Samsung Semiconductor has announced a new generation of its V-NAND technology that should help decrease the cost and power consumption of NAND flash memory. The 3-bit version of Samsung's 3D V-NAND flash fits one more bit of data on each layer of the stacked technology. Samsung expects an SSD (solid-state drive) using the new technology to ship by the end of this year.

V-NAND stacks flash vertically, achieving greater density without having to pack more components onto a single chip layer.

Samsung announced V-NAND with 24 layers a year ago and introduced a version with 32 layers earlier this year. It's already shipping SSDs made with 32-layer V-NAND, the 850 Pro line, which Samsung considers so durable it provides a 10-year warranty.

By using three bits on each layer, Samsung has achieved the equivalent of a 48-layer design. Samsung hopes it can keep adding layers, too, up to 90 or 100 at some point in the future.