SanDisk and Toshiba have begun samplingt a 256 Gigabit (Gb) 3-bit-per-cell (X3) 48-layer 3D NAND chip at a fab in Yokkaichi, Japan.
SanDisk’s 256 Gb X3 BiCS chip is designed for wide applicability in consumer, client, mobile and enterprise products, and is expected to begin shipping in SanDisk’s products in 2016.

BiCS is a nonvolatile memory architecture designed to bring new levels of density, scalability and performance to flash-based devices. BiCS NAND memory will also provide enhanced write/erase endurance, write speeds and energy efficiency relative to conventional 2D NAND.