For consumer products, Thin is in

Thin portable products in the consumer electronics play a significant role in the functionality of the consumers demand and their specific preferences. Thinner die stacks are being introduced despite the difficulties with handling, dicing, and packaging thin wafers as stacked die packages offer a way to increase the functionality in a limited board area by moving in the z direction. Motorola Advanced Package Development and Prototype Lab in Austin, TX, developed a package called a 3-D BGA DCA TAB COB MCM technology, while the applications in Amkor's PoP include mobile phones, digital cameras, and MP3 players. Amkor's PoP offers several advantages over stacked die packages such as the flexibility of using memory from a variety of suppliers and testing prior to assembly. JEDEC standards for the pin-out for the top stacked package have also been developed and new packaging stacking equipment from many suppliers are also available.