Intel-certified 256 GB DDR5 stick could cut Xeon memory power by 18%, saving millions of dollars — a 32W-per-socket reduction could save millions per hyperscale data center
SK hynix on Thursday said that its range-topping 256 GB DDR5 RDIMM based on 32 Gb memory devices has passed the Intel Data Center Certified process, the industry's first memory module at this capacity to do so. Normally, certification of a memory module by Intel would be mundane, but this module is special; it combines capacity, low power consumption, and performance, thus potentially saving data center operators millions of dollars.
AI servers not only consume plenty of premium high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used on AI accelerators like Nvidia B300, but also tons of commodity server DDR5 SDRAM that connect to x86 processors. A single high-capacity DDR5 memory module can consume up to 15W or even 25W (depending on performance, capabilities, and workloads), so a fully equipped 12-channel Xeon 6 memory subsystem can draw between 180W and 300W, comparable to the CPU's power consumption.
A 32 Gb memory chip made on SK hynix's 1b process technology (5th Generation 10nm-class DRAM process) consumes significantly less power than two 16 Gb memory ICs made on the company's 1a production node (4th Generation 10nm-class DRAM node), so using a 256 GB DDR5 RDIMM based on the latest DRAMs leads to significant energy savings.
SK hynix claims that these new 256 GB DDR5 RDIMMs "achieve up to approximately 18% lower power consumption than previous 256 GB products."
Offering 32.4W lower power consumption per single-CPU Xeon 6 machine translates into significant savings for modern AI or hyperscale cloud deployments that typically use tens of thousands of machines.
As a result, a relatively simple Intel certification to earn the Intel Data Center Certified badge could drive success for SK hynix in the data center market, particularly in the Xeon 6-based AI server space.
"We are now able to respond more swiftly to customer needs, solidifying our leadership in the server DDR5 DRAM market," said Sangkwon Lee, head of DRAM Product Planning & Enablement at SK hynix. "As a full-stack AI memory creator, we will actively address the growing demand for high-performance, low-power, and high-capacity memory solutions to further enhance customer satisfaction."
Stay On the Cutting Edge: Get the Tom's Hardware Newsletter
Get Tom's Hardware's best news and in-depth reviews, straight to your inbox.
Anton Shilov is a contributing writer at Tom’s Hardware. Over the past couple of decades, he has covered everything from CPUs and GPUs to supercomputers and from modern process technologies and latest fab tools to high-tech industry trends.
