Cell Phones Get Removable Flash Cards With Expanded Memory
By Mark Long -- e-inSITE, 3/17/2003
NEW ORLEANS--During this week's CTIA 2003 exhibition, SanDisk Corporation will be demonstrating new thumbnail-sized flash memory cards that have been designed to boost the available storage capacity of handheld devices ranging from 2.5/3.G mobile phones and digital cameras to MP3 players and handheld video games.
Measuring 21.5 x 20 x 1.4 mm, the company's miniSD card has a footprint of only 430 square mm. The new device, which features personal information management (PIM), email and voicemail capabilities, will also be based on the company's NAND flash and SD controller technology. SanDisk expects to offer a wide range of memory capacities in the new miniSD format, with 16, 32, 64, 128 and 256 megabyte (MB) versions expected to begin shipping later this year.
Mario Morales, vice president at market research firm IDC, predicts that overall demand for flash storage cards in cellular handset applications should reach 218 million units by 2007.
"New applications such as digital imaging, MP3, gaming, Internet access, and other storage-intensive features will continue to drive strong demand for small form factor, high capacity, removable storage cards, especially the miniSD form factor," said Morales in a statement issued last week. "As a leader in this space today, SanDisk is well positioned to take advantage of this growth opportunity."
According to SanDisk CEO Eli Harari, many of the new cell phone models that are slated to debut this year will feature integrated 1 or 2 megapixel cameras. This camera phone rollout is expected to substantially boost the company's market prospects.
"This new market represents a considerable incremental opportunity for the sale of our miniSD cards, starting as early as the second quarter for the low capacity bundled cards sold to OEM's, and as early as the second half of the year for the higher capacity flash storage cards...for use in these camera equipped cell phones," said the SanDisk CEO in a statement issued last week.
"With the new miniSD form factor, we believe mobile phone designers will have a much easier time and greater freedom in fitting a card slot into their designs. End users will benefit by being able to use the miniSD adapter to exchange data between their miniSD-equipped mobile phone and any SD compatible host, such as a digital camera, PDA or laptop PC."
Both electrically and software compatible with the existing SD standard, the new The miniSD card also employs the same SD interface, which incorporates security features for content protection (CPRM-Content Protection Rights Management). As an extension of the existing SD card standard, the miniSD card is also expected to enable mobile phone and consumer electronics developers to upgrade their current SD-based designs with no changes to software or electronics required. In addition, SanDisk plans to offer an adapter for converting the miniSD card into the SD card form factor.
Volume shipments of a new 16MB miniSD are expected to roll out to OEM customers within the thirty days to OEM customers. The company expects to begin shipping 32 and 64 MB cards beginning in 2Q03, while the 128MB and 256MB version are expected to begin delivery in 2H03.
SanDisk is also showing off its new 128 megabyte (MB) MultiMediaCard, a flash memory card targeted at audio player and new multi-function cell phone applications. The 128MB MultiMediaCard, which also can be used in most portable devices equipped with an SD memory card slot, has a suggested retail price of $74.99 and will begin shipping to retail stores later this month.
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