SK Hynix admits to DRAM defects, smacks down rumour it botched big batches

Admits 'potential losses' may result, says they won’t be significant

South Korean chip maker SK Hynix has admitted some of its DRAM components included defects, though it says accounts of the issue are overblown.

In a statement to The Register, the manufacturer wrote: “We can confirm that a defect was found in a few DRAM products.

“We're currently talking to a limited number of customers affected by this to address the issue. While it’s too early to estimate the potential losses, we don't think they would be that significant as the defect is within the range of typical quality issue check.”

The impact of the defects may be less substantial than the damage done to SK Hynix’s reputation, as South Korean newswire Yonhap reports that rumours have circulated to the effect that 240,000 wafers of DRAM are defective. SK Hynix is thought to have the capacity to produce around 1.8 million wafers a month, around 80 per cent of which are dedicated to DRAM. The whispering therefore describes a serious situation at a time the world’s hunger for silicon can’t be satiated.

SK Hynix’s missive to The Register continued: “The scale of the potential losses mentioned in the rumour is absolutely not true and exaggerated.”

The company has therefore requested a police investigation into whoever is spreading this gossip.

The Register asked SK Hynix if it had any information on who it thinks might be spreading these rumours, and if it could detail recent production quality metrics. The biz declined to comment on both matters. ®