Micron has launched the 6550 ION SSD, marking a significant milestone as the first in the industry to support the PCIe Gen5 standard. Additionally, it holds the title of the fastest 60 terabyte SSD designed for data centers globally. This drive is tailored for applications that demand high memory and performance, particularly in AI training scenarios. The company asserts that it offers enhanced power efficiency compared to rival products available in the market.
The 6550 ION is available in an E3.S form factor and incorporates eighth-generation 3D NAND memory, which contributes to its high storage density, performance, and energy efficiency. It achieves impressive read and write speeds of 12GB/s while operating at just 20W, making it 20% more efficient than competing solutions. Although the drive can operate at 25W for superior performance, Micron does not anticipate that customers will frequently utilize this higher power setting.
One of the key benefits of the 6550 ION is its efficient power management, utilizing an ASPM engine that allows it to operate at just 4 watts in low-power mode. This device is specifically designed for AI workloads, showcasing a 147 percent enhancement in NVIDIA Magnum IO GPUDirect Storage operations and a 30 percent increase in Unet3D data transfer efficiency. Additionally, the SSD performs tasks 151 percent more quickly while consuming 209 percent less power compared to its competitors, positioning it as an excellent option for training and deploying AI models.
The primary benefit of the Micron 6550 ION lies in its impressive storage capacity. A single 1U rack equipped with 20 of these SSDs can accommodate over 1.2 PB of data per rack unit, greatly enhancing the efficiency of the server’s physical space. In total, one rack can support up to 44.2 PB, achieving a remarkable 67% efficiency when compared to conventional 2U racks, which typically hold 26.5 PB.
In addition to its capacity, the 6550 ION excels in endurance and security features. It offers a leading 1.0 16K random write power (RDWPD) rating, surpassing competitors by 42%. For data protection, it includes support for SPDM 1.2 for attestation and SHA-512 for secure signature generation. Furthermore, it meets TAA compliance and is FIPS 140-3 L2 certified, making it suitable for government and security-sensitive applications.
