Cell Phone/Wireless Applications Center

A SemiApps.com Applications Center

Wireless, and in particular the next-generation cell phone arena is the scene of intense activity and competition among manufacturers of semiconductor memories. NOR- and NAND- type flash memory are jockeying for position and there's considerable debate over whether these technologies will co-exist or compete. According to Semiconductor Insights, Japanese high-end handsets use NOR and NAND in their designs, while North American designs have historically leaned towards a NOR-based design.

Meanwhile there are two “co-development" groups that are positioning their products for this market: The mostly U.S. based CellularRAM co-development group is collaborating on specifications for CellularRAM memory, a new multi-generation family of SRAM-compatible, low-power, refresh-free pseudo-static RAM (PSRAM) for wireless handsets; The Common Specifications for Mobile RAM (COSMORAM) Rev.3, is a memory interface standard developed and promoted jointly by Toshiba Corporation, Fujitsu Limited, and NEC Electronics for the mobile handset market. For high density storage in mobile applications, a number of manufacturers are working on “Mobile DRAM" solutions that lower power consumption by using unique manufacturing techniques.