Flash Memory Prices to Drop

[Jonathon Watkins]

<div class='os_post_top_link'><a href='http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&u=/nm/20040524/tc_nm/tech_chips_dc' target='_blank'>http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tm...m/tech_chips_dc</a><br /><br /></div>We posted last month that <a href="http://www.pocketpcthoughts.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=27063&highlight">RAM prices were rising</a>, as companies switched memory production over to flash memory. Now Yahoo! News have a story about the other side of the coin:<br /><br /><i>"Two companies that dominate the lucrative market for memory chips used in digital cameras and music players are slashing prices to stoke demand and undermine emerging rivals, industry officials and analysts said. The move by Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and Toshiba Corp is a bonanza for consumers snapping up flash memory devices in increasing numbers and sets the stage for a fierce battle in the most profitable part of the memory industry." </i><br /><br />Cheaper Flash Memory Cards and Pocket PC memory? That'll do very nicely thanks. 8)

[OSUKid7]

Very nice indeed. I'll need some new CF cards when I (hopefully) get my new camera in a month or so.

[Zack Mahdavi]

I'm waiting for 512MB SD cards to drop below $75. Then I'll definitely be buying some new memory! :)

Heck, I might even trade in my 3 year old Sony memory stick digicam for a new digicam with an SD slot. :)

[iPaqDude]

Very nice indeed. I'll need some new CF cards when I (hopefully) get my new camera in a month or so.

Same here... I have been lusting after the Nikon D70... price doesn't look like it is going to drop anytime soon, so I guess I am going to have to byte the bullet and pay the $$$. And, of course, I will need the CF cards to feed it.... :lol:

[Jonathon Watkins]

And, of course, I will need the CF cards to feed it.... :lol:

Feeeeed it Seymour! :wink:

Now I have an 8Mp camera, I'll be needing a new card soon. The 1Gb just does not cut it any more. :?

[arnage2]

id like to get a 1gb sd card for under $160.

[Gerard]

If I could soon grab a 2GB CF & a 512MB SD for around $100 each... call me a happy PPCer. That's enough for all my docs, some backups, a couple of movies, a dozen CDs at a nice bitrate... and room to spare. Very cool.

[Zack Mahdavi]

If I could soon grab a 2GB CF & a 512MB SD for around $100 each...

You can get a Sandisk 512MB SD from Buy.com for $94.99 (http://www.buy.com/retail/product.asp?sku=10352352&loc=101&sp=1) with free shipping. Not a bad deal, if you ask me.

[Gerard]

I should've been more specific; not SanDisk, not Simple, not any mediocre brand... Lexar's been most reliable in my experience of a number of cards. And I'd like both to be at least 12x write-speed, preferably even faster, for optimum copying rates from PPC or PC.

[Jonathon Watkins]

Same here. I've been burned by Sandisk and would like a decent high speed CF card for a change.

[Gremmie]

FYI-the current wholesale flash prices will take about 6 months to show in consumer level flash prices. So initial price drops will happen soon, but the best is coming.

[Ryan Joseph]

Same here. I've been burned by Sandisk

Really? I've only ever had SanDisk memory. I had SanDisk CF cards with my 2215, and I have their SD cards now. I never had a problem. What happened to yours?

[arnage2]

sandisk works great for me

[Jonathon Watkins]

I never had a problem. What happened to yours?

My 256Mb SD card failed, I got it replaced, then my 1Gb CF card failed, I got it replaced and then the new 256Mb SD card failed & I got it replaced.

You'll understand that I am a bit unsure about Sandisk. :worried:

I've had no problem with my Toshiba 256Mb CF card.

[Ryan Joseph]

You'll understand that I am a bit unsure about Sandisk. :worried:

Interesting. I'll keep that in mind.

I wonder if this predicted drop in prices will bring new companies to the memory card market. :?:

[ricksfiona]

It would be nice to get 1GB+ SD cards for $100 :D

[Jonathon Watkins]

id like to get a 1gb sd card for under $160.

True - I got my 1Gb CF card for around $150 a while ago, but it's Slooooooooow.

