Samsung now mass produces 12 Gb LPDDR4 chips

While DDR4 is close to becoming mainstream for desktop computers and notebooks, it might be adopted by handheld devices even faster. Earlier today, Samsung Electronics announced that mass production of the industry's first 12 Gb LPDDR4 mobile memory has begun. The company manufactures these new chips using its advanced 20 nm process technology.

According to the official blog Samsung Tomorrow, this chip "is expected to significantly accelerate the adoption of high capacity mobile DRAM worldwide" and offers "excellent energy efficiency, reliability and ease of design." In addition to the above, this new low-power memory also packs the highest speed available for a DRAM chip, as well as the largest capacity currently available on the market.

Compared to the 8 Gb LPDDR4 modules manufactured using the same 20 nm process, the 12 Gb version is more than 30 percent faster, its speed of 4,266 Mbps also being twice as fast as DDR4 memory currently available for PCs. 

Since there is no 12 Gb smartphone in sight, the application areas of these new chips will include first ultra-slim PCs, digital appliances, as well as various automotive devices.