Article: Flash memory: challenges disk drives. (flash memory becoming alternative to disk drives in portable computers) (includes related articles on flash software, flash compared to disk memory and flash-memory manufacturers) (Cover Story)

Flash memory is becoming a rugged, compact alternative to disk drives in subnotebook and palmtop computers. Some flash-memory cards emulate disks so well that your application software can't tell the difference.

In the competition for compact and light-weight data storage, new flash-memory modules are challenging disk drives. Some credit-card-size flash modules hold 20 Mbytes or more of data, and the absence of moving parts makes them faster and more rugged than the very smallest of the ever-shrinking rotating drives. Flash's main drawback is its higher price, but at storage capacities of 1 or 2 Mbytes, it can be as cheap as disk.

At higher capacities, however, flash ...

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