Samsung steps up memory card effort

30th January - 2002
By Ian Burley

Samsung has announced that it is launching a new line of compact flash Type I cards. The new line is now available in densities of 8MB, 16MB, 32MB, 64MB, 128MB, 256MB and 512MB.

The company also says it will introduce a 1GB CF card in the third quarter of 2002.  Samsung also plans to enter the Multimedia card (MMC) market in the fourth quarter of 2002 with the introduction of a range of high-capacity MMC cards. MMC cards are compatible with digital cameras designed for use with SD (Secure Digital) memory cards.

Samsung is one of a select band of semiconductor manufacturers that produce the newer generation of NAND flash memory silicon. This is higher in density and faster than earlier types. Mr. YunSeung Shin, Executive Vice President of Samsung Electronics, Co., Ltd said: "The Flash memory market now has the high-capacity, high-speed, CompactFlash Type I cards which are essential for the success of next-generation portable digital imaging devices. Samsung is right on track to ensure that CompactFlash technology evolves to meet every need of this rapidly emerging market."

According to the Samsung press release, all Samsung CompactFlash Type I cards are equipped with a NAND Flash memory and a built-in Samsung ATA controller that greatly improves the performance of the card.

Market Watcher, an industry research firm, forecasts that the Flash memory market will grow 26 percent this year (from 10 billion US$ in 2002, to 16 billion US$ in 2003).

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