JEDEC Solid State Technology Association has released the JESD220-2 Universal Flash Storage (UFS) Card Extension Standard, which standardizes functionality that aligns with the UFS embedded device standard. UFS is a high performance interface designed for use in computing and mobile systems such as smart phones and tablets where power consumption needs to be minimized. Its high speed serial interface and optimized protocol enable significant improvements in throughput and mobile system performance. The new UFS card standard provides a removable storage solution while maintaining sequential and random IOPs performance. Even using a single lane the UFS 1.0 card offers 600 MB/s interface speed in both directions and a queuing mechanism to further increase system throughput.

Features of the UFS card are the same as those defined in the UFS 2.0 embedded device standard:

• Based on the UFS 2.0 standard and compatible with the UFS HCI 2.0 standard
• Supports MIPI M-PHY HS-Gear3, HS-Gear2 (optional), and PWM-Gear1
• Features common to embedded UFS 2.0 devices:
  • Support for multiple logical units, each with configurable characteristics
  • Reliable write and background operations
  • Secure operations such as purge and erase to enhance data security
  • Includes write protection options, including permanent and power-on write protection
  • Provides task management and power management functionality