The Micron 6500 ION is heading toward EOL, and it's time to look at what's next.
The answer depends on where you are in your product life cycle.
This guide covers both paths: what each drive offers, how the specs stack up, and how to find your part number replacement, so you can make the right call for your infrastructure.
Micron has issued a Product Discontinuance Notification (PDN) for the Micron 6500 ION NVMe SSD. The key dates customers need to plan around are:
Orders placed after the Last Order Date will not be accepted. Customers who have not yet secured inventory or begun their transition should act promptly. Once the Last Ship Date passes, the 6500 ION will no longer be available through any channel.
If you have questions about your specific situation or need help planning your procurement timeline, contact Edge for guidance.
The tables below map each Micron 6500 ION SKU to its 6550 ION and 6600 ION replacements, grouped by form factor and security configuration.
Standard sector size (1) and 4K sector size (4) variants. Most deployments use the “1” variant.
Unencrypted drives. Standard and 4K sector size variants.
The 6500 ION did not offer a 60TB option. These 6550 ION SKUs represent an upgrade in capacity for existing U.2 customers.
The 6500 ION did not offer a 60TB option. These 6550 ION SKUs represent an upgrade in capacity for existing U.2 customers.
The product number below represents the 512 byte sector size. E1.L is supported on the 6550 ION but not on the 6600 ION.
Unencrypted E1.L drives. The product number below represents the 512 byte sector size. The 6600 ION does not offer an E1.L option.
60TB E1.L available on the 6550 ION only. The 6600 ION does not offer an E1.L option.
* E1.L form factor ends with the Micron 6550 ION. The 6600 ION does not offer an E1.L option. Customers with E3.S-capable platforms should consider transitioning to E3.S for long-term compatibility. Contact Edge for guidance.
The 6600 ION is available in U.2 (15mm) and E3.S-1T (7.5mm) form factors. Customers on E1.L with the 6500 ION should note that the 6600 ION doesn’t currently offer an E1.L option; A form factor change would be required.
The Micron 6550 ION is a PCIe Gen5 enterprise NVMe SSD available in 30.72TB and 61.44TB capacities across three form factors: U.2 (15mm), E3.S-1T (7.5mm), and E1.L (9.5mm). Security options include Non-SED and SED with FIPS 140-3 L2 certifiable configurations.
If you’re looking for the highest capacity drive available, this is it. The Micron 6600 ION is a PCIe Gen5 enterprise NVMe SSD with capacities up to 122TB (E3.S) and 245TB (E3.L).
The 6600 ION is currently sampling and is not yet broadly available through distribution channels. Customers who need to transition now should plan around the 6550 ION.
A few points worth keeping in mind:
| Feature | Micron 6500 ION (EOL) | Micron 6550 ION | Micron 6600 ION |
| Interface | PCIe Gen4 x4 (NVMe 2.0) | PCIe Gen5 x4 (NVMe 2.0b) | PCIe Gen5 x4 (NVMe 2.0b) |
| NAND Type | Micron 232-layer TLC | Micron G8 232-layer TLC | Micron G9 QLC |
| Capacity | 30.72TB | 30.72TB / 61.44TB | 30.72TB / 61.44TB / 122.88TB |
| Form Factor(s) | U.3 (15mm), E1.L (9.5mm) | U.2, E3.S-1T, E1.L | U.2 (15mm), E3.S-1T (7.5mm) |
| Seq. Read (128KB) | 6,800 MB/s | 14,000 MB/s (61.44TB) | 14,000 MB/s |
| Seq. Write (128KB) | 5,000 MB/s | 7,000 MB/s | 2,700 MB/s (30T) / 3,000 MB/s (122T) |
| Rand. Read (4KB) | 1,000,000 IOPS | 2,000,000 IOPS | 2,000,000 IOPS |
| Rand. Write (4KB) | 200,000 IOPS | 70,000 IOPS | 100,000 IOPS |
| Endurance | 0.3 DWPD (random) | 1.0 RDWPD (16KB random) | 0.3 RDWPD (4KB) / 1.0 SDWPD (128K) |
| Max Active Power | 20W | 25W (max unconstrained) | 25W (max) |
| Idle Power | 5W | 4W (L1 ASPM, OCP 2.5) | 5W |
| Security | SED or Non-SED | SED + FIPS 140-3 L2 or Non-SED | SED + FIPS 140-3 L2 or Non-SED |
| OCP Compliance | OCP 2.0 | OCP 2.5 | OCP 2.6 |
| MTTF | 2.5M hours | 2.5M hours | 2.5M hours |
| Warranty | 5 years | 5 years | 5 years |
| Availability | EOL | Available now | Sampling. Not broadly available |
The 6550 ION is available in a 61.44TB configuration, doubling per-drive capacity over the 6500 ION with no change in power envelope. In E3.S configuration, 20 drives per 1U server yields approximately 1.2PB per rack unit compared to 24 U.2 drives per 2U for roughly 0.75PB per rack unit. Customers with high-density storage requirements should evaluate whether the 61.44TB SKU reduces server count, rack footprint, and associated licensing costs.
| Metric | 30.72TB Config (Like-for-Like) | 61.44TB Config (Upgrade Path) |
| Drives per 1U server (E3.S) | 20 drives | 20 drives |
| Storage per 1U | ~615TB | ~1.2PB |
| Storage per rack (36U) | ~22PB | ~44PB |
| Sequential Read | 14,000 MB/s | 14,000 MB/s |
| Random Read IOPS | 1,600,000 | 2,000,000 |
Whether you're moving to the Micron 6550 ION today or evaluating the 6600 ION for the future, Edge can help you navigate part numbers, compatibility, platform support, and pricing. Contact us today for expert guidance from our in-house Micron FAE, Keith Peterson, recently named Micron Americas Distribution FAE of the Year.
Wondering why partnering with an authorized distributor protects and strengthens your supply chain? Read our article here.