Samsung first with 'stacked' V-NAND memory, next flagships could start off with 128 Gb of storage

"Stacked" or "3D" chips are nothing new, as Intel is already having those out on the market in the form of the new Haswell processors in your computer, for example.

Samsung, however, is applying the tech to flash memory modules for the first time, and the type that are to go into mobile devices like phones and tablets at that, or to cluster together for solid sate drives.

Called V-NAND, the technology layers the memory chips on top of each other, instead of side-by-side, thus saving precious space and allowing for larger capacities, not to mention faster and more durable internal storage chips. Samsung managed to stack not one or two, but 24 of those NAND modules on top of each other, and it's the interconnect between those that it says is the "secret sauce" for making the memory faster.

Not only faster, but in large capacities, too, as those V-NAND chips start you off with 128 Gb of internal storage, shooting all the way up to 1 Tb, thus all but eliminating the need for a separate microSD card slot, for example. The best part is that this is not some far-fetched technology years down the pipeline, but Samsung has actually sent those out for mobile device makers to sample, and is ready to produce them in mass quantities.

The V-NAND chips are expected to make it in SSD memory as soon as this year, and in mobile devices they will be landing in 2014, said Samsung, and added that the technology is a result of no less than 10 years of research on its part, now guarded by more than 300 patents.