FAQ About Super Speed USB 3.0 That You May Miss

Called super speed USB, USB 3.0 signifies a big progress that has most transformed computing in the recent years. USB 3.0 port is advantageous in various aspects, from its data transfer speed to compatibility with USB 2.0 gadgets, from capacity to performance. When USB 2.0 offer us 6x write speed, USB 3.0 has realized 12x. Now, the area that USB 3.0 technology covers has been extended to external hard drive from basic data backup. Now let's have a basic knowledge about some of the frequently asked questions about this advanced technology.

What is USB 3.0 port?

USB 3.0 port is just a step forward USB 2.0 ports. In the appearance, they do not have big difference, except a bright blue strip above the port opening. USB 3.0 is now major universal serial bus and it has greatly made the connection connection between PC and peripherals easily and simply. After a decade's domination of USB 2.0 in the PC world, USB 3.0 comes into being for the need for more speed by ever greater bandwidth demand from devices.

Advantages of USB 3.0

Generally, the USB 3.0 has advantages over USB 2.0 in these aspects, such as transfer speed up to 4.8Gbps, supporting new transfer types, great compatibility with USB 2.0, etc. The SuperSpeed USB can realize flexible interaction between device and host computer. Besides, the USB 3.0 can offer more power when needed. For example, those bus powered or battery powered devices can be charged at a faster speed and one of the major advantages of USB 3.0 lies in its power efficiency.

Improvements Expected From USB 3.0 Hubs

Although we can see a lot of improvements in USB 3.0 over USB 2.0, there are still drawbacks such as the cable length. USB 3.0 devices such as hubs are more expensive than the USB 2,0 hubs. Usually, for a super speed USB 3.0 hub, we can find two types of hubs, one for super speed, another hub at regular high speed. Anyway, with the competition of different USB 3.0 manufacturers, the price difference is not that sharp and acceptable.

New Application Allowed by USB 3.0

Generally, those high brand width gadget previously supported by USB 2.0 can work even better when USB 3.0 is applied. The USB 3.0 can be applied to hard drive, video adapters, flash drive, especially the high end flash drive, which USB 2.0 may fails to support with enough power or speed. We can gain a lot of convenience brought by USB 3.0 if we try to connect more electronic devices to a USB hub because USB 3.0 can offer more headroom for gadgets.

Then how the existing peripherals co-exist with USB 3.0?

There is no need to worry the retirement of the existing peripherals with the appearance of USB 3.0 because the latter has been planned initially to co-exist with USB 2.0. For one thing, USB 3.0 just defines new physical connection and the connector remains unchanged in shape with 4 USB 2.0 contacts in the exact same location as before.

Among all the applications of USB 3.0, external hard drives seem a good example, 3 times quicker than the USB 2.0 counterparts. They may be one of the big sellers at the moment.