JEDEC Publishes Next-Generation LPDDR3 Standard for Low-Power Memory Devices.

JEDEC, a leading standard setting organization for  the microelectronics industry, on Thursday published the  final LPDDR3 low power memory standard, designed to satisfy the performance and memory density needs of the new generation of mobile devices, such as smartphones, tablets, ultra-thin notebooks and so on.  Leading memory makers - Elpida and Samsung - have already demonstrated the first LPDDR3 chips.
“To help address the dramatic rise in data-intensive apps and the resulting demands on device memory, JEDEC LPDDR3 is designed to focus on higher bandwidth requirements for device processors and graphic units. LPDDR3 represents countless hours of collaboration within the JC-42.6 subcommittee, and was developed rapidly in order to meet the mobile industry’s bandwidth requirements,” said Hung Vuong, chairman of JC-42.6 subcommittee, which standardized the LPDDR3 standard.

LPDDR3 offers a higher data rate, improved bandwidth and power efficiency, and higher memory densities over its predecessor, LPDDR2.  LPDDR3 achieves a data rate of 1600MHz (versus 1066MHz for LPDDR2) through the addition of new features, including:

• Write-Leveling and CA Training, which allow the memory controller to compensate for signal skew, ensuring that data input setup and hold timing as well as command and address input timing requirements are met while operating at the industry’s fastest input bus speeds;
• On Die Termination (ODT), an optional feature that enables a light termination to LPDDR3 data lanes to improve high-speed signaling with minimal impact on power consumption, system operation and pin count;
• Low I/O capacitance.

 As with LPDDR2, LPDDR3 supports both package-on-package [stacked] and discrete packaging types in order to meet the requirements of a wide array of mobile devices, offering designers the ability to select the options that best meet the needs of their product. LPDDR3 will preserve the power-efficient features and signaling interface of LPDDR2, allowing for fast clock stop/start, low-power self-refresh, and smart array management.
Both Elpida Memory and Samsung Electronics demonstrated their first 4Gb LPDDR3 memory components operating at 1600MHz last year. Originally, both planned to start production of LPDDR3 in late 2012, but the turmoil situation around Elpida may impact the LPDDR3-related plans. Analysts predict that demand for LPDDR3 will start to emerge in 2013.
“LPDDR3 builds on the revolutionary LPDDR2 standard, which paved the way for an entire generation of high-performance, low-power mobile devices. Now with LPDDR3, JEDEC has taken the standard to a new level, and we are pleased to offer a solution for the performance demands of a new generation of mobile products," said Mian Quddus, the chairman of the board at JEDEC.

RunCore Develops Self-Destructive Solid-State Drive.

RunCore, a supplier of solid-state drives, this week unveiled InVincible solid-state drive, which is the world's first and only SSD that features physical self destruction feature. Besides typical elimination of all data through overwriting, the InVincible SSD can completely destroy the data by physically destroying memory and other chips inside the drive by burning chips down physically.

The RunCore InVincible SSDs do not offer leading-edge performance: they can read data at up to 240MB/s speed and write data at up to 140MB/s speed. The drives use Serial ATA-II interface and can use single-level cell (SLC) or multi-level cell (MLC) NAND flash memory. But the drives can operate in rather unprecedented temperature range - between -45°C and +95°C - and support brutal ways to erase the data to keep it from obtaining by unauthorized people.

The RunCore InVincible SSDs allow to protect sensitive data from third party access in two ways with a single click. One method is an intelligent elimination of all the data by overwriting the entire disk with meaningless code. This overwrite-deletion method ensures that there is no way to potentially recover previous data stored to the device, effectively setting the SSD back to factory default. Still, there are various data recovery devices not available commercially which can, perhaps, recover data even after overwriting. A less subtle method is the physical destruction of memory chips inside SSD by applying an over-current to the NAND flash memory and thereby physically destroying them.

RunCore positions its InVincible SSDs for aerospace, military and general industrial applications, it is unclear whether the company plans to sell such SSDs to general public and whether the company will be allowed to do so.

Team Group Unleashes World's First 3GHz DDR3 Memory Modules.

