Flash memory chips now store so much data that they can replace low capacity disc drives, says Samsung Electronics of Korea. So this August, Samsung is launching two flash-based solid-state 鈥渄iscs鈥� (SSDs) that are drop-in replacements for hard drives in sub-notebook and tablet PCs.
The SSD is based on the same kind of microchip used in digital camera memory cards and USB key-ring storage devices. These retain data after power is switched off. The SSDs can replace hard discs because they are the same shape and mimic a hard drive鈥檚 electronics. They also consume much less power and are about half the weight of the discs they replace. Initial SSD capacities will be 8 or 16 gigabytes.
