According to news reports, Micron Technology recently launched a new category of clock-driven memory products, including the Crucial DDR5 Clock Unbuffered Dual In-Line Memory Module (CUDIMM) and the Clock Small Form Factor Dual In-Line Memory Module (CSODIMM), and has begun mass shipments. It complies with the JEDEC standard and delivers up to 6,400 MT/s, more than twice the speed of DDR4 and 15% faster than traditional non-clock-driven DDR5. The launch of these solutions marks a new breakthrough in PC memory technology, providing greater speed stability, download speeds, and refresh rates. Since JEDEC standardized the specification earlier this year, Micron's CUDIMM and CSODIMM have become the first commercial JEDEC-compliant DDR5 solutions on the market.
Intel has validated Micron's DDR5 CUDIMM and CSODIMM solutions to support up to 64GB of capacity and are compatible with the Intel Core Ultraprocessor (2 series) recently released on October 10, 2024. Dinesh Bahal, vice president and general manager of Micron's Commercial Products Group, said, "As AI evolves, memory technology must undergo a paradigm shift to address unprecedented system performance demands. Our industry's first JEDEC-compliant DDR5 CUDIMM and CSODIMM bring plug-and-play, high-speed performance to AI PCs and high-end workstations. This new product category provides next-generation memory solutions for the entire ecosystem to power today's devices for tomorrow's AI workloads.”
While DDR5 offers high-speed performance, scaling without sacrificing high-speed stability and signal integrity remains a challenge, especially when combined with high capacity and bandwidth. The innovative design of CUDIMM and CSODIMM represents an evolution of traditional UDIMMs, with clock drivers directly on the memory module to ensure stable performance. Today, most systems rely on CPU clocks, but Micron has broken through electrical barriers and made memory more stable and high-speed by integrating the clock driver directly into the memory module through innovative engineering.
Figure: Micron promotes a new wave of AI PCs (Source: Micron)
With Intel's validation, top PC manufacturers and system integrators will be able to adopt Micron's clock-driven memory technology in future PC platforms. Notably, Micron became the first supplier to validate 32-gigabit chip-based CUDIMM and CSODIMM solutions with capacities up to 64GB for Intel Core hyperprocessors. This enables AI PCs and high-end workstations to scale up to 256GB of system capacity to meet the need for high memory density and performance.
"Intel has partnered with Micron to bring next-generation computing performance to market," said Dimitrios Ziakas, vice president of memory and I/O technologies at Intel. The powerful combination between Intel Core hyperprocessors and Micron's latest clock-driven CUDIMM and CSODIMM solutions, which support up to 64GB of capacity, will propel AI PCs to new heights of data processing at 6,400 MT/s. Through strategic collaboration and joint validation, we deliver state-of-the-art memory and CPU products to our customers and markets, driving future-proof adoption across the ecosystem. ”
Crucial DDR5 CUDIMM and CSODIMM memory plug-and-play delivers 6,400 MT/s speeds for significant performance gains, especially for AI PCs and other data-intensive workloads, whether you're upgrading from DDR4 or looking to take DDR5 performance to the next level. CUDIMM is for desktops, while CSODIMMs are for laptops. The 64GB capacity is expected to be available in the first half of 2025.
With the introduction of CUDIMM and CSODIMM, Micron continues to expand its memory portfolio, combining innovative form factors and performance to support next-generation PCs, including AI PCs, as well as increasing complex workloads.
