Eyeing Replacing SODIMMs in Laptops, Micron Debuts Its LPCAMM2 Module

Here’s more CES 2024 news coming your way. Today at the show, Micron Technology has introduced the first LPDDR5X-based low-power compression attached memory module (LPCAMM2) for mobile device primary RAM.

The module will be available in 16 GB to 64 GB capacities with samples available now and volume production in the first half of 2024. It promises up to 61% lower power consumption and 71% better performance (based on PCMark 10 essential workloads benchmark) than SODIMM memory modules.

The new form factor delivers higher performance than SODIMM with up to 61% reduction in power consumption. It’s smaller in volume than the SODIMM by 64% and is compatible with low power DRAM.

 

Micron LPCAMM2 mobile memory module

 

Most mobile devices, such as laptops and notebooks are still using the small outline dual inline memory module (SODIMM) form factor, first introduced in 1997. SODIMM served the industry well but is no longer adequate in today’s environment where space, speed and power consumption demands are greater than ever before. With the coming of AI to the personal computer, these requirements will only get more stringent.

 

Enter LPCAMM2

The memory industry created the LPCAMM2 standard to address multiple aspects of mobile DRAM evolution. To help get LPCAMM2 to the industry, Micron sponsored the specification development within JEDEC, created the test hardware and test methodology, and worked with industry partners to create the dual-phase power management integrated circuit.

Micron’s product in the category uses the company’s 1-beta process, which is a 5th generation sub 20 nm DRAM fab process with higher bit density with lower-latency, lower-power consumption and higher bandwidth than prior generations.

The new memory modules offer improvements all around, but Micron put a hard wall against compromising on performance. All of the improvements had to come in addition to performance gains.

Jake Whatcott, Director, Client Graphics Segment at Micron Technology puts it into perspective. “Number one is performance,” he says. “Nobody is willing to give up performance to get something else. And it doesn't matter what that tradeoff is—whether it's power, whether it's space, performance is king.”

 

“When we look at developing the next generation of modular memory, it's got to be fast. And LPDDR5X is fast. From a pure data rate standpoint, it's ahead of DDR right now by about one to two speed grades.”

 

Micro LPCAMM2 performance benchmark results

 

The Era of AI Laptops is Here

Every now and then an application comes in and basically throws out all the rules. Suddenly nothing is the same anymore and old standards just don’t hold up. 3D gaming had that effect on the PC graphics card industry near the turn of the century. Crypto mining did the same for server farms a few years back, and generative artificial intelligence (AI) has whacked the server farm performance requirements again.

Soon we will see generative AI at the edge – personal systems such as desktops, laptops and notebooks. Desktops have the room and power budgets to go there, but mobile computers, to date, do not. That means that manufacturers will need to find ways to pull more performance in smaller form factors with lower power drain than ever before. LPCAMM2 is designed for just this environment.

 

Improved Modularity with LPCAMM2

Prior to LPCAMM2, the SODIMM or soldering in DRAM have been the solutions of choice, with soldered chips being the method of choice when space and weight were at their most premium. The new format takes 64% less volume, which makes it a suitable modular replacement for soldered-on chips.

In addition to being smaller, the LPCAMM2 has a 128 bit-wide memory bus, whereas the SODIMM has 64 bit. That means that SODIMM installations either take a big performance hit with a single SODIMM at 64-bits wide or add in another very large (by today’s standards) SODIMM module to get a 128-bit wide memory bus.

 

Comparing LPCAMM2 vs. SODIMM

The LPCAMM2 form factor improves on the SODIMM in all measurable attributes. 

• LPDDR5X-based LPCAMM2 reaches speeds up to 9600 Mbps compared to 5600Mbps with current DDR5 SODIMMs.Up to 80% lower system standby power and 43-58% lower active power per 64-bit bus than SODIMM-based memory.
• 128-bit wide memory bus compared to 64 bit with SODIMM, meaning that each LCCAMM2 effectively replaces two SODIMM modules.
• Utilizes a single PCB for all module capacities with chip positions designed to improve host PCB routing and shorter data paths.
• PCMark 10 benchmark predicts 7% better performance for digital content creation and 15% improvement for productivity workloads.
• 78.0 mm × 34.0 mm × 4.5 mm footprint for the LPCAMM2 vs. 74.9 mm × 47.1 mm × 9.3 mm

 

Size comparison between LPCAMM2 and SODIMM

 

Growth Built In

The current announcement covers modules with capacities of 16 GB to 64 GB. However, the use of LPDDR5X RAM adds a significant element of future proofing for the form factor. According to Praveen Vaidyanathan, VP and GM of Micron’s Compute Products Group, the LPDDR “5X” allows for die stacking. In contrast, the prior DDR versions used in SODIMMs don’t give that capability.

 

“We can stack up to 16 die (dice) on top of each other and just increase your capacity all day long, and we'll continue.” 

 

Vaidyanathan speculated on the possibility of stacking even further—32 dice, or even higher.

With LPCAMM2, mobile computing will be able to keep up with today and tomorrow’s massively performance intensive applications like content creation and generative edge AI. It’s too early to say if LPSAMM2 will last the 26 years that SODIMM did, but it is designed with performance, low power, and expandability to meet the needs of the foreseeable future.

Micron is exhibiting this week at CES 2024. Visit them at Tech West, Venetian Tower Suites 29-212, 29-216, and 29-218.

 

All images used courtesy of Micron Technology