static memory vs mechanical hard drive?

Question

why computers don't use static memory, is there a conspiracy?

Answer 1

Computers do use static random access semiconductor memory (SRAM) where appropriate. It's fast but expensive, less dense, and is lost when the power is off. Dynamic (DRAM) is much denser and cheaper, but its contents are also lost when the power is off. Flash memory is slower to access, but is not volatile, and can hold its contents for years without power. Magnetic media like tape and disk are extremely dense and cheap and can hold their contents for decades but have longer access times. Use each technology where it is appropriate.

Answer 2

Flash memory hard drives are now becoming available in quite large sizes (e.g. Samsung 32GB), so there's no conspiracy.

The fact is that mechanical drives have been around for so long and produced in such huge numbers that the cost per bit of storage has been driven down to an incredibly low level; Flash drives can't quite compete at the moment. But they have so many advantages (reliability, low power consumption, no noise) that manufacturers are now putting in huge efforts, particularly into drives for laptops.

So be patient, that annoying box of tricks whizzing round inside your computer will soon be whizzing round inside a museum.

Answer 3

At the moment the static memory is too expensive.
There is a SSD (Solid State Drive) that is priced at about 350$ and has 32GB.