5 ms·

This. I wonder how much it'd cost for them to just add a bit of on-board storage.

by FactolSarin 8y ago

harperlee 8y ago
The now defunct CHIP computer costed 9$ and had on-board storage, so there you have a cap.
- makomk 8y ago
  That used raw NAND flash, which is kind of nasty. I'm not sure they ever quite got it working right before they went under.
  - mattthebaker 8y ago
    Raw NAND is highly preferable to SD or USB drives. You can at least have wear leveling in the OS/FS. SD/USB are bad because most have dumb controllers and just rewrite a page when it changes. Raw NAND is also consistent and meets datasheet specs, whereas SD you never know what you are getting.
  - harperlee 8y ago
    What do you mean? I have two of them which work flawlessly...
nickpsecurity 8y ago
Quick glance at Microchip shows, all in quantities of 5k units, $1.02-$2.28 per unit for 1Mb ROM, $0.36 for 1Mb flash, (if aiming for $1) $0.96-$1.10 per unit for 16Mb flash, and highest is 64Mbit at $1.95-$2.18 per unit. Memory is cheap if your product is popular or can share a big order with someone(s) else. Since not a hardware guy, I don't know if PCB design or packaging cost goes up significantly for adding a 1Mb ROM or flash. I doubt it, though, given these kind of memory chips get used in dirt-cheap boards. Albeit with lower amounts of storage usually given those board try to minimize costs.
- mattthebaker 8y ago
  What do you do with 8MB when the OS is 512MB+? Adding NOR Flash is normally pretty simple -- No bad blocks and a standard SPI interfaces most embedded devices have controllers for. The high end controllers can typically map NOR flash directly into the system address space.
  - nickpsecurity 8y ago
    I was thinking it might be good for RTOS alternatives, a tiny Linux, or (relevant here) something to deal with SDcard problem. Tell users about it with suggested action. And you said 8MB. I just named off a range at different price points to help answer parent's question. I dont know embedded enough to assess what's needed here. Thanks for tip about NOR flash.
imtringued 8y ago
Nowadays one can buy 128GB SSDs for 20€ + 10€ external case with USB 3.0. Having 8 or 16GB of internal storage shouldn't add more than 10€ to the overall price.

This. I wonder how much it'd cost for them to just add a bit of on-board storage.

harperlee 8y ago

The now defunct CHIP computer costed 9$ and had on-board storage, so there you have a cap.

makomk 8y ago
That used raw NAND flash, which is kind of nasty. I'm not sure they ever quite got it working right before they went under.
- mattthebaker 8y ago
  Raw NAND is highly preferable to SD or USB drives. You can at least have wear leveling in the OS/FS. SD/USB are bad because most have dumb controllers and just rewrite a page when it changes. Raw NAND is also consistent and meets datasheet specs, whereas SD you never know what you are getting.
- harperlee 8y ago
  What do you mean? I have two of them which work flawlessly...

nickpsecurity 8y ago

Quick glance at Microchip shows, all in quantities of 5k units, $1.02-$2.28 per unit for 1Mb ROM, $0.36 for 1Mb flash, (if aiming for $1) $0.96-$1.10 per unit for 16Mb flash, and highest is 64Mbit at $1.95-$2.18 per unit. Memory is cheap if your product is popular or can share a big order with someone(s) else. Since not a hardware guy, I don't know if PCB design or packaging cost goes up significantly for adding a 1Mb ROM or flash. I doubt it, though, given these kind of memory chips get used in dirt-cheap boards. Albeit with lower amounts of storage usually given those board try to minimize costs.

mattthebaker 8y ago
What do you do with 8MB when the OS is 512MB+? Adding NOR Flash is normally pretty simple -- No bad blocks and a standard SPI interfaces most embedded devices have controllers for. The high end controllers can typically map NOR flash directly into the system address space.
- nickpsecurity 8y ago
  I was thinking it might be good for RTOS alternatives, a tiny Linux, or (relevant here) something to deal with SDcard problem. Tell users about it with suggested action. And you said 8MB. I just named off a range at different price points to help answer parent's question. I dont know embedded enough to assess what's needed here. Thanks for tip about NOR flash.

imtringued 8y ago

Nowadays one can buy 128GB SSDs for 20€ + 10€ external case with USB 3.0. Having 8 or 16GB of internal storage shouldn't add more than 10€ to the overall price.