Micron and Intel Introduce 3-bit-per-cell NAND Technology

When Solid-State Disks were first introduced to consumers, many people didn't quite know the differences between the various flash chips, and their technologies. Since then, though, information has been abundant, and it's probably rare that anyone interested in an SSD hasn't heard of SLC and MLC, or know their differences. But, prepare to add a third type, "3-bit-per-cell MLC".

To understand what makes 3BPC MLC interesting, it's important to first understand the basics of how NAND and its cells work. SLC, or "single-level" cells are 1-bit, which means two things. First, there are two possible logic states, and second, the resulting chip has equal bit density to the chip being used (typically, 16 Gbit, or 32 Gbit in really high-end situations). These are also the reasons SLC is so much faster than MLC. Because there are only two possible voltage states per cell, the access time is faster, and for the same reason, SLC has a longer lifespan.

MLC, or "multi-level" cell, increases the bit-density to 2-bit, meaning that we move from two possible states to four, but also a larger possible overall density (which is why MLC-based SSDs are far larger and far less expensive over SLC). But for the opposite reasons that SLC lasts much longer than MLC, the extra possible states per cell for MLC means far more writes, and ultimately, a shorter lifespan.

3BPC MLC takes things one step further, and increases the cells to 3-bits, which means larger possible densities, but an even shorter lifespan and also another performance hit. The reason is because that with 3BPC, there are eight possible states, and each would take a little bit longer to trigger.

So what's this mean to you? 3-bit-per-cell is not for SSDs, but rather things like flash media (thumb drives, camera cards, media players), where density and physical size is more important than performance. On a related note, I have to vote for this as being one of the coolest-looking die shots I've seen in a while, or at least one of the most colorful.

Designed and manufactured by IM Flash Technologies (IMFT), their NAND flash joint venture, the new 3bpc NAND technology produces the industry’s smallest and most cost-effective 32-gigabit (Gb) chip that is currently available on the market. The 32Gb 3bpc NAND chip is 126mm². Micron is currently sampling and will be in mass production in the fourth quarter 2009. With the companies’ continuing to focus on the next process shrink, 3bpc NAND technology is an important piece of their product strategy and is an effective approach in serving key market segments.

Recording Industry Planning New Digital Format, "CMX"

MP3? FLAC? M4A? Apparently, such formats aren't good enough for a few large players in the recording industry, such as Sony, Warner and Universal, as the entire conglomerate is planning on releasing a brand-new format, tentatively called, "CMX". This format's main goal is to sell entire albums as a digital format, not single tracks. Similar to how Apple's iTunes embeds album art into their M4A files, CMX would implement that, along with lyrics, and potentially other bonuses.

This new format, is of course, doomed. There's a reason the MP3 format is so popular. First, it works. Today's encoders are so robust, that you can have a modestly-sized MP3 to one encoded at a high bitrate of 320kbit/s, or even beyond in some cases. It's successful, because it's popular, and all media players out there support it - even the iPod, which prefers M4A's.

That's not to say that CMX, aside from the ridiculous name, is a horrible idea in theory, but I'm afraid it's far too late in the game to see a real chance of it becoming successful. After all, no current media players will be able to use it (except ones that have update-able software), and Apple has already rejected it in lieu of creating their own such format. Unfortunately, Apple's is more likely to succeed, at least for a while, since the iPod is still the leading player on the market. The scary thing, of course, is that their format would not likely work in other players, or anywhere outside of iTunes, unless the company chooses to license it, which I can't personally see happening.

Again, it's not a horrible idea, but for something like this to be truly successful, we'd need total openness... a format that's not exclusive to one company. The idea behind CMX and whatever Apple has en route is that it should recreate the experience of buying the real CD. So you get album art, liner notes, perhaps some extra content, and whatever else they might choose to throw in there. But with CMX offering so much more than a typical downloaded MP3 or M4A... you'd imagine there would be a premium as well. What's that mean? More than ever, it would make more sense to just go buy the physical CD, and rip it however you like.