[iPaqDude]

And, of course, I will need the CF cards to feed it.... :lol:

Feeeeed it Seymour! :wink:

Now I have an 8Mp camera, I'll be needing a new card soon. The 1Gb just does not cut it any more. :?

ya, the Nikon D70 is a 6.2Mp and will require a significant amount of removable storage - I can't image how an 8Mp would burn through these things! :wink:

[yslee]

Basic Sandisk cards are utterly slow. Their new Extremes are fast though.

[Pony99CA]

I should've been more specific; not SanDisk, not Simple, not any mediocre brand... Lexar's been most reliable in my experience of a number of cards. And I'd like both to be at least 12x write-speed, preferably even faster, for optimum copying rates from PPC or PC.
Did you see the home page post I made at pocketnow (http://www.pocketnow.com)? You can get a Lexar 512 MB SD card for $100 (http://pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=news&id=2391) (after rebates).

UPDATE: It's sold out now. :-( Maybe they'll get some more in stock....

Steve

[Gerard]

Sorry Steve, missed that one.

I'm sort-of-almost content with my current 256MB SD/256 + 128MB CF situation... not ideal, but the occasion use of my 6GB hard drive helps.

[Falstaff]

I wonder if this predicted drop in prices will bring new companies to the memory card market. :?:

Well, as the original post and article say, this move is designed to prevent new companies from entering the market. Sandisk and Toshiba want to lower prices below the level where the newcomers can go, effectively making them unable to compete. So this is a mixed blessing. Sure we'll have low memory prices, but who knows how low they would go, how much faster sizes would increase, or how fast the transfer speeds would get if we had half a dozen companies competing in the flash memory market (and that's actual producers, not companies that rebrand).

[Pony99CA]

I wonder if this predicted drop in prices will bring new companies to the memory card market. :?:
Well, as the original post and article say, this move is designed to prevent new companies from entering the market. Sandisk and Toshiba want to lower prices below the level where the newcomers can go, effectively making them unable to compete.
Actually, flash memory makers and memory card manufacturers are two different things. Flash memory makers -- Toshiba, Samsung (not SanDisk) and so on -- make the chips; memory card makers -- SanDisk, Lexar, Kingston, etc. -- take the chips and put them into Compact Flash, Secure Digital and other cards.

So the fall in flash memory prices, while designed to keep other memory makers out, could encourage other card makers to jump in as the costs to enter the market have gone down.

Of course, if the profit margin for making memory cards also falls, it may just be a wash.

Whatever, I'm just hoping 1 GB cards will fall more. :-D

Steve

[Gerard]

And as I understand it, Lexar is the major (or only?) maker of the controller chips for high-speed cards. I read a year or more ago that SanDisk is one of their major customers, helping make their 'Ultra' line of cards work faster. Lexar incorporates a multi-threading write-ahead scheme to enable very fast write speeds. But who knows, I could be out of date or even wrong about this.

[Talon]

This is all a bit of a shock to me. Why would they cut prices when they already have a 5 month backlog of orders?
I've had samsung tell me that for certain memory parts they won't even talk to me about supplying unless I'll buy 50,000 of them a year. That's around $3Million worth of parts per year. Toshiba will sell you their parts but on 26 week lead times.
Now I'm sure that the big players like Sandisk and Lexar can get hold of parts quicker but it does show that there aren't exactly bucketfuls of the stuff just sitting around. A price drop isn't going to help them protect the market, people will go to anyone who can get them parts quickly.

[Pony99CA]

Here's another price drop -- a Viking 1 GB CF card for $115 (http://pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=news&id=2403). :-D

Steve

[Jonathon Watkins]

Here's another price drop -- a Viking 1 GB CF card for $115 (http://pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=news&id=2403). :-D

Very good Steve. :wink: Very tempting actually.....

Who makes Viking cards? Are they re-branded Sandisk cards or do they make their own?

[Pony99CA]

Here's another price drop -- a Viking 1 GB CF card for $115 (http://pocketnow.com/index.php?a=portal_detail&t=news&id=2403). :-D
Very good Steve. :wink: Very tempting actually.....

Who makes Viking cards? Are they re-branded Sandisk cards or do they make their own?
As far as I know, Viking makes their own cards. Check out their About page (http://www.vikinginterworks.com/company/index.asp) for details.

Of course, they probably buy their flash memory from somebody else.

Steve

[Jonathon Watkins]

Of course, they probably buy their flash memory from somebody else.

That's par for the course. Only Intel, Toshiba etc actually make that stuff. :)