Samsung creates F2FS file system for NAND flash storage, submits it to the Linux kernel

Samsung creates F2FS file system for NAND flash storage, submits it to the Linux kernel

Has the lack of NAND flash storage-optimized file systems been bugging you? Then you've got something in common with Samsung, which has developed F2FS (or "Flash-Friendly File-System") for the memory of choice for mobile devices and its specific "internal geometry." It's based on a log-structured method, but tackles problems associated with older file systems intended mainly for retro, spinning-disk storage. The company isn't keeping its hard work behind lock-and-patent either -- it's gone open-source and submitted the file system to the Linux kernel, meaning you could see it implemented in Android hardware of the future. It's nice to see Sammy contributing code for the greater good, and if you've got the skills to understand it, a low-down of F2FS is available at the source below.

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Samsung creates F2FS file system for NAND flash storage, submits it to the Linux kernel originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 08 Oct 2012 11:43:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Samsung starts mass-producing 4x faster mobile flash memory, kickstarts our phones and tablets

Samsung starts massproducing 4x faster mobile flash memory, kickstarts our phones and tablets

Samsung isn't content to leave fast NAND flash memory to traditional solid-state drives. Its Pro Class 1500 promises a big jolt to the performance of frequently pokey smartphone and tablet storage. By how much? That name is a clue -- it reaches 1,500 IOPS (inputs/outputs per second) when writing data, which along with 3,500 IOPS data reads is about four times faster than any previous embedded flash chip Samsung has tested. In the real world, that leads to as much as 140MB/s when reading data and 50MB/s for writes. The speed comes after Samsung has thrown virtually every trick in the book at its new chips, including a dense 20-nanometer manufacturing process, quick toggle DDR 2.0 memory with its own controller and a new JEDEC memory standard with 200MB/s of bandwidth to spare. Samsung hasn't named customers for the 16GB, 32GB and 64GB parts that are rolling out of the factories, although we'd do well to remember that a flourishing phone business doesn't guarantee that the only major customer is Samsung itself: even in the face of legal challenges, Samsung still has at least one noteworthy client that tends to snap up much of its flash supply.

Continue reading Samsung starts mass-producing 4x faster mobile flash memory, kickstarts our phones and tablets

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Samsung starts mass-producing 4x faster mobile flash memory, kickstarts our phones and tablets originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 02 Aug 2012 01:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory

Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory

Does the word ReRAM ring a bell? No? Well, the key point is that it's much faster than NAND memory, and it's making its way into chips from Elpida, Sharp and Panasonic. Further proof that ReRAM is on the up and up? Researchers at University College London have used this technology to make a chip that operates at 100 times the speed of standard Flash memory. The device is composed completely of silicon oxide, which improves the chip's resistance, and it doesn't require a vacuum to work (which makes it cheaper to produce). But this new chip is more than just a faster alternative to Flash; its ability to move between different states of conductivity means it can be configured as a memristor, or a device that handles both data-processing and storage tasks. In the long term, researchers hope this technology can pave the way for silicon oxide CPUs -- and UCL is already using this design to help develop transparent memory chips for mobile devices. Need to know more? Feast your heart on the gritty details via the link below.

Researchers develop silicon ReRAM chip, send warning shot to Flash memory originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 20 May 2012 06:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Toshiba sings NAND Flash’s praises, thinks you should too

Toshiba sings NAND Flash's praises, thinks you should too

Have you taken a moment today to stop and thank NAND Flash for existing? No? Well, Toshiba would like to say tsk, tsk. Today the company launched a full-scale campaign to promote this storage technology -- and by full-scale we mean a dedicated "25 Years of NAND Flash" website, a "NAND Flash Deprivation Experiment" video series, new Facebook and Twitter accounts and a Toshiba Excite 10 giveaway. We must have missed the memo that NAND was dangerously underappreciated, because we're still trying to figure out why it needs a marketing campaign of its own. Toshiba has a slew of laptop refreshes and the Excite 7.7 and 13 tablets just around the corner -- and that interim period between announcement and launch date can be killer -- but somehow talking up NAND Flash doesn't seem the right course of action. Take a look at the campaign's first video below the break and decide for yourself.

Continue reading Toshiba sings NAND Flash's praises, thinks you should too

Toshiba sings NAND Flash's praises, thinks you should too originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 May 2012 02:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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