memory

Virident, a Milpitas, Calif.-based company creating flash-based solid-state drives (SSDs), has raised $20 million in its third round of funding and landed Cisco and Intel as new investors. Virident has raised $50 million to date.

The five-year-old company says today's funding will fuel the creation of a new memory solution called FlashMax that it claims will run databases ten times faster than older drives.

Virident hopes to create partnerships with large data centers, businesses such as systems integrators and consulting firms, and potential investors. Besides Cisco and Intel, the company also has an unnamed investor who is a &… Read more

Chipmaker LSI said today it has signed a deal to acquire privately held flash storage processor provider SandForce for $322 million in cash.

The acquisition will give the Milpitas, Calif.-based-semiconductor maker--previously known as LSI Logic--an expanded presence in the fast-growing market for solid-state drives made with NAND flash memory chips, like those typically found in smartphones and tablet computers. As flash prices decline, demand for flash SSDs is expected to overshadow traditional hard drives.

"Adding SandForce's technology to LSI's broad storage portfolio is consistent with our mission to accelerate storage and networking," LSI Chief Executive … Read more

RAM is a high-speed memory workspace that the system uses for running programs, loading operating system components, and performing most of its computing tasks.

If you use programs that take up a lot of RAM, you may see the system slow down while the system makes use of the slow hard drive to manage memory contents, to the point where it may sometimes crawl to a near standstill while tasks are running.

As a result, having ample RAM is great for system performance, so I always recommend to go with as much RAM as you can afford to put in … Read more

This is an update of a deal I posted a few months back.

A RAM upgrade is a great way to make your PC run faster, especially if you run a lot of programs simultaneously. More RAM means less reliance on the comparatively sluggish hard drive.

If you own a desktop system, here's one of the best memory deals I've ever seen: TigerDirect has the Kingston KHX1333C9D3B1K2 8GB desktop RAM kit for $24.99, plus around $2 for shipping. That's after a $20 mail-in rebate (PDF).

The kit includes a pair of 4GB, 240-pin DDR3 sticks … Read more

In the past, Apple had always been seen as a company selling niche, high-quality products at high prices. In recent years, however, it's captured business by keeping costs more competitive.

The company's lower price strategy applies not just to its iPhone and iPad products, but also to the MacBook Air--all have been able to meet or beat the prices offered by some of its rivals, according to an analysis in yesterday's New York Times. But Apple also keeps its own internal costs down by locking in prices on huge amounts of hardware components through multi-year deals with … Read more

Following an employees' memorial to its late co-founder, Apple is posting a video recording of the event on its Web site.

Apple held the Steve Jobs celebration for its employees at its headquarters and at its retail locations on October 19.

The video was visible a first, but later the Celebrating Steve page said. "Available soon. Please check back later." (As of 9:45 a.m. PT Monday, the page and video are up and running just fine.)

Former Vice President and Apple board member Al Gore spoke, as did new chief executive Tim Cook and Apple design … Read more

commentary The future of Apple's executive leadership continues to be of intense focus to onlookers as the company forges ahead without its late co-founder Steve Jobs in the picture.

Apple celebrated Jobs' life yesterday in a private employee tribute filled with executive speeches, live performances by famous musicians, and multi-story banners of Jobs at various points in his life that hung within the complex. If you didn't know it was the inside of Apple's headquarters, the memorial could have easily been mistaken for a rock concert or a rally, in part because it was a little bit … Read more

Two weeks after the death of Steve Jobs, Apple celebrated the life of its late co-founder at a private event held today at its headquarters in Cupertino.

In conjunction with the event, Apple closed its retail stores for three hours worldwide, giving store employees a chance to watch the proceedings from live video being piped in.

Stores put up white curtains over glass windows to keep passersby from watching said feed, as well as signage noting that the store would be closed until noon Pacific. Apple typically only closes its retail stores during business hours for renovation and just ahead … Read more

The A5 processor at the heart of the iPhone 4S is made by Samsung, according to a chip analysis firm, putting an end to speculation that Apple had gone elsewhere for its core silicon.

Chipworks, a firm that specializes in reverse engineering and patent infringement analysis of semiconductors and electronic systems, verified today that the A5 chip is manufactured by Samsung, according to Jim Morrison, a product manager, who spoke to CNET today. The iPhone 4S' A5 is a 45-nanometer dual-core part, virtually the same as the chip used in the iPad 2, said Morrison.

The Apple-branded A5 is a system-on-a-chip (SoC) that includes the main processor, graphics silicon, and system memory (RAM). In fact, the RAM is also made by Samsung according to iFixit.… Read more