Business - Sandisk launches world's first 16GB mobile flash memory

World largest supplier of flash memory products, Nasdaq listed SanDisk Corporation on Monday announced the launch of world's first 16GB microSD and memory stick micro mobile memory cards.Priced at Rs 4999, the cards will be available in retail chains like Hot Spot and Croma Stores in the country, Sandisk Corporation's Asia Pacfiic MD Gavin Wu said. The fingernail-sized 16GB memory cards allow consumers to use many high storage applications such as music and video playback, high-definition digital camera functions, gaming and GPS applications in high end phones. Most phones in the world will support the high memory cards, Mr Wu added. In addition to the mobile phone, consumers can use the 16GB microSDHC card in a multitude of other devices, including a video camera, GPS receiver or a MP3 player with a microSD slot. "Handsets have become far more than just phones - they've become mobile jukeboxes, mobile offices, even mobile movie theaters," says Avi Greengart, Research Director for Mobile Devices at Current Analysis. "Flash memory cards have increased in storage capacity, but even an 8GB card may be too small for anyone with GPS map data, a few movies, a game or two, a presentation file and other applications. There is an acute need for more mobile storage capacity. 16GB gives consumers the ability to carry their digital content with them and still have room to do more with their mobile phones," he added. In India, the mobile industry witnesses daily downloads of over one million ringtones and ring back tones and these figures increase sharply during the festive season. According to the Smartphone 360 study, people with converged devices use only 12% of the total time on making voice calls. But 90% of the time, people are using other functionality of the devices. Need for high storage devices will increase even more next year as 3G kicks in India.