Posted 10/02/09 at 08:44:42 PM by Ryan Whitwam

In recent days, several SSD manufacturers have made it known that they wanted nothing to do with Samsung’s new 32nm NAND Flash chips. Now Samsung is coming clean and admitting to the issues. The new chips suffer from unacceptably slow write speeds, and are therefore not suitable for use in SSDs. It seems the problem lies mainly with the chips interaction with existing flash controllers.

According to Samsung, "… for quality SSDs, every NAND process geometry upgrade requires a matching upgraded controller.  Should (Samsung's) 30nm-class NAND be used with a conventional controller of insufficient quality, performance slowdowns are indeed possible."

NAND flash memory uses floating-gate transistors to create arrays of memory cells. As these arrays scale to smaller and smaller sizes, errors will accumulate faster. Error Correcting Code (ECC) on the controller is used to correct these issues. If an insufficiently powerful controller is used, the memory may become corrupted. Samsung is currently working on its own flash controller to pair with the 32nm NAND chips. In the meantime, don’t expect SSD price drops for at least several months.

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Posted 08/25/09 at 09:35:19 AM by Pulkit Chandna

Taking cognizance of a complaint filed by Pennsylvania-based BTG International in July, the U.S. International Trade Commission has announced it will launch a probe into the use of Samsung Nand flash-memory chips in gadgets from Apple, RIM, Sony, etc. BTG International claims that certain Samsung Nand flash-memory chips found in a host of consumer electronics devices, including the iPhone, iPod, MacBook Air, Blackberry Storm, and various Sony camcorders, infringe on five out of its patents. The said patents relate to the storage of multiple bits of information per cell, which appreciably increases the storage capacity of flash memory while keeping it inexpensive. BTG is praying for a ban on the import of all devices containing the Samsung chips at issue.

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