News hardware The new USB standard has a lot of good things in store for us
Published on 03/09/2022 at 15:15
The USB Implementers Forum as the responsible organization has announced new information about the next generation of USB ports. Many things are to come, we take stock in this article.
It is through a Press release that the USB Implementers Forum (USB IF), yesterday announced new information on the next generation of connectors with universal transmission used around the world. Failing to make it simple, society has once again chosen to complicate our lives., because instead of just skipping a version and naming the new standard USB 5, the consortium decided to call it USB4 version 2.0 instead. An approach that was quick to react on Twitter:
USB Naming Standards…
USB 1.0
USB 1.1
USB 2.0
USB 3.0
USB 3.1
USB 3.2
USB 3.2 Gen 1
USB 3.2 Gen 2
USB 3.2 Gen 1×2
USB 3.2 Gen 2×2
USB4
USB4 Version 2.0— Charlie (@ghost_motley) September 1, 2022
USB4 version 2.0: speed and more speed
If you are interested in technology at all, you should know that the current version of USB 4 is more than enough for most devices. However, the USB Implementers Forum must also think about the future. That’s why they decided to develop this 2.0 version of USB 4 and double the transfer rate of the latter compared to its predecessor. – on type C.
Results, instead of the 40 Gbit/s on USB 4, the new version 2.0 will offer a data transit of 80 Gbit/s. With this, even the largest amounts of data should be able to be transferred at lightning speed. USB 4 version 2.0 therefore also outperforms Thunderbolt 4which is however also considered fast, with its 40 Gbit / s.
USB 4 version 2.0 would be compatible with old cables
But the best news might not be the speed, because if you thought you’d have to invest in a whole USB cable package, well you can rest assured. In the press release, the USB IF explicitly confirms that 80 GBit/s can also be achieved with USB 4 type C cables.
In contrast, we don’t know any more on the technical side at the moment.. However, it is clear thatthere will also be a whole new generation of USB-C cables that will rely on a whole new internal architecture. Data transmission protocols will also be updated for the upcoming standard, which should even benefit some older connector variants such as USB 3.2.
USB 4 version 2.0: a good reason for iPhones to adopt USB-C?
Current Macs and iPad Pros use Thunderbolt 4 in their USB-C ports thanks to the M1 and M2 chip familiesand should therefore not have too much trouble adopting this version 2.0 of USB 4. This should therefore imply higher data transmission and the possibility of using screens with more pixels.
These impressive speeds can also be a very good argument for future iPhone models (iPhone 15 probably) adopt the USB-C standardalthough we doubt that these speeds can be achieved due to the lower voltage of the device and its battery. On the other hand, to do local backups, it should be a small blessing, because to this day, iPhones still use USB 2.0 speeds to transfer information through their cable.. Any improvement in this respect would therefore necessarily be welcome, no matter how small.
Also, we should have more information about USB 4 version 2.0 during USB Developer Days 2022, which will be held on November 15-16, 2022 in Seoul.. Also note that it will probably take wait until 2023 to see the first products equipped with this new standard appear in stores.