![](http://www.clanofidiots.com/files/u69/nand_memory.jpg)
"The bump in NAND consumption among tablets is likely to come from devices such as Apple Inc.’s iPad as well as a raft of tablet devices powered by the rival Android operating system, expected to hit the market this year," said Dee Nguyen, analyst for memory and storage at IHS. "Together, the iPad and Android-based tablets form one strand of the tablet experience offered by manufacturers—one centering on Internet-based media consumption. For such tablets, internal storage capacity is less an issue because the devices are intended to provide entertainment, not a full PC computing experience."
Optimistic as this may sound, not all NAND flash makers are jumping for joy just yet. Transcend Information chairman Peter Shu said he's unsure what kind of NAND prices the second half of 2011 will bring. While Shu acknowledges that smartphones and tablets will drive demand, he also notes that some chip makers, like Samsung, are ready to ramp up new capacity, which could push prices down, according to a report in DigiTimes.
Image Gallery
More...