To: Marc Phelan (119 )
From: JF Quinnelly Thursday, Nov 7 1996 4:01PM EST
Reply #123 of 1483
Competition from Iomega?
Thursday November 7 11:49 AM EST
Iomega( Iomega Corp )plans low-cost minature data storage
ROY, Utah, Nov 7 (Reuter) - Iomega Corp said it plans to develop a new
storage technology to be built into handheld consumer electronics devices that is an order of magnitude less expensive than flash memory now used in such devices.
Iomega said the system could be used in digital cameras, game devices,
cellular phones and personal digital assistants.
The new storage technology, to be known as "n-hand," is expected to be
priced at less than $10 per 20 megabyte disk.
Danielle Levitas, a data storage analyst at International Data Corp,
said that at $10 per disk, the device would cost less than
one megabyte of flash memory chip technology.
Levitas, who had been briefed by the company on its plans for the
technology, said Iomega has transformed the existing high-density floppy drive technology it uses in its current products and
"taken it to the next level."
In a statement, Iomega said it anticipates that consumer electronic
devices using the n-hand technology will be available as
soon as the second half of 1997.
It said n-hand will make it easier to save and transfer data between a
cell phone and a digtal camera or a personal computer.
For example, a reporter in the field could snap a picture and send it
over a cell phone to an office computer for processing.
A digital camera could store from 70 to 80 images on a single $10 n-hand disk, Iomega said. Currently consumers pay
hundreds of dollars for a flash memory card capable of holding the same number of images, it noted.
Kim Edwards, Iomega's president and chief executive said that, "Our
n-hand technology ... has the potential to change the way
consumers use portable electronic devices."
Iomega said the n-hand disks are about half the size of a business card and capable of storing 20 megabytes of data.
-----
It seems they took some time before being able to release it!
What's obvious is IOM's will to become a major player in this market.
The slice of the pie is getting smaller for SNDK. Is it?
Please help!? Hopefully we have MMC!
The size constraint is making me wonder whether IOM can really compete in this market. I'm almost sure they can't. How could they come to a technology that's smaller than flash memory with more capacity and lower price? Let's see but let me have serious doubts.
Any comments appreciated. |
