drivers/mtd/nand/raw/ingenic · keep-annotate

Ingenic JZ47xx and JZ4780 NAND flash controllers

On-chip NAND flash memory controllers found in Ingenic XBurst MIPS SoCs (JZ4740, JZ4725B, JZ4780) that powered niche hobbyist and educational devices like the Ben NanoNote handheld (2010) and the Imagination Creator CI20 developer board (2014-2015). They handle reading and writing the raw NAND chip used as the main storage on those boards.

keep-annotate conf=0.72 last_sold=2015 deploy=low replacement=none subsystem=mtd category=storage-flash

72%

recommendation

Worth keeping but flagging as legacy hardware. The chips powered a small ecosystem of MIPS-based hobbyist devices that peaked around 2010-2015 and are no longer manufactured, but the code is still being maintained upstream as recently as January 2026, and there is no replacement since this is the SoC-specific controller. The handful of users who still run a Ben NanoNote or Creator CI20 depend on it, so removal is not justified, just an annotation that deployments are minimal.

repository signals

8 files

1,566 source lines

10 commits, 5y

+23 / −29 lines added / removed, 5y

10 authors, 5y

monthly commits · 2021-04-21 → 2026-04-21 · 10 total · active in 9/61 months

sources

lore.kernel.org
The driver still received an upstream touch in January 2026, indicating it is not abandoned in-tree.
git.kernel.org
The OF match table shows support for Ingenic jz4740, jz4725b, and jz4780 NAND/ECC-related hardware in this directory.
en.wikipedia.org
The Creator CI20, a notable JZ4780 board, was released in 2014 and updated in 2015, placing the newest mainstream developer-board exposure for this family around 2015.
en.wikipedia.org
The Ben NanoNote shipped in early 2010 with an Ingenic XBurst SoC and internal NAND flash; by 2011 it had sold just over 1,000 units, consistent with niche legacy deployment.
en.wikipedia.org
Qi Hardware, associated with the Ben NanoNote ecosystem, was primarily active from 2009 to 2011 before going dormant, reinforcing that this hardware family is long past its commercial peak.

codex reasoning notes (technical)

Local shell inspection identified this as a real platform NAND driver for Ingenic JZ47xx/JZ4780-era SoCs. `lore_file_timeline` showed non-removal upstream activity through 2026-01-02, so removal/deprecation is not justified despite old hardware. Web search opened Wikipedia pages for Ben NanoNote, Qi Hardware, and Imagination Creator; together they show the visible product ecosystem is concentrated in 2010-2015 and now legacy/niche. No natural replacement driver exists because this is the SoC-specific NAND controller driver. Recommendation is keep-annotate: retain it, but mark as legacy/low-deployment hardware.