Team Group, a leading maker of high-performance dynamic random access memory modules, has announced the world's first and yet the only memory sticks officially rated to run at whopping 3.0GHz. The new Xtreeme Limited Edition modules have all chances to become enthusiasts' favourite memory in the coming months.
The Team Xtreem DDR3 3000 Limited Edition 4GB memory modules are designed to operate at 3000MHz with CL11 13-13-35 latency settings on systems powered by Intel Core i-series 3000 "Ivy Bridge" central processing units and Intel Z77 platforms. The modules comply to XMP v1.3 specification, hence, should work at full speed on virtually any advanced mainboard with appropriate microprocessor. The extreme DRAM sticks utilize 8-layer printed-circuit board and bifurcated heatspreaders to ensure proper signal quality and cooling.

Unfortunately, Team Group claims that its PC3-24000 memory modules will only work in pairs, hence, it is theoretically impossible to install 16GB of such ultra high-speed memory into one PC. The modules also work only in dual-channel mode, hence, cannot be installed into PCs with quad-channel memory sub-systems.
Pricing of Team Xtreem PC3-24000/DDR3 3000MHz 8GB (2*4GB) memory kits is unknown. Keeping in mind that 16GB of DDR3 memory at 2.8GHz costs $600, do not expect 8GB of DDR3 memory at 3GHz to cost less than $300.

Samsung Starts to Mass Produce 4Gb LPDDR2 Memory Using 20nm-Class Technology.

Samsung Electronics, the world's largest maker of dynamic random access memory, on Thursday said it had begun production of 4Gb [512MB] LPDDR2 1066MHz memory components using 20nm process technology. Such memory solutions should allow to increase the amount of DRAM inside smartphones and tablets to 2GB, which will enable new classes of mobile applications and will let hardware makers to increase screen resolutions on mobile devices without compomising performance.
By stacking four 4Gb LPDDR2 components in a single LPDDR2 package, Samsung can deliver 2GB multi-layer memory solutions that boast thickness of 0.8mm. This new package is approximately 20% thinner than 2GB packages that stack four 30nm-class 4Gb LPDDR2 chips.  The new 2GB package can process data at up to 1066MHz and thanks to thinner process technology promises to provide better energy efficiency compared to previous multi-layer LPDDR2 memory solutions.

“Samsung began expanding the market for 4Gb DRAM last year with the first mass-produced 30nm-class DRAM, and now we are working on capturing most of the advanced memory market with our new 20nm-class 4Gb DRAM,” said Wanhoon Hong, executive vice president of memory sales and marketing at Samsung Electronics.
Economic benefits of the new 20nm-class 4Gb LPDDR2 are projected to help speed up the growth of the 4Gb DRAM market. Samsung now expects the newly introduced 20nm-class 4Gb LPDDR2 will rapidly replace 30nm-class 2Gb-based 1GB LPDDR2 that was in limited supply at the 0.8 mm thickness.

According to IHS iSuppli, shipments of 4Gb LPDDR2 will steadily increase, taking approximately 13% of total mobile DRAM shipments in 2012, 49% in 2013 and 63% in 2014, with 4Gb mobile DRAM monolithic becoming the mainstream chip in the Mobile DRAM market around the end of 2013.
“In the second half of this year, we expect to strongly increase the portion of 20nm-class DRAM within our overall DRAM output to make the 4Gb DRAM line-up the mainstream product in DRAM production, and therefore keeping the leadership position in the premium market and strengthening our competitive edge,” added Wanhoon Hong.

Apple iPad to Maintain Tablet Market Leadership This Year - IHS iSuppli.

After suffering a temporary dip in market share in the fourth quarter of 2011, Apple Inc.’s iOS is expected to reassert its commanding leadership of the worldwide tablet space in 2012, according to an IHS iSuppli.

