Output value for the global mobile DRAM industry came to US$3.61 billion in the fourth quarter of 2014, representing a 27.8% of the overall output value for the DRAM industry and a 4.2% increase on quarter, according to DRAMeXchange.

"Mobile DRAM made up nearly 40% of all DRAM shipments, more than ever before," said Avril Wu, assistant VP for DRAMeXchange. "Although mobile memory's average selling price fell slightly by 5% in the fourth quarter, bit shipment volume rose due to sustained smartphone demand growth driven by iPhone 6/6 Plus. This in turn contributed to the continuing growth of the mobile DRAM revenue worldwide."

Mobile DRAM prices are set to fall only 3% sequentially in the first quarter of 2015 despite it being an off-peak season, Wu said. In all of 2015, prices are unlikely to fall "because the next generation iPhone is expected to increase its memory to 2GB," Wu continued.

The highlight of 2015 in the mobile DRAM industry will be the next-generation LPDDR4. Currently, Qualcomm's 810 is the first chip to support the new technology, and a few flagship smartphones with LPDDR4 will arrive in the second quarter, DRAMeXchange indicated. However, the LPDDR4 memory standard will not become mainstream until the second half of 2016 due to its high manufacturing costs, DRAMeXchange said.

DRAMeXchange also suggested that in 2015, more mid-range smartphones will come with upgraded 1.5GB or 2GB storage spurring demand for mobile DRAM memory.

Samsung Electronics continued to lead the global mobile DRAM market in the fourth quarter of 2014, but its share slid to 46.1% from 50.7% in the third quarter, according to DRAMeXchange. SK Hynix followed with a 28% market share in the fourth quarter, while third-ranked Micron Technology saw its share climb to 23.3% from 19% in the prior quarter.

By: DocMemory
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