The Universal Serial Bus (USB) was developed as a standard to define communication protocols between computers and electronic devices. USB refers both to the USB ports and cables with USB connectors. They are most frequently used in 2021 as charging cables for smartphones and tablets, but their primary purpose is for data transfer between computers, smartphones, and tablets to accessories like controllers, keyboards, printers, and scanners.
Of course, the amount devices made to be used with a computer has grown immensely since the concept was first introduced. Every industry in the known world has found innumerable uses for USB connections. Where there’s a specialized piece of equipment, there’s usually a USB connection to manage it through a computer interface.
Like any technology, the USB design has not stood still. The original line of USB 1.0 ports is hard to find, but USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 are found nearly everywhere. On desktops, you can identify a type-A USB port, the traditional rectangle USB port shape, by its color. Grey usually stands for USB 2.0. Blue usually means it is a USB 3.0. The color isn’t the only difference.
USB 3.0 is an advanced form of USB 2.0 with a faster transfer rate. USB 2.0 ports are only able to reach a 480 Mbps transfer rate even over short, efficient connector wires. 3.0 can reach speeds over ten times faster at 4.8 Gbit/s. This is due to four extra connector wires inside a USB cable. These extra connections allow more data bandwidth, but also allow for signals to be sent and received simultaneously.
The modern consumer is likely to associate USB 3.0 with the Type-C form factor and “fast-charging”. The massive bandwidth allows tablets, smartphones, and other electronics to pull a higher amount of power from the wall. The transfer rate of 4.8 Gbit/s is so fast that the cable can be used as a replacement for high-definition display cables and still allow for power throughput and extra device interaction. This is evident in devices like mobile touch-screen displays with USB C connections or portable VR headsets like Oculus(excuse me, Meta) Quest 2.
An IO panel of computer motherboard with USB 2.0, 3.0, 3.1, USB type C, Display port, HDMI, PS2, Ethernet, SPDIF, and 7.1 audio ports.The Universal Serial Bus is the standard male-female connection system used to allow computing peripherals, accessories, and even other computers to talk to each other. Put simply, they allow data transfer to occur from one device to another. It was originally designed to help connect office devices like scanners and printers to either office computers or home computers. The use of the USB port and USB cables has far surpassed its original purpose. Now, USB ports and cables can be seen on nearly every electronic device with rechargeable batteries or the need to transfer data like video from a hunting camera.
USB can be confusing at first. There are three different shape types of USB adapters and two active versions. There are also “mini” variations to some port types that act as adapters for devices with limited surface space for ports.