The Micron 5210 ION SSD provides 33% more bit density than triple-level cell (TLC) NAND, addressing segments previously serviced with hard disk drives (HDDs).

Micron QLC NAND reaches densities of 1 terabit with its  64-layer 3D NAND structure.

“This breakthrough QLC SSD will usher in a new generation of storage products that allows enterprise and cloud customers to experience the benefits of NAND flash across an expanding array of workloads that were previously relegated to slow, power-hungry hard drives,” says Micron’s Sumit Sadana.

Available in a 2.5-inch form factor, compared to the traditional 3.5-inch HDD, the  SSD reduces server sprawl by packing more performance into fewer racks, which allows data centres to save on power and cooling costs.

The  SSD addresses the most stringent customer requirements by delivering the full enterprise feature set of Micron’s SATA SSDs. Leveraging the proven architecture of the 5200 series SATA SSD, the 5210 ION SSD simplifies the qualification process by providing customers with a known design for their data centre build-out.

Customers will also be able to leverage Micron’s unique Flex Capacity feature to custom-configure the drive’s endurance and write performance for workloads that have a higher mix of writes but are still mostly read-intensive.

The SSD is now shipping to strategic enablement partners and customers, with broad market availability expected in the fall of 2018.

To meet market needs, the SSD will be available in a 2.5-inch (7mm) form factor in capacities ranging from 1.92TB to 7.68TB, enabling more flash capacity per 2U chassis.