UFS 4.0 is the latest specification approved by the JEDEC organization of a standard that is used for internal storage of mobile devices, mainly smartphones, but also tablets, drones, cameras and much more. It is not difficult to see them in the entry range of laptops either.
Samsung has announced the beginning of the implementation of this interface with a mass production of flash storage units that will start in the third quarter of 2022. The South Korean giant hopes that its new products based on UFS 4.0 will provide new experiences in tasks that require large amounts of data processing, high-resolution images, mobile games, 5G devices, future automotive applications, or next-generation AR and VR headsets.
UFS 4.0: more performance
Every new specification improves on the performance of the previous and latest universal-flash-storage will not be the exception. The new standard increases bandwidth up to 23.2Gbps per lane, double that of the previous UFS 3.1 standard. In addition, UFS 4.0 unlocks sequential read speeds of up to 6.0 MB/s per mA, an improvement of 46% over the previous specification, which should mean a slight energy saving and thus greater autonomy for the devices that use it.
Specifically, Samsung promises data transfer speeds of 4,200 Mbytes per second in sequential read and 2,800 Mbytes in writing. They are very high data that even exceed what solid state drives offer under the PCIe Gen3 interface. To do this, the company will use seventh-generation V-NAND memories and a proprietary controller.
The units will maintain the known compact size, with maximum dimensions of 11mm x 13mm x 1mm for better use of space and more efficient design versatility. It is an important section considering its fields of use, in devices as small as a smart watch.
The storage capacity will also increase and we will see units of up to 1Tbyte. For the security section, Samsung UFS 4.0 will include an advanced playback protected memory block (RPMB). Samsung will begin mass production in the third quarter and it is certain that in addition to selling them to other manufacturers, it will release them in its own devices such as the Galaxy S23 smartphones.
