FM24C256 drastic endurance difference ?!  - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: nipil
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2023, 08:03:06 pm
content: Hello, quick question, hopefully simple enough...FM24C256 from Fairchild :Endurance: up to 100K data changesFM24C256 from Ramtron :High Endurance 100 Billion (10^11) Read/WritesHow can the same référence, with the same technologue, have SIX ORDERS of magnitudes of difference ?!Am i missing something ?Thanks in advanceNicolas

author: voltsandjolts
author_rank: Unknown
timestamp: May 22, 2023, 08:06:19 pm
content: Fairchild device is an eeprom

author: nipil
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2023, 08:50:17 pm
content: Quote from: voltsandjolts on May 22, 2023, 08:06:19 pmSoooooo.... it seems i have bought the right name, from the wrong manufacturer, because it was cheaper. Great.And... all that because i was not smart enough to guess that there could be two COMPLETELY different functions. How the hell can this happen ?!It's the first time i stumble upon dissimilar references, is it something common or is it rare ? Should i be more attentive when shopping, as i usually only lookup references ?

author: tom66
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 22, 2023, 09:42:16 pm
content: You have made the unfortunate mistake of truncating the part number.FM24C256-G for instance is one instance of a Fairchild/Onsemi part.FM24C256N for instance is one instance of a Fairchild/Onsemi part."FM24C256" is just a type identifier for a non-volatile memory, the technology can be multiple types. Though this is the first case I have seen of mixing FRAM and EEPROM... and I can't lie and say I wouldn't make the same mistake.

author: Benta
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2023, 12:32:48 am
content: Well, would you blindly replace an M6 hardened steel bolt with some M6 decorative brass bolt?Read the data sheets. I feel no pity, sorry.

author: nipil
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2023, 05:45:06 am
content: Quote from: tom66 on May 22, 2023, 09:42:16 pmOK i now understand there could be "base IDs" for "function" and suffixes for "implementation details". So that is something i'll have to watch out for.Quote from: Benta on May 23, 2023, 12:32:48 amIf you read Ramtron datasheet, you will actually see that they name the component in it's short version "fm24c256", in what seems all of it, except the ordering information which adds "-S1" at the end, without telling what the suffix means (at least in rev 1.1 of the datasheet from 2001).Fairchild adds clock and packaging information in the end of the package name, which is more "well known" for newcomers like me, who understood early that a suffix is often for packages (N for TH, for example) or other optionsSo my point was not about "not reading the datasheet", but the fact that shopping for references could be actually misleading. AFAIK, searching Digikey for FM24C256 only brings up Fairchild, so i thought that Ramtron was obsolete or had been bought back by Fairchild, or whatever.Not all of us are electronics gurus, we all start to learn somewhere ; and even if we do not look for pity, when the way is paved with some hard-to-distinguish-details, i think there should be a clearer way for shopping sites.Thanks for your help and have a nice dayEdit : typos

author: nipil
author_rank: Contributor
timestamp: May 23, 2023, 06:20:45 am
content: Quote from: Benta on May 23, 2023, 12:32:48 amBy the way, i'll take the bait.Your example is misleading, because any fool on the planet (except for colorblind people, sadly) is capable of seeing the color difference, even if they do not know the name of the material nor their properties.Actually, your example is even not that bad ... as you say "hardened steel", instead of O1 or A2 or whatever.Which would actually prove your own point, that we should be more aware and watchful.My point was not about learning the difference in the material.But the fact that if you shop for A2 tool steel, and got O1 delivered, either be it because some idiot put the wrong label on it, or mis-sorted it in the bins,or because the order instructions were not clear enough (having a capital i mistaken for a lowercase L, or a zero for an 0)thenyou would not know a thing looking at it, or using it,except if you were actually expecting differences.Thatwas my point : if it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, is should be clear that itisa freaking duck, not a chicken.Just my 2 cents, but to each one his opinion