Micronix working on NAND flash memory with a much longer life

Taiwanese company Micronix claims to have made a technological breakthrough that will allow the NAND flash memory used in smartphones, tablets and so on to be much more reliable. The thing is that while NAND flash is fast an all, it can only go through about 10,000 read/write cycles. After that its status is reduced to "junk." And while that may not be much of a problem for users who often change their handsets, it might turn out to be a real issue for those who like sticking to their devices for longer, or who purchase second- (third-, fourth-) hand tech.

So here's the thing. Micronix think it has found a way to boost those 10,000 read/write cycles to 100,000,000! This will be achieved by implementing a special "self-healing" process. That process involves equipping the flash chip with "onboard heaters that could anneal small groups of memory cells." The idea will be introduced at the 2012 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting.

The bad news is that it isn't currently known when this technology might make it to the market, but if it really works, we see no reason not to have it in a few years. More info can be found at the source.