Samsung is planning to unveil its fastest and next-gen GDDR7 memory modules next month with up to 37 Gbps speeds for next-gen GPUs.
Samsung GDDR7 To Make Graphics DRAM Market Competitive With 37 Gbps PIN Speeds
It is reported by TechRadar that Samsung is all set to present its next-gen GDDR7 memory at the 2024 IEEE International Solid-State Circuit Conference next month in San Francisco. The company will be holding a session titled "A 16Gb 37 Gb/s GDDR7 DRAM with PAM3-Optimized TRX Equalization and ZQ Calibration" where they will unveil their advanced memory solutions for next-generation of GPUs.
A 37 Gbps DRAM speed is quite ridiculous and marks a 50%+ uplift over the existing GDDR6X DRAM which maxes out at 24 Gbps. Although Samsung has plans to introduce GDDR6W with double the capacities and 64-bit DRAM, they are now moving towards the true next-gen standard. Samsung is also offering its GDDR6 memory in up to 24 Gbps speeds but we have only seen 23.5 Gbps speeds so far on NVIDIA's RTX 4080 SUPER graphics card which is set to launch this week.
Just a few months back, Samsung stated that they had internally reached up to 36 Gbps speeds with GDDR7 memory so it looks like the company continues to squeeze out more room from the next-gen memory modules. We doubt these faster speeds will be ready in enough mass-produced quantities to fulfill the next-gen gaming and AI GPU lineups but we can expect 32-36 Gbps speeds in the coming generation of GPUs.
Following is the bandwidth the 37 Gbps pin speeds would offer across multiple bus configurations:
- 512-bit - 2368 GB/s (2.3 TB/s)
- 384-bit - 1776 GB/s (1.7 TB/s)
- 320-bit - 1480 GB/s (1.5 TB/s)
- 256-bit - 1184 GB/s (1.2 TB/s)
- 192-bit - 888 GB/s
- 128-bit - 592 GB/s
GDDR7 memory will also offer 20% higher efficiency and that's great considering memory consumes a huge amount of power for high-end GPUs. It is said that the Samsung GDDR7 DRAM will include technology specifically optimized for high-speed workloads and there will also be a low-operating voltage option designed for applications with mindful power usage such as laptops.
For thermals, the new memory standard will utilize an epoxy molding compound (EMC) with high thermal conductivity which reduces thermal resistance by up to 70%. It was reported back in August that Samsung was sampling its GDDR7 DRAM to NVIDIA for early evaluation of its next-gen gaming graphics cards.
GDDR Graphics Memory Evolution:
| GRAPHICS MEMORY | GDDR7 | GDDR6X | GDDR6 | GDDR5X |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Workload | Gaming / AI | Gaming / AI | Gaming / AI | Gaming |
| Platform (Example) | GeForce RTX 5090 | GeForce RTX 4090 | GeForce RTX 2080 Ti | GeForce GTX 1080 Ti |
| Die Capacity (Gb) | 16-64 | 8-32 | 8-32 | 8-16 |
| Number of Placements | 12 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| Gb/s/pin | 28-48 | 19-24 | 14-16 | 11.4 |
| GB/s/placement | 112-192 | 76-96 | 56-64 | 45 |
| GB/s/system | 1536-2304 | 912-1152 | 672-768 | 547 |
| Configuration (Example) | 384 IO (12pcs x 32 IO package)? | 384 IO (12pcs x 32 IO package) | 384 IO (12pcs x 32 IO package) | 384 IO (12pcs x 32 IO package) |
| Frame Buffer of Typical System | 24 GB (16 Gb) 36 GB (24 Gb) | 24 GB | 12GB | 12GB |
| Module Package | 266 (BGA) | 180 (BGA) | 180 (BGA) | 190 (BGA) |
| Average Device Power (pJ/bit) | TBD | 7.25 | 7.5 | 8.0 |
| Typical IO Channel | PCB (P2P SM) | PCB (P2P SM) | PCB (P2P SM) | PCB (P2P SM) |
About the author: A Software Engineer by training and a PC enthusiast by passion, Hassan Mujtaba serves as Wccftech's Senior Editor for hardware section. With years of experience in the industry, he specializes in deep-dive technical analysis of next-generation CPU and GPU architectures, motherboards, and cooling solutions. His work involves not only breaking news on upcoming technologies but also extensive hands-on reviews and benchmarking.
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