 in concert with the general global economic recovery.