[Intel switched to DDR4 with its 6th generation Core CPUs (Skylake) and AMD adopted DDR4 with its first Ryzen processor release. Micron announced that it has begun sending samples of its high-tech RAM to hardware partners.

Micron promises that DDR5 will "improve memory performance by more than 85%" and simultaneously double memory density, although DDR5 RAM will not be in mass production for some time yet, much less will the technology make its way into gaming PCs (Intel is planning a 2021 Sapphire Rapids will reportedly not implement support until 2021), it is exciting to hear what the future holds.

DDR5's touted benefits include doubled data transfer rates (from 1600-3200 MT/s to 3200-6400 MT/s), lower power requirements, DQS interval oscillators for better protection against voltage and temperature variations, and on-die ECC memory.

Micron expects to ship DDR5 modules for server systems in late 2020. For more detailed technical information, see Micron's website.