Published on 07/16/2008
Everything has an expiry date, even flash memory. Nevertheless, researchers are working on a new type of flash memory that consumes less power and takes up less space compared to current flash memory technology while offering a much longer lifetime. These ferroelectric chips developed by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology as well as the University of Tokyo supposedly outlive current flash memory by a factor of about 10,000 - that's definitely welcome since current flash memory chips have a lifespan of approximately 10 years, and can be re-written 10,000 times on average. Well, it remains to be seen when this new flash memory will be released to the masses, so don't hold off your memory card purchase just yet.