HPE predicts storage-class memory will replace NAND flash
Storage-class memory (SCM), RAM that has the ability to retain its contents like NAND flash memory but the speed of DRAM, will eventually supplant flash as the high-speed storage medium of choice.
That’s the prediction of Ivan Iannaccone, vice president and general manager of HPE’s 3PAR storage unit. But he adds that it will take some time.
“It’s not going to happen overnight; it’s just a matter of time for it to become economically viable, but it will eventually take over. Maybe in 10 years,” he told me.
On a per-byte basis, SCM is around four times more expensive than flash. Currently only two vendors make it: Intel and Samsung. Intel sells it under the Optane brand and targets it at enterprises, and Intel’s Optane HPE uses it in its storage arrays.