Thread: Flash storage gains attention as storage alternatives of the future

The future is likely to see an increase in the applications of solid-state storage in portable PC alternatives if they become more affordable and efficient. In terms of storage, flash storage is gaining importance compared to the traditional hard disk drive (HDD). The transition from HDDs to flash storage isn’t expected to happen anytime soon but people are interested in the developments of the flash storage technology.

Flash chips are better equipped in terms of size, power consumption and durability that suits mobile devices perfectly. Cost effectiveness is the only thing that is blocking it from replacing HDD devices. Forward Insights analyst, Gregory Wong states that a Gigabyte of flash storage device costs almost 8 times as much as a HDD storage device of the same capacity. Due to this, Apple’s iPad and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab Android tablets sport a maximum storage of 16GB to 32 GB while the biggest HDDs have a capacity of 2TB to 3TB.

For these devices, buyers are willing to pay generous amounts of money due to their chic design, extended battery life and shorter start up timeframes. While HDD devices are getting cheaper with time, advancements in flash storage devices will help them replace HDD alternates. Also, tighter manufacturing processes are being used by flash chips. Glen Hawk, Vice President of Micron Technology has informed that a 25 nanometer process is being used in flash chips. Steve Weinger, director of marketing with Samsung has revealed that they too are developing a nanometer process in low twenties.

However, denser processes will make the technology harder to handle. With time, the capacity of a flash storage device will reduce due to limitations on how much the cells could be modified. Since they might last around five years with the current devices, it doesn’t seem to be a big problem as most devices are used for lesser time frames by consumers. Durability is the major concern here with more components being packaged in it. Vendors are approaching this problem by coming up with smart softwares in flash controllers. Hawk indicates that, Micron is involved in light signal processing activities currently but soon they will be coming up with advanced algorithms and techniques.

More power efficient chips are going to come around in successive generations. Weinger reveals that system manufacturers will be able to extend the battery life of their devices as Samsung plans to change its voltage from 3.3 volts to 1.8 volts. Laptops have already integrated SSDs and so they wouldn’t get replaced so easily. HDD manufacturers are also coming up with affordable technologies to keep up with flash storage.

Today’s consumers are opting to store their data on multiple platforms inclusive of PCs and other portable devices. Due to this, the need for flash storage devices will increase as they will prove to be easier companions for consumers on the move. But analysts agree that users will consider several other factors before transitioning completely from PCs to post-PC devices.