Random-access memory, often abbreviated to simply RAM, is a form of computer memory that can be read and changed in any order, typically used to store working data and machine code. A random-access memory device allows data items to be read or written in almost the same amount of time irrespective of the physical location of data inside the memory. In contrast, with other direct-access data storage media such as hard disks, CD-RWs, DVD-RWs and the older magnetic tapes and drum memory, the time required to read and write data items varies significantly depending on their physical locations on the recording medium, due to mechanical limitations such as media rotation speeds and arm movement.[1]
Within the context of iPods, RAM is a significant barrier to the upgradeability of some generations of the device. Upgradeable iPods (the iPod / iPod classic and the iPod mini) have either 32 MiB or 64 MiB of RAM. Because the iPod's database is always stored in memory, a database exceeding the size of the RAM available will result in instability and unusability.
References
[1] Wikipedia contributors. (2020, October 17). Random-access memory. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 19:45, October 19, 2020, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Random-access_memory&oldid=983926543