USB 3.0 for real world speed
Now that there is consensus on USB being the connectivity of the future, the third version is poised to send some interfaces into obsolescence while supporting real word data transmission speeds. As with every new technological breakthrough it’s not yet everywhere. It has yet to be implemented in Windows, and Intel won’t support it until 2011 – which actually isn’t that far into the future. And not all new devices are made to the USB 3.0 standard – yet. But USB 3.0 is backwards capable, so it will connect to USB 2.0 devices though additional cables would be needed for best results.
In addition to sending and receiving data at the same time, USB 3.0 can support data being sent at 3 to 4 gigabytes per second, for real world data transmission. All of this is said to be ten times faster than USB 2.0. And for anyone still not convinced, USB 3.0 is also smart technology. Unlike the current USB modes that keep devices powered and ready for use, USB 3.0 cuts power usage by letting devices “sleep” while waiting, hence it cuts down on power consumption. These new developments pretty much guarantee that USB technology will continue to grow. Last year about 3 billion devices had USB connectivity but that number is expected to exceed 4 billion this year. Soon enough, USB 3.0 will dominate external storage including flash drives and mobile devices.