MPC Peripherals Corporation has announced the availability of the AP-BUB Bubble Memory Module for the Apple II. The module has a capacity of 128 K which makes it suitable for storing programs, but not records. Some of the advantages of bubble memory are:
- Nonvolatile memory; data reliabiity is over 1000 times that of tapes and disks because the data is not lost if the power is cut off.
- Quiet; unaffected by environmental hazards such as heat, dust, pollution, and vibration to which other mass storage devices are susceptible.
- Executes read or write commands 3 times faster than standard flóppy disk.
Utility pseudo-disk software is supplied with the MPC AP-BUB to facilitate interfacing the device with the Apple processing unit.
Bubble memories have not yet become commonplace for data storage because they are costly to manufacture in the larger capacities. In the past year three U. S. manufacturers have dropped bubble memory development for that reason. Small units, many manufactured in Japan, are expected to become widely available. [Contact: MPC Peripherals Corporation, 9242 Chesapeake Drive, San Diego, CA 92123; 714-278-0630.]
