Hitachi, Ltd. (TSE: 6501) today announced the HB288448E5 type 2 (5 mm thick)
CompactFlash(TM) *1 (CF) with the industry's largest capacity of 448 Mbytes, and the
HB2881000A5 type 2 (5 mm thick) PC-ATA card*2 with the industry's largest level
capacity of a 1-Gbyte for use as large-capacity storage media for digital cameras and
portable music players, and communication and industrial applications as a replacement
for small hard disk drives (HDDs). Sample shipments will begin in July 2000 in Japan.
These products achieve large capacity through the use of a Double Density Package
(DDP) containing two Hitachi 256-Mbit flash memory chips. The 448-Mbyte CF
provides 7 hours, and the 1-Gbyte PC-ATA card 16 hours, of CD-quality recording and
playback. In addition, the maximum programming speed of 2 Mbytes/second has made it
possible to cut the programming time for large volumes of data.
The HB288320E5 320-Mbyte type 2 CF and HB288256E5 256-Mbyte type 2 CF have
also been developed concurrently, and sample shipments of these models will also begin
in July 2000 in Japan.
Recently, the use of flash cards has increased dramatically as a storage medium in
various kinds of portable devices and information products, and the rapid growth of the
market for digital cameras, portable music players, and handheld PCs, in particular, has
led to an increasing demand for CF and PC-ATA cards. At the same time, the increasing
capacity of flash memory has brought a growing demand for its use in place of the small
HDDs previously used in the communication and industrial equipment fields. In the
point of its numerous advantages over former HDDs, including less system maintenance,
smaller size, lower power consumption, and excellent shock resistance, flash memory is
replacing HDDs in the 32- to 640-Mbyte capacity range.
To meet the needs of this flash memory market, Hitachi currently offers a lineup of
8- to 192-Mbyte type 1 (3.3 mm thick) CF products and 8- to 640-Mbyte PC-ATA cards.
Hitachi has now developed the 448-/320-/256-Mbyte type 2 CF and 1-Gbyte PC-ATA
flash cards in response to the demand for even greater capacity.
These flash cards incorporate HN29W25611 256-Mbit AND-type flash memories
employing Hitachi's Multi Level Cell technology and 0.25um process. A 512-Mbit
capacity is provided through the use of a DDP (Double Density Package) containing two
stacked HN29W25611 256-Mbit flash memory chips, enabling a PC-ATA capacity of 1
Gbyte to be achieved by incorporating 16 of these packages. Also, to increase CF
capacity, a new 5.0 mm thick type 2 cards standard has been formulated by the CFA
(CompactFlash? Association), as opposed to the previous 3.3 mm thick type 1 cards,
enabling the industry's largest CF capacity of 448 Mbytes to be achieved by incorporating
seven of the 512-Mbit capacity Double Density Packages described above.
The same Hitachi AND-type flash memory controller as used with previous products
implements interleaved operation of multiple chips, enabling a maximum programming
speed of 2-Mbyte/second to be achieved. This makes it possible to cut the programming
time for large volumes of data.
Future plans include the development of even larger-capacity flash memories, together
with large-capacity flash cards incorporating these memories and new flash memory
application products.
Notes: 1. CompactFlash is a trademark of SanDisk Corporation of the USA, and is licensed to
the CFA (CompactFlash(TM) Association). Hitachi is a member of the CFA.
2. PC-ATA: PC card ATA specifications. The ATA (Advanced Technology Attachment)
specifications within the card specifications formulated by the PCMCIA (Personal
Computer Memory Card International Association).
< Applications >
External storage devices for industrial and communication applications
Portable information devices, including handheld PCs and PDAs
Solid-state recorders
Digital cameras and camcorders
< Prices in Japan >
Part Number Capacity Sample Price
Type 2 HB288448E5 448-Mbytes Open price
CompactFlash(TM) HB288320E5 320-Mbytes
HB288256E5 256-Mbytes
PC-ATA card HB2881000A5 1-Gbyte Open price
Item | CompactFlash type2 HB288448E5/HB288320E5/ HB288256E5 | PC-ATA card HB2881000A5 |
Interface specifications | PC Card Standard ATA True-IDE Mode |
Capacity | 448-M/320-M/256-Mbyte | 1-Gbyte |
Operating voltage | 3.3V±5% / 5V±10% |
Reprogramming speed | 2-Mbyte/sec.(max.)(6-chip interleave) |
External power supply voltage | at 3.3V | at 5V | at 3.3V | at 5V |
| Sleep (typ.) | 0.5mA | 1mA | 0.5mA | 1mA |
Read (typ.) | 25mA | 40mA | 25mA | 40mA |
Write (typ.) | 25mA | 45mA | 25mA | 45mA |
Packages | CompactFlash specification 42.8 x 36.4 x 5.0 mm3 | PC Card Standard (type2) specification 54.0 x 85.6 x 5.0 mm3 |
* CompactFlash(TM): CompactFlash is a trademark of SanDisk Corporation and is licensed to
the CFA (CompactFlash(TM) Association). Hitachi is a member of the CFA
|