The current state of the memory industry is grim, according to a report (opens in new tab) by market analyst TrendForce Investigations. According to the report, memory prices fell at the end of last year, forcing Micron, Kioxia, and others to cut production of DRAM and NAND memory. This means that the current low prices for RAM and SSDs will be short-lived.

Micron is one of the Big Three suppliers of computer memory along with Samsung and SK Hynix. This oligopoly produces 95% of the RAM chips in our machines. If one of these companies were to scale back production, it would mean a shortage of RAM chips and consequently higher prices.

If Micron feels the need to cut production, the other two companies will not be far behind.

Micron made this move because the consumer electronics market has been slower than expected. Add to that the rising inflation rate, the war between Russia and Ukraine, and the continued pressure from the pandemic, and it is bad news for many electronics. In fact, the situation is so bad when it comes to NAND flash that some manufacturers are currently selling at a loss, according to the report.

This is likely to have repercussions with regard to the introduction of new technologies. Instead of ramping up production of 232-layer NAND flash (open in new tab) toward the end of the year, Micron is reportedly focusing on its existing 176-layer NAND flash. This technology is also expected to support the performance of PCIe 5.0 NVMe SSDs.

These new PCIe 5.0 SSDs are expected to begin shipping this November, with both AMD and Intel having compatible platforms in place; AMD's Ryzen 7000 (open in new tab) chip and Intel's 12th (open in new tab) and 13th generation products also support DDR5.

Basically, the current incredibly low prices of computer RAM and SSDs will not last forever. Alternatively, upgrading your current rig might be a good idea.