I don’t know why the chip manufacturer discontinued it–you would think that given that the chip already had been developed (and so, there were no further costs there) and that there was an active customer base (at least SanDisk), the manufacturer would just continue churning the chips out and making money.
I’ve also wondered why the particular chip that was chosen as a replacement was chosen. Over time, chip price goes down and power/capabilities go up dramatically. And yet the replacement chip that the chip customers chose here is less powerful than the previous, even though it is many years later.
