USB 2.0 is way cooler then the previous version as it could run up to 480Mbps. However, that is going to be smashed through soon due to the release of the USB 3.0 standard. This new standard will be capable of transfer speeds up to 4.8Gbps which is a HUGE leap of 10 times. The 3.0 specification should be with us early this year with products arriving in 2009 – 2010. USB 3.0 will be backwards compatible with 2.0 and 1.1. Also it will feature some more efficient protocols which will shut down to preserve power when not in use. The cables will be parallel optical which allows for the higher speeds. Bring it on!
Via: TheGadgetBlog
I cant wait to see gadgets that go that fast…phew
Great now I will need to upgrade all my equipment again. Just what I need.
wow, looks exactly live the USB 1.0 and 2.0, i think it`s a fake.
If USB 1 and 2 look the same why should 3 be different? And plus its whats inside the cable head that counts.
Aw man. Can’t wait to see this. Giving firewire a run for its money
How about designing the darned things so one side of the connector has a funny shape so you can plug it in by feel?
Speed is nice, but wouldn’t it be nice if it were as easy to plug in as a 1983 phone line?
Ryan are you blind??
Amazing, gonna have to pick up a hub when they come out.
Mr.Bill Gates (now retired), you are a moron. usb 2.0 looks just like 1.0 didn’t it? So Why would it not make sense for 3.0 to look like the others. The only real difference is that it uses fiber optics.
This standard seems vaguely pointless right now, as most devices cannot read or write more than 30Mbps. USB2.0 is faster than necessary for these devices. I don’t see USB3.0 being necessary or widespread very soon.
Excellent suggestion there, Matilda
Matilda is right; although the current standard has a imprint on one side, while reaching around the back of a case or even a laptop, which way is up is not always evident.
Dan, so you’re telling me a SATA Hard Drive wouldn’t benefit from USB 3.0?.. .only 30 mbps ?
Amazing, gonna have to pick up a hub when they come out.
Bust 4, read the article properly, you don’t have to upgrade anything, it quite clearly states it’s backwards compatible with usb 1 and 2. Dan, that’s a fair point, but with flash memory capacity increasing all the time, it’s probably a good idea to have a USB standard that can cope with those kind of speeds. I think this is great, USB works well and it’ll be good to see it stick around for a while into the future.
There’s a big difference between GBps and Gbps, namely ‘bytes’ and ‘bits’. 4.8 Gbps is 4.8/8 (600 MBps), so really, it’s only just 1/4th faster than USB 2.0, not 10 times, artard.
It is a 10x jump in speed. USB 2.0 runs at 480 Mbps, not 480 MBps. 2.0 runs at 60 MBps.
If you really LOOK at the picture, you can see it isnt the same as usb 1.2 or 2.
Did you just NOT NOTICE the 5 leads in towards the rear of the connector labeled USB_3?
I want to know more detail info.
Hey just wanted to throw it out there, I think USB 3.0 is going to take up 2 USB 2.0 ports on the computer to get the desired speed of 3.0, not 100 percent on that but I’ve read about that being the case a few times
– Also the only thing that competes with this at the moment is really eSata with speeds of 3 Gbps, we’ll see what happens
As far as I know there is no optical, involved just 5 extra wires and USB 3.0 will utilize all 9 wires (2 grounds), 1 power line upted to 900mA, a dedicated transmit pair for the usb 3, a dedicated recieve pair for the usb 3, and the usb 2 data pair which can switch directions back and forth although in the usb 3 use I think it is single direction, which direction I am unclear on. The cable will be about the same thickness as an ethernet cable. the maximunPC article has a cutaway view of the cable.
With e-sata found built in on many brands motherboards, I think USB3 will remain a favored step child with little REAL potential for me