Intel to Sample Flash-killer PRAM This Year

Station writes "Intel's new phase-change memory technology (PRAM) will begin sampling this year. Samsung, IBM, and Hitachi are all working on phase-change memory as a successor to flash as it has a lower (~20ns) read latency than flash (50-90ns). 'Intel says they plan to ship the first PRAM modules as a straight-ahead NOR flash replacement so that they can work the kinks out of the design before trying to move it up the memory hierarchy. The company claims a much higher number of read-write cycles (100 million) than flash, as well as a potential 10 years' worth of data retention. NOR flash is typically used as program storage memory for mobile devices like cell phones, while more durable but slower NAND flash is used for mass storage in devices like the iPod nano.'"

That's if you side with Intel

[Anonymous Coward]

Fortunately the rest of the industry is calling it PCM for Pulse-code modulation^w^wPhase-change memory.

Unless they make PRAM out of PRAM

[tepples]

one of the later steps in fixing technical glitches in mac systems is to zap the pram..

PRAM being "parameter RAM", the nonvolatile memory used to store the Mac equivalent of BIOS settings. To "zap" it means to change all settings back to factory settings by holding Command+Option+P+R while turning on the power.

imagine the confusion between 2 friends when one says "i zapped my pram" .. one fixes your computer, the other breaks your flash device..

Unless Apple starts using PRAM for the PRAM, which could happen.

Interesting.. but the page doesnt talk about...

[plasmacutter]

speed or latency.. (and what about heat exchange issues?)

even with considerably slow throughput though.. it might be have useful applications in storage media..

i'd love to replace a set of hot spinning platters with a tiny cartridge about the size of a gamecube memory card.

Re:more acronym confusion...(at least for mac user

[TheRaven64]

The PRAM used to be used to store a lot more in the pre-OS X days. Resetting it used to actually fix a few things caused by badly behaved system extensions. These days, it's a lot like clearing the CMOS contents on a PC; unlikely to change anything unless you have been messing with firmware settings.

Re:Killer Pram?

[Anonymous Coward]

In Sweden, Honda tried to introduce a car called Honda Fitta. Interestingly, "fitta" means pussy in Swedish. And not just in some far-fetched sense. It is THE word.

H&M, a SWEDISH company, last year introduced whole line of jeans called Sliq Fit. "Slicka" in swedish means "to lick" and "Sliq" sounds a lot like it. Apparently, nobody had thought of it(!?). This was quite funny since their really embarrassed behaviour indicated that it wasn't a PR-stunt.

Strangely, no religious group made any comments except to make fun of the incidents.
Which probably is because it's not the U.S.

Re:A day late and a dollar short

[Anonymous Coward]

Intel and other manufacturers HAVE to replace it as it's becoming exceedingly more difficult to scale ETOX processes down, especially in producing a multi-level cell product, which is where Intel's NOR flash generates the majority of its revenue. At the 65-nm node, the floating gate holds only a few hundred electrons. Phase change memory will allow Intel to scale NOR flash to 45nm and below.