AMD takes wraps off latest flash tool
The chipmaker's device, built off its 0.17-micron flash memory process, will be aimed at the automotive and handheld markets.
The Am29PDL128 is a 128MB, high-density storage device, and is built off of AMD's 0.17-micron flash memory process. The device--available at $25 per unit, with a minimum order of 10,000 units--allows access times of 25 nanoseconds.
Flash memory, a type of read-only memory that saves data when power is cut, and is commonly used in handheld devices and car dashboard navigation systems, has been getting smaller and smaller.
Intel recently said it would ship flash memory made with the 0.13-micron manufacturing process, which means that the average features measure 130 nanometers in length.
The new flash memory product is one of the first to come out of a new fabrication plant, JV3, which is in Aizu-Wakamatsu, Japan. The plant is part of a joint venture between AMD and Fujitsu, dubbed Fujitsu-AMD Semiconductor Limited.
AMD, along with others in the flash market, has been hit hard by falling demand prompted by the sliding economy. The new plant works to decrease manufacturing costs as it increases densities. Cost reductions should help AMD bolster its bottom line while it waits for demand to strengthen in the market.
News.com's John Spooner contributed to this report.