Apple Likely to Sustain Leadership

After dipping to 55.1% in the fourth quarter of 2011, according to a final estimate, the Apple operating system’s share of worldwide tablet sales - a segment including both media tablets and PC-type tablets—is set to recover to 61% for the full year of 2012, about the same portion it had in 2011.
Apple’s dominating media tablet market share in the fourth quarter of 2011 had been diminished by a surge in sales of Amazon’s Kindle Fire tablet, which is based on Google’s Android operating system. This had caused Android’s share of the tablet operating system market to climb to 41.1%, up from 31.1% during the third quarter of 2011. However, as Apple reasserts its leadership, Android’s share will decline to 38.4% for the full year of 2012.

“The key to Apple’s media-tablet success has been its offering of a complete hardware-plus-content ecosystem. The combination of a good-looking device, well-designed applications, video, books and music has provided consumers with an easy-to-use product and an appealing use case. Such an ecosystem took Apple years to put together, starting with the iPod plus iTunes Music Store more than nine years ago, and it’s proving to be a challenge for the company’s competitors to replicate it,” said Rhoda Alexander, director for monitors and tablets research at IHS.
Further bolstering Apple’s commanding position in the market, supply-side sources indicate that the company will deploy a smaller, 7.85" display version of the iPad later this year, although Apple has yet to confirm this. A smaller screen does not necessarily mean a substantially lower price; rather, IHS expects Apple will place continuing emphasis on the quality of the overall tablet experience and the benefits of selecting the company’s products.

Sales of Tablets to Hit 126.6 Million Units in 2012

Sales of tablets this year - including both media tablets and PC-type tablets - will soar to 126.6 million units, up a remarkable 85% from 68.4 million units in 2011. The impressive performance of tablets this year builds on an even mightier 253% explosion last year from sales of 19.4 million units in 2010. Tablets comprise one of the strongest categories in the consumer electronics market today, with heady growth in the next few years matching the wild exuberance of the cellphone or mobile handset industry in its initial years of market-busting expansion.
Tablet sales will rise another 63% next year, on their way to 360.4 million units by 2016.

Enter the PC Tablet

While media tablets such as the iPad dominate now and throughout the forecast, new ultrabook offerings and the release of Windows 8 later this year will help drive stronger sales in 2013 and beyond of PC-type tablets, IHS predicts.
PC tablets will appeal to users wanting the flexibility of a tablet with the versatility of a traditional computer. These devices are able to manage multiple windows and applications including traditional full desktop applications, but can also convert to a slate form with touch capability. The smaller, lighter form of some of the new ultrabook offerings, touch improvements in Windows 8, and more aggressive pricing will help drive growth in this category.
Media tablets are often designated as “consumption-type” products with which users can browse the web, send email, view video, play games or interact with applications.

Within the media tablet space, however, the market is fragmenting into two segments - value products largely serving as “consumption-type” portable media players; and higher-performance units incorporating more complex applications and stronger processors. Much of the growth in the future will come from the value segment, but the performance sector will provide the stronger challenge to traditional PCs in both business and consumer markets.
Overall, the growth last year of media tablets dwarfed that of tablet PCs, and media tablet sales will continue to outperform those of tablet PCs in 2012. By next year, tablet PC growth will accelerate to nearly 160%, compared to a still-robust 60% increase for media tablets.
The PC tablet growth is a form transition within the larger notebook market and does not reflect any cannibalization of the media tablet opportunity. This is because PC tablets will still lag well behind their media tablet counterparts next year, numbering a little over 8 million units compared to more than 197 million units for media tablets.

Half of Microprocessors Sold in 2011 are Hybrid Chips with Integrated Graphics - Report.

