Memory Digest - March/April 2011

March/April 2011

SSDs meet new requirements in defense applications

The defense industry was one of the first to adopt SSDs, primarily because they are much more durable than hard drives. However, when first introduced, their limited performance and capacity (as well as their high price) made SSDs suited for only a relatively small number of defense applications.

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2011 Semicon Revenue Sees Increase on Japan Quake

New IHS iSuppli research indicates that supply disruptions related to the Japan earthquake and tsunami will contribute to higher than previously expected global semiconductor revenue in 2011.

Micron to Sell Japanese Facility

Micron announced that it is selling its wafer manufacturing facility in Japan, to TowerJazz a manufacturer specializing in image sensors and radio-frequency and embedded memory chips.

Elpida to report 30 pct rise in operating profit –Nikkei

Nikkei business daily has reported that Elpida is expected to report a 30 percent increase in its operating profit to about 35 billion yen for 2010/11 thanks to an increase in shipments of DRAM chips.

1H’Apr. DDR3 4GB contract price is up 6%

The overall DRAM supply chain will likely face the potential challenge if major silicon vendors such as Shin-Etsu and SUMCO are unable to get back to normal operation in coming weeks.

Alternative Technologies Vie for Share of Fast-Growing Mobile DRAM Market

According to new IHS iSuppli research, mobile DRAM in its current form soon may prove inadequate for the data intensive needs of smart phones and tablets in handling applications.

Tosh intros small but SmartNAND chips 24nm and error correction

Toshiba’s new 24nm SmartNAND flash with on-chip error correction will have faster controllers and deliver faster read/write speeds.

South Korean tech companies pick up slack left by Japan

As disaster-hit Japanese manufacturers struggle to resume operations, South Korean firms are moving to fill the void.

Intel, Micron Shrink NAND Flash

IM Flash Technologies, a joint venture of Intel and Micron Technology, is providing customers with samples of 20-nm NAND flash memory.

Can data stored on an SSD be secured?

According to a study conducted by researchers at the University of California at San Diego (UCSD), sanitizing SSDs of data is at best a difficult task and at worst nearly impossible.

Five cuffed over $37m heist of Google flash chips

California law enforcement officials have arrested five people who allegedly took part in a heist that nabbed 1.7 million flash memory chips from a facility owned by Unigen.

Tablets, Smartphones to Dominate NAND Flash Consumption

In the past six months, Android 3.0-based tablet PCs dominate the industry - riding on this trend is the gradual increase of NAND Flash consumption.