SanDisk and Sony today said they have expanded the Memory Stick Pro format with the development of the Memory Stick Pro-HG. The new format aims to be three times faster than Memory Stick Pro media, with a theoretical maximum of 480Mbps (or 60MB/sec), the companies said. The increased speed allows several gigabytes of data to be more quickly transferred to or from a portable device.
The new format uses an 8-bit parallel interface as well as a conventional serial and 4-bit parallel interface, SanDisk says. In addition, the interface clock frequency has increased from 40MHz to 60MHz – this allows for a minimum write speed at 8-bit parallel transfer of 120Mbps (or 15MB/sec). The format would support a maximum capacity of 32GB, although the final product lineup with capacities has not been determined.
SanDisk says the new format will support the Memory Stick Pro format, which means devices that support Memory Stick Pro will be able to work with the new HG cards (although at the lower speeds). Licensing for Memory Stick Pro-HG host devices is expected to start in January 2007, SanDisk says. Cards with the new format will be available in 2007, the companies added.
More details on the format are available at the Memory Stick Web site.
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