Half of the $111 billion microprocessor market was generated by hybrid processors that included graphics cores or other kinds of processing engines, according to a report by IMS Research. Hybrid microprocessors will not only continue to gain market share, but will also let companies like Advanced Micro Devices and Intel Corp. onto new markets, such as media tablets and smartphones.
“Through the last decade the mobile and media consumption device markets have been pivotal for this hybridization trend; Apple, Broadcom, Marvell, MediaTek, Nvidia, Qualcomm, Samsung, ST Ericsson, Texas Instruments and many other processor vendors have been offering heterogeneous application-specific processors with a microprocessor core integrating a GPU to add value within extremely confined parameters of space, power and cost. Now that smartphone sales exceed computers, and tablets explode onto the market, these hybridized application specific mobile processors represent the next largest class of processor by revenue," said Tom Hackenberg, semiconductors research manager and author of the Comprehensive Processor Report.
Hybrid microprocessors - which combine x86 cores and graphics processing units on one chip -  released by AMD and Intel in 2010 and 2011 were among the most important recent product introductions. This hybridization appears to be a critical step in upping the competitive edge in computers but is also a step for these vendors into smartphones, tablets and other high performance embedded devices. Hybrid applications processor growth in smartphones and tablets are predicted with upwards of a 10% and 14% CAGR from 2011 to 2016 respectively.
“With double digit revenue growth in these markets, it’s not surprising to see major processor vendors such as AMD and Intel adopting this strategy to compete for computer market share and expending increasing research and development on embedded solutions. This hybridization is getting even more competitive with an Intel Atom-based smartphone on the market this month demonstrating that Intel is serious about entering the mobile device market by combining an x86 microprocessor, graphics licensed from Nvidia and configurable security logic as a hybrid processor triple play to capture share,” said Mr. Hackenberg.
As economic and physical barriers to shrinking geometries raise concerns of the imminent demise of Moore’s Law, semiconductor providers are turning to hybrid processors as just one of many complementary technologies for increasing system level performance and adding processor value. IMS Research has identified no less than 20 processor vendors that now provide dozens of heterogeneous processing solutions on a single chip.
Some of these converging processors have been evolving over time such as the digital signal controller, a convergence of DSPs and MCUs with the real-time processing performance of a DSP and an expanded instruction set for controller applications. In configurable processors, historically those found in FPGAs, processor vendors such as Xilinx, Altera, Microsemi and Cypress Semiconductor are actively targeting SoC ecosystems with an embedded processor core identical to and applications processor or microcontroller but enhanced with configurable logic.
“This trend is growing and spreading. Other processor vendors are now including application specific configurable logic. Intel’s Z2460 mobile processor includes a configurable security engine; Analog Devices’ BF60x DSP targets the anticipated high-growth market of embedded vision with a signal processing SoC that includes configurable logic specifically accelerating vision applications acceleration,” added Mr. Hackenberg.
Computers and media consumption devices dominate revenues in the processor market easily allowing hybrid processors to capture over half the revenues in 2011, but the trend does not stop there.
“If processor suppliers are going to continue meeting performance expectations set by Moore’s Law, clearly this is a necessary trend. Future processors may be less marketable by their top-end frequency and more by their application specific cores,” said the analyst.

Intel Boosts Security Capabilities of vPro Platform.

IT managers face a range of challenges from complex business processes to sophisticated security threats. To address these challenges, Intel Corp. has added a number of new functions and capabilities into its third-generation Core i-series "Ivy Bridge" processors with vPro technology designed specifically for business and intelligent systems.
The enhancements to the Intel Core vPro processor platform provide a more secure platform for business computing and drive the next wave of innovation in intelligent systems. New capabilities embed security at every layer, including the silicon, without compromising performance. Software innovation allows IT managers to set up and configure systems within minutes to quickly implement compelling solutions. Additionally, the enhanced graphics and secure manageability help accelerate the transition and growth in intelligent systems for the retail, industrial, and healthcare industries.

To defend against identity theft, Intel introduced Intel Identity Protection Technology with public key infrastructure (Intel IPT with PKI) into Intel Core vPro processors. The technology provides a new second layer of authentication embedded into the PC that allows websites and business networks to validate that a legitimate user is logging in from a trusted PC by using a private key stored in a PC's firmware. Intel has been working with solution providers and online Web properties such as Feitian, InfoServer, Symantec and Vasco to take advantage of Intel IPT technology to safeguard users' identity.
The latest version of the Intel Core vPro platform also features Intel OS Guard and Intel Secure Key. Intel Secure Key, with Intel AES new instructions, protects media, data and assets from loss, while Intel OS Guard detects and prevents malware. The new Intel Core vPro family of chips includes Intel Active Management Technology (AMT) to remotely manage computing issues.
Intel Core i-series "Ivy Bridge" chips with vPro technology are or will be available for desktops, laptops and ultrabooks.