Micron Unveils 4600 PCIe Gen5 NVMe SSD: Redefining Performance for AI PCs, Gamers, and Professionals
In a groundbreaking move to elevate client storage performance, Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU) has announced the launch of the Micron 4600 PCIe® Gen5 NVMe™ SSD, a cutting-edge storage solution designed to deliver exceptional speed and energy efficiency for gamers, creators, and professionals. Leveraging Micron’s advanced G9 TLC NAND technology, the 4600 SSD is the company’s first Gen5 client SSD, doubling the performance of its predecessor and setting a new benchmark for AI-powered computing and high-performance workloads.
Unmatched Speed and Energy Efficiency
The Micron 4600 SSD boasts sequential read speeds of 14.5 GB/s and write speeds of 12.0 GB/s, making it one of the fastest client SSDs on the market. These capabilities enable users to load large language models (LLMs) from the SSD to DRAM in under one second, significantly enhancing the user experience for AI-driven applications. Compared to Gen4 performance SSDs, the 4600 SSD reduces AI model loading times by up to 62%, ensuring rapid deployment of LLMs and other data-intensive workloads.
Energy efficiency is another standout feature of the 4600 SSD, with up to 107% improved energy efficiency (MB/s per watt) compared to Gen4 drives. This not only extends battery life for mobile devices but also improves overall system efficiency, making it ideal for both power-hungry gaming rigs and energy-conscious professional setups.
“The 4600 NVMe SSD allows users to load large language models in less than one second, enabling seamless experiences in data-intensive applications, especially for AI,” said Prasad Alluri, Vice President and General Manager for Client Storage at Micron. “As AI inference increasingly runs locally on PCs, the transition to Gen5 SSDs addresses the growing demand for higher performance and energy efficiency.”
Compatibility with Leading Platforms
The 4600 NVMe SSD is designed for compatibility with the latest platforms, including AMD’s Ryzen™ 9000 Series processors and Intel® Core™ Ultra Desktop and Mobile (Series 2) processors. This ensures seamless integration for PC OEMs and positions the 4600 SSD as a key component in next-generation AI PCs and high-performance systems.
“AMD is excited to collaborate on the validation of the Micron 4600 NVMe™ SSD with our latest Ryzen family of processors,” said Joe Macri, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer of Compute and Graphics at AMD. “The Micron 4600 NVMe™ SSD is anticipated to deliver exceptional performance and a best-in-class user experience for the most demanding professional applications and high-speed gaming.”
Similarly, Todd Lewellen, Vice President of Client Ecosystem Group at Intel, highlighted the importance of co-validation efforts: “The co-validation efforts with Micron in our Intel Folsom Open Labs have been instrumental in achieving today’s compatibility milestone. The Micron 4600 SSD, designed for PCIe Gen5 platforms, offers fantastic performance and power efficiency, and is now listed on the Intel PCL (Platform Component List). It’s an ideal fit for AI PCs based on Intel Core Ultra processors, as well as future platforms.”
Industry-Leading Features and Security
Building on Micron’s legacy of innovation, the 4600 SSD incorporates advanced security features to protect user data. In addition to prior ultra-secure features like TCG Opal, signed firmware, and secure boot, the 4600 SSD includes cutting-edge technologies such as:
- Security Protocol and Data Model (SPDM)
- Data Object Exchange (DOE)
- Device Identifier Composition Engine (DICE)
These enhancements provide robust protection against modern cyber threats, ensuring that sensitive data remains secure in AI, gaming, and professional environments.
Elevating User Experiences Across Applications
The Micron 4600 NVMe SSD is engineered to deliver unparalleled performance across a wide range of use cases. Benchmark results highlight its superiority:
- PCMark 10 Scores: Up to 38% better than Gen4 performance SSDs and 11% better than Gen5 competitors.
- SPECwpc Benchmark Results:
- Media and entertainment applications: Up to 61% faster
- Energy industry applications: Up to 59% faster
- Product development applications: Up to 45% faster
- Life sciences applications: Up to 38% faster
These improvements translate into tangible benefits for users, from faster rendering times for video editors to smoother gameplay for gamers and accelerated simulations for engineers.
Why the 4600 SSD Matters
For gamers, creators, and professionals, reducing wait times and maximizing productivity is more important than ever. The 4600 SSD leverages PCIe Gen5 technology and Micron’s advanced G9 TLC NAND to deliver remarkable speed and energy efficiency. Its ability to handle AI workloads, scientific computations, and content creation tasks makes it a versatile solution for modern computing needs.
“Lenovo will qualify the Micron 4600 SSD because of its industry-leading performance and its use of low-temperature soldering (LTS) technology during SSD module assembly,” said Takashi Sugawara, Director and Principal Engineer at Lenovo. “As a pioneer in LTS technology, Lenovo has been collaborating with Micron to reduce the energy consumed in the SSD manufacturing process.”
Availability and Future Outlook
The Micron 4600 NVMe SSD is now available for OEM sampling globally, with broader adoption expected as Gen5 SSD technology gains momentum in 2025 and 2026. For more information, visit Micron 4600 NVMe SSD.
