The present invention provides for a tunneling anisotropic magnetoresistive (TAM) device and a method of operation. An embodiment of the device provides for a magnetic conducting sense layer with a fixed edge spin and a center magnetization direction, a magnetic conducting storage layer with a fixed edge spin and a center magnetization direction, and a nonmagnetic nonconducting barrier layer sandwiched between the sense layer and the storage layer. In one embodiment, the two center magnetization directions are aligned with a hard axis of the device, and the center magnetization direction of the storage layer is indicative of a logical state of the device. A larger magnetic field is required to invert the center magnetization direction of the storage layer than is required to invert the center magnetization direction of the sense layer.