Credit: Bob Donlon

"Apple at first told us that they were not interested, but now they have decided to do their own, in case ours catches on," a label rep told the Times. "Ours will be a file that you click on, it opens and it would have a brand new look, with a launch page and all the different options. When you click on it you're not just going to get the 10 tracks, you're going to get the artwork, the video and mobile products."

Zune HD's Pricing Revealed, Launching in a Month

It's been a few months since Microsoft made the Zune HD official, and we're inching ever-closer to the launch date. Over the course of the past few days, both Best Buy and Amazon.com leaked the pricing (the latter is allowing pre-orders). For those who have been holding out, your patience is likely to have paid off, as the pricing looks to be pretty reasonable.

The 16GB model of the player will retail for $219.99, while the 32GB will debut at $289.99. Comparing these prices to equivalent iPod touch's, which are $299 and $399 for the 16GB and 32GB respectively, Microsoft has done well to make sure there will be a huge draw for their latest player. The Zune HD, like the iPod touch, features a huge touchscreen, and while it doesn't support Apple's App Store, the more than $100 savings could be worth it.

With the pricing leaks coming from these companies at almost the same time, we could likely expect the announcement for the launch date anytime now, and if rumors prove true, it will hit the streets at around Sept 6 - 8.

As a refresher, what exactly does the Zune HD offer over the previous iteration? As you'd expect, "HD" refers to the screen, which here is a 3.3" OLED display capable of a 480x272 resolution. This is the same resolution that Sony's PSP supports, so if you are familiar with that device, you know what to expect here. Of course, the screen is also touch-capable, so all of your media control is done with an on-screen keyboard. Just how efficient it will be (and whether it will support landscape mode) is yet to be seen.

The Zune HD also becomes the first consumer device to run on NVIDIA's Tegra, which means both great battery-life (hopefully), and also 720p video playback through an HDMI output. Because this chip is highly-optimized for handling HD media, running 720p content on the device itself and having it downscaled shouldn't be a problem, but the size of the files could become a problem given the overall size of the devices.

Oh, and it actually has a freaking HD radio tuner. That's something no iPod offers (and something I whined about a few months ago.

The Best Buy screenshots also add weight to the previously rumored September 8th launch date so it looks like we’ve got less than a month until lift off. The only question is whether or not Apple’s impending iPod touch refresh will tout enough bells and whistles at launch to overshadow Microsoft’s new gem. Hit the jump for the Best Buy images.

Tech Roundup - August 12, 2009

Motherboards & Processors
• DFI Lanparty Blood Iron P45-T2RS Elite - Hardware Canucks
• ECS A785GM-M Black Edition - Motherboards.org
• Gigabyte MA770T-UD3P - Neoseeker

Displays & Video Cards
• ATI Stream vs. NVIDIA CUDA - PC Perspective
• Zotac GeForce 9800 GT 512MB - TestFreaks

Memory & Storage
• ioSafe Solo 500GB Rugged USB External Hard Drive - TestFreaks
• Kingston SSDNow V Series 64GB SSD Upgrade Kit - TweakTown
• OCZ Vertex 60GB & Agility 128GB - Bjorn3D

Peripherals & Gadgets
• Audio-Technica ATH-ANC7b - Digital Trends
• ASUS SDRW-08D1S-U External Slim DVD R/RW Drive - Think Computers

Cooling
• 3RSystem Iceage 80 Prima Mini CPU Cooler - FrostyTech
• Prolimatech Megahalems CPU Cooler - TweakTown
• Thermaltake Massive23 CS Gaming Notebook Cooler - Overclockers Club
• Titan Fenrir CPU Cooler - PureOverclock

Chassis & Power Supplies
• OCZ Fatal1ty 550W Power Supply - Technic3D
• Thermaltake Element G Chassis - Overclockers Online
• Thermaltake Element T Chassis - Overclockers HQ

Competitions, Complete Systems & Et cetera
• How-To: Unlock Hidden Startup Switches for Windows 7 - Missing Remote