Samsung Electronics has begun mass producing the industry's first 4-bit (QLC, quad-level cell) 4-terabyte (TB) SATA solid-state drive (SSD) for consumers. Based on 1-terabit (Tb) V-NAND with performance equivalent to the company's 3-bit design, Samsung's QLC SSD is expected to bring a new level of efficiency to consumer SSDs, Samsung said. With its new 1Tb 4-bit V-NAND chip, Samsung will be able to efficiently produce a 128GB memory card for smartphones that will lead the charge toward higher capacities for high-performance memory storage. Typically, as data stored within a memory cell increases from three bits to four, the chip capacity per unit area would rise and the electrical charge (used to determine information from a sensor) would decrease by as much as 50% making it considerably more difficult to maintain a device's desired performance and speed. However, Samsung said its 4-bit 4TB QLC SATA SSD maintains its performance levels at the same level as a 3-bit SSD, by using a 3-bit SSD controller and TurboWrite technology, while increasing drive capacity through the use of 32 chips, all based on 64-layer fourth-generation 1Tb V-NAND. The 4-bit QLC SSD enables a sequential read speed of 540 MB/s and a sequential write speed of 520 MB/s, and comes with a three-year warranty. Samsung plans to introduce several 4-bit consumer SSDs later in 2018 with 1TB, 2TB, and 4TB capacities in the widely used 2.5-inch form factor.

Samsung Electronics has introduced the Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+. They are designed with a new dual aperture lens that powers a low light camera, super slow-mo video capabilities and personalized AR emoji. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ deliver an enhanced entertainment experience with stereo speakers tuned by AKG, immersive audio with Dolby AtmosR and a refined edge-to-edge Infinity Display 1 - a key staple in Samsung's design heritage, according to the vendor. In addition, the Galaxy S9 and S9+ will come with the new SmartThings app, which unites Samsung's existing IoT services into one single, smart experience. The Galaxy S9 and S9+ will be available starting on March 16, 2018 in select markets.

Samsung Electronics has begun mass producing the second generation of 10nm-class (1y-nm), 8Gb DDR4 DRAM. For use in a wide range of next-generation computing systems, the new 8Gb DDR4 features the highest performance and energy efficiency for an 8Gb DRAM chip, as well as the smallest dimensions, Samsung said. Samsung's 2nd-generation 10nm-class 8Gb DDR4 features an approximate 30% productivity gain over the company's 1st-generation 10nm-class 8Gb DDR4. In addition, the new 8Gb DDR4's performance levels and energy efficiency have been improved about 10% and 15% respectively, thanks to the use of an advanced, proprietary circuit design technology. The new 8Gb DDR4 can operate at 3,600Mbps per pin, compared to 3,200Mbps of the company's 1x-nm 8Gb DDR4. To enable these achievements, Samsung has applied new technologies, without the use of an EUV process. The innovation here includes use of a high-sensitivity cell data sensing system and a progressive "air spacer" scheme. In the cells of Samsung's 2nd-generation 10nm-class DRAM, a newly devised data sensing system enables a more accurate determination of the data stored in each cell, which leads to a significant increase in the level of circuit integration and manufacturing productivity. Samsung has finished validating its 2nd-generation 10nm-class DDR4 modules with CPU manufacturers, and next plans to work closely with its global IT customers in the development of more efficient next-generation computing systems.