Optane is based on 3D Xpoint technology, a new form of non-volatile memory that is based on the resistance of cells. 

Before release, Intel gave Optane SSDs to a select few customers who had a chance to get their hands dirty with the new technology for longer than a year. The testers included Facebook, IBM, Lenovo, and database company Aerospike, which believes Optane could unite DRAM and SSDs. 

Aerospike's database has a hybrid architecture that can take advantage of Optane as both a NAND flash and DRAM replacement. The company also found its database running significantly faster on Optane than on SSDs based on NAND flash.

Beta testing Optane was important because it's different than NAND flash, and software needs to be tuned for Optane's hybrid memory and storage features. Intel's CEO Brian Krzanich has said that Optane could play a unique role in buffering chapters of video games so they load up quickly on PCs. 

Intel claims that Optane DC P4800X SSD's random writes are up to 10 times faster than conventional SSDs, while reads are around three times faster. Intel has said the P4800X is not meant for everyday applications or sequential tasks.

Next year, Intel will ship Optane DIMMs to replace DRAM. Optane DIMMs will need to be more durable and faster than SSDs based on the technology because they are on a faster memory bus and will have to survive a larger number of reads and writes. Intel claims Optane will offer more gigabyte density in DIMMs than conventional DRAM.