SanDisk has started the sampling process for the 10th generation 3D NAND flash chip BiCS10, developed together with its long-term production partner Kioxia. This new 1Tb TLC chip combines 332 memory layers, achieving an areal density of over 29Gb per square millimeter.

The density cost in question means an increase of 59 percent compared to the BiCS8 generation in current mass production. With this technological step, SanDisk aims to launch SSD models with a capacity of 256TB in 2026 and 512TB in 2027.

New Architecture Focused on High Capacity and Performance

The BiCS10 architecture is strengthened by connecting to SanDisk’s CMOS direct array architecture and the new Toggle DDR6.0 interface, which reaches 4.8Gb/s data transfer rates. This interface speed represents a 33 percent increase in performance compared to the previous generation.

While significant improvements were also made on the energy efficiency side, input power consumption was reduced by 10 percent and output power consumption by 34 percent. The company achieves capacity increases through layer stacking and advanced circuit designs rather than increasing the number of bits per cell.

While reading power consumption is reduced by 29 percent compared to previous designs, the aim is to ensure that durability and reliability are not compromised. SanDisk plans to switch to QLC memory technology in many of its capacity-oriented products by 2028.

High Expectations for Enterprise SSD Prices

The costs of 512TB capacity drives that will be released in the future can be estimated based on the pricing of existing enterprise storage solutions. Solidigm’s 122.88TB D5-P5336 series is currently available for prices ranging from $49,275 to $64,168.

Calculations made on these unit costs show that a 512TB capacity drive can be offered for sale in 2027 for a price of over $ 300,000. In this field, where giants such as Kioxia, Samsung, Solidigm and Micron continue to compete for similar capacity purposes, the limitation in NAND supply continues to push prices up.

Samsung has also announced plans for 256TB Gen 5 drivers in 2026 and 512TB PCIe 6.0 drivers around 2027. Considering the production processes and corporate demands, it will take a longer time for these high-capacity drivers to reach large masses.

What kind of a change do you think the introduction of 512TB capacity SSD drives at such high prices will lead to a change in information center technologies?