News DDR4 prices are now so high that vendors have decided to start making it again — manufacturers want a slice now that it's more expensive than DDR5

[Admin]

A few smaller manufacturers are pushing back their plans to discontinue DDR4 production because of surging prices in the global market.

DDR4 prices are now so high that vendors have decided to start making it again — manufacturers want a slice now that it's more expensive than DDR5 : Read more

 

[tekaryace]

Its been that way for ever when ddr2 came ddr was more expensive when ddr3 came ddr2 was more expensive, I have been building gaming or non gaming computers since I was 18, now 47 still making my own and everything old cost more it's always been that way. No disrespect, just my knowledge.

 

[bit_user]

@apiltch , I hope you can answer this for me, because the article did not!

Because of this, a few smaller players have realized DDR4 is profitable once again and have decided to extend production.

Okay, specifically which, and what's your source on that?

The next paragraph mentions Nanya, but it's ambiguous whether they're being cited as one who's reversing plans to end production or just a company benefiting from the looming shortage. The prior article already cited them as benefiting from the DDR4 shortage and gave no impression they'd be winding down their DDR4 production. Therefore, I doubt this article really means they're the ones reversing plans, in which case no company is cited here and we have no source on this, anyway.

 

[tiredcrow]

I'm calling this stuff the "5th gen" even though generations could be defined another way but the RTX50, DDR5, AM5 era of new tech is the 5 Gen to me.

This push to the 5th gen went differently than to the previous. It seems manufacturers were this time poised to push it hard and practically drop the 4 gen stuff.
But the trouble is, all this 5 Gen stuff has had enough public issues that many people, .myself included, aren't switching yet. We're pushing our 4 gen stuff to the max and waiting for the next generation to work out all these problems with pins, power, seating, heat, etc

 

[bit_user]

I'm calling this stuff the "5th gen" even though generations could be defined another way but the RTX50, DDR5, AM5 era of new tech is the 5 Gen to me.

AM5 is the first AMD socket with DDR5 support (and that's the only standard it supports). RTX 50 has nothing to do with any of this.

This push to the 5th gen went differently than to the previous. It seems manufacturers were this time poised to push it hard and practically drop the 4 gen stuff.

Depends on which manufacturers you mean. Intel is still selling plenty of LGA 1700 products, now mostly into the "value" market segment, which tend towards DDR4. AMD is still selling plenty of AM4 CPUs and chipsets, even having just announced the Ryzen 5500X3D! So, CPU and motherboard makers are still very much interested in pushing DDR4 products, since they recognize that DDR5 traditionally brings with it additional costs.

The manufacturers who turned their backs on it were the DRAM makers, who see more lucrative ways to use their limited production capacity (not to mention the fear of being undercut by China). It's this tension between CPU and system makers vs. DRAM makers that's causing the price of DDR4 to surge.

In other words, the demand for DDR4 hasn't gone away - not from users or most parts of the industry - yet, the supply is tapering off.