Tech Roundup: SanDisk Develops World’s Smallest Memory Chip, Array Networks Gains a Big New Client, and More

On Wednesday, the Milpitas-based SanDisk Corp. announced it has successfully developed the world’s smallest 128GB NAND flash memory chip. The semiconductor device—reportedly smaller than a U.S. penny—can store 128 billion individual bits of information on a single silicon die.

“Building a 128GB NAND flash memory chip with this level of complexity is an incredible achievement,” said Mehrdad Mofidi, SanDisk’s vice president of memory design. “This innovation allows SanDisk to continue to be a leader in helping our customers deliver smaller, more powerful products capable of doing more at lower cost.”

SanDisk distributed a technical paper outlining details of the achievement at a technical conference in San Francisco on Wednesday.

Milpitas-based Array Networks, designer of the DesktopDirect application, recently announced The Buckingham Research Group Inc. has decided to deploy the application to all its employees. DesktopDirect enables employees to access all corporate applications from iPads and remote PCs while eliminating data leakage and maintaining full regulatory compliance. Tablets are simple, light and portable, and are becoming increasingly affordable—as a result, many more employees are bringing their personal tablets to work, a trend referred to as “bring your own device” (BYOD). As a consequence, IT management is constantly presented with the challenges of maintaining corporate security and providing invisible, seamless access to applications while supporting the broad range of tablet devices on the market. Using an encrypted SSL connection, DesktopDirect provides secure access from tablets such as iPads to a user's office PC via a low bandwidth connection that maintains corporate security protocols and prevents data leakage. Buckingham CTO Michael Marrano said the deployment of DesktopDirect allowed him to give all his employees iPad access to all the company’s corporate applications in a manner of weeks, at a fraction of the cost of other, alternative applications.

In other, less favorable news for SanDisk, so-called “expert networker” John Kinnucan, a Portland resident, was recently arrested for insider trading, on the accusation of passing along tips to hedgefund clients about SanDisk Corp., OmniVision Technologies Inc. and other companies. The charges are pending in Manhattan, where Kinnucan will appear on March 8. The tips were supposedly passed on between 2008 and 2010. Kinnucan, 54, has denied receiving illegal tips and insisted the information he gave clients was publicly available. In October 2010, he publicly said that he refused a request by FBI agents to wear a wire and inform on his fund manager clients.

Milpitas-based Kineto Wireless this week announced the release of Smart VoIP, the first VoIP application specifically developed to enable mobile operators to leverage their existing network infrastructure to offer a competitive, over-the-top voice service. Kineto’s Smart VoIP application supports a range of standard mobile telephone capabilities and is designed to run on major mobile operating systems, including iPhone, Android and Windows Phone. The application can be branded by mobile operators and downloaded to subscribers through standard application stores.

Milpitas-based Onanon Inc., a designer and manufacturer of custom electronic connectors, this week announced the availability of its embedded electronics connector technology to all OEM application markets. Onanon says its "breadboard" automated manufacturing methods have cost-effectively produced connectors with low-profile integrated devices in applications as diverse as medical devices and military avionics, giving engineers the power to design greater functionality than ever before into connectors.