Fujitsu vows faster, low-power RAM for handhelds

Fujitsu on Tuesday unveiled a new version of its Fast Cycle RAM (FCRAM that it believes should give the performance of conventional memory with the power of mobile memory. By using a 64-bit wide interface, the chipmaker can produce memory which is faster than two typical 16-bit DDR2 memory sticks while also dropping the resistors that consume much of the power; a 256-megabit (32MB) edition of the new FCRAM chip uses about 70 percent less power, or one watt less, than ordinary RAM.

The advancement produces twice the headroom of normal RAM at about 3.5 gigabytes per second and makes possible very high-demand photo or video processing that wouldn't be practical with earlier very small devices, Fujitsu says. It would also significantly shrink dedicated processing chips by allowing the memory to be embedded directly inside the processor itself.

This and other new versions of FCRAM are ultimately expected to overtake regular memory in a significant amount of home electronics, including cellphones and portable media plaeyrs as well as other devices that need physically small, low power memory to work, such as more advanced HDTVs and set-top boxes. The new chips are already sampling for companies today and should be in large-scale production soon.

Filed under: industry, upgrades/storage
Other story tags: Fujitsu