Toshiba 128GB NAND may reach iPhone, iPod

Toshiba set a record for mobile storage this evening by adding the first-ever 128GB embedded flash memory chip. Built on a 32 nanometer process, it stacks 16 8GB NAND layers to double the previous best capacity without necessarily getting thicker. Through new thinning techniques, the entire design is less than 0.06 inches thick.

The capacity would be enough to give handhelds enough storage for chores that were previously impractical: Toshiba estimates 128GB could hold about 16.6 hours of 1080p video.

Test samples of the 128GB chip should be available by September, with full production starting sometime in the fall. A 64GB chip built on the same process will start sampling in August but will still reach mass production at the same time as its larger counterpart. No customers have been named, but Apple is currently one of the largest customers for flash memory and sometimes uses Toshiba memory for iPhones, iPods and solid-state drives in Macs. Toshiba itself also often uses the memory for its notebooks.

By Electronista Staff