As prices continue to decline, the NAND flash memory market is undergoing significant changes, which is consistent with the trend in the DRAM market. According to market research firm Omdia, the price of the top selling three-layer unit (TLC) 256Gb NAND flash memory product in the third quarter is expected to decrease by 2.6% from $1.54 in the previous quarter to $1.5. This trend reflects broader market dynamics, namely that demand in major industries such as smartphones and PCs has not yet recovered, thereby affecting the rebound in prices.
Since August this year, some product lines have started to lower their prices. In August, the price of TLC 512Gb products decreased by 3.3% compared to the previous month and remained at $3.3. Similarly, the price of high-capacity 1TB products has also decreased by 3.4%.
The price of Multi Layer Cell (MLC) 256Gb products is expected to decrease by more than 10%, from $11.55 in the third quarter to $12.95 in the previous quarter.
However, there has not been a consistent decline in the market. Omdia predicts that the price of quad layer unit (QLC) NAND 256Gb used in enterprise solid state drives (SSDs) is expected to rise from $1.23 in Q2 to $1.36 in Q4.
The polarization of the NAND market, where prices of consumer oriented products decline while prices of server oriented products rise, is a noteworthy development trend. Omdia also lowered its forecast for the penetration rate of AI PCs in the PC market this year from 11% to below 10%, citing Intel's restructuring impact as one of the reasons.
At the same time, major manufacturers such as Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix are focusing on high-capacity and high-performance SSDs to maintain their market position. Samsung Electronics is developing a 256TB server SSD with a capacity four times that of existing products, with the goal of releasing it in 2027. SK Hynix plans to launch a 128TB product early next year, followed by a 256TB high-capacity product. TrendForce predicts that Samsung Electronics will achieve additional revenue growth in the third quarter based on the price increase of enterprise grade SSDs.