14 DAY TRIAL // When it comes to predictions in a certain field of the IT market, those directly involved with it have just as much say, if not more, than market analysts, and it looks like one such prediction was made by Transcend.
The thing about the NAND Flash and DRAM memory markets is that they are often taken together and spoken of as the memory industry.
This is somewhat odd, since NAND Flash chips are used for storage, unlike DRAM (dynamic random access memory). On the other hand, they are both semiconductor products that can store data.
It now appears that the most recent rumor regarding what one can expect from this facet of the industry has come out, courtesy of Digitimes (again).
What the report says is that, according to Transcend chairman Peter Shu, the NAND and DRAM conditions are seen in an optimistic light.
Granted, a sort of shortage is possible in the area of PC DRAM, mostly because there is a growing focus on mobile RAM and Flash.
In other words, the orders for tablet and smartphone chips may increase enough that desktop and even notebook supply may end up strained during the second half of the ongoing year (2011).
Then again, with how DRAM chips had been dropping in price for so long, a strong demand, even if one-sided, will at least preserve prices, if not boost them.
Of course, consumers will have less of a reason to rejoice at this than the IT players that make said units.
That said, even if prices do rise, the escalation should not be that quick, something that is considered good by most everyone, since it ensures a sort of stability.
All in all, memory module makers, like Transcend itself, expect good things from the July-December period.
All that remains is to see how the industry copes with the NAND Flash shortages that, Kingston expects, will arise at some point during that same period.