Items tagged with SuperSpeed
Things are about to get faster. The USB Promoter Group announced that it has completed the USB 3.1 specification, which will enable SuperSpeed USB performance of 10Gbps. This, of course, rivals Intel and Apple’s blazing fast 10Gbps Thunderbolt interface, and the new USB connection will make use of more efficient data encoding, and it will be compatible with earlier USB specifications (USB 3.0 and 2.0). USB 3.1 will offer double the effective data throughput of current SuperSpeed USB offerings. Developers will be able to learn technical details of the new spec this summer and autumn at three developer conferences, one each in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. One will be on August...
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Are you still wielding a USB 2.0-based NAND flash memory drive? If so, maybe it's time to think about stepping up to a SuperSpeed USB 3.0-based thumb drive, especially now that USB 3.0 ports are fast becoming ubiquitous with just about every new motherboard and system being released these days. One of your options is Patriot Memory's new Supersonic Boost XT USB 3.0 drive, a rugged little stick that's fast and should be able to withstand a bit of clumsiness, like dropping it down a flight of stairs. The Supersonic Boost XT measures just over 6 centimeters long and 2 centimeters wide and comes housed in an ultra-durable rubberized case "for extreme protection," Patriot Memory says. "The Supersonic...
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There's a lot going on at the Intel Developer Forum (IDF) this year, just as there is every year, and not all of it has to do with processors. Making a splash of its own, DisplayLink debuted the world's first SuperSpeed USB 3.0 graphics adapter built around the company's DL-3500 chip. It's built by Winstars and is appropriately called the Winstars SuperSpeed USB 3.0 to HDMI adapter. "Winstars is set to deliver a very well-timed connectivity solution that builds on the inherent performance benefits of SuperSpeed USB 3.0," said Dennis Crespo, DisplayLink executive vice president of marketing and business development. "DisplayLink adds on the ability to stream high resolution video and enriched...
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While Intel and AMD pussyfoot around implementing SuperSpeed USB 3.0 chips onto their motherboards, the parts and accessories industry isn't sitting around with their thumbs in uncomfortable places. Companies like NEC and VIA have stepped in to fill the temporary void with USB 3.0 chips that board makers can slap on new motherboards, and the electronics industry has responded by releasing a flurry of USB 3.0-enabled devices in a short period. According to In-Stat, there will be nearly 80 million SuperSpeed USB 3.0-enabled devices in the wild by the end of 2011, and that's just the beginning. Look for smartphones to play a big role in pushing the SuperSpeed specification going forward. Image Credit:...
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You know what the greatest thing about owning a USB 3.0 thumb drive is? You get to point at all your USB 2.0 toting friends and laugh. So maybe that wouldn't be very nice, which leads us to the second best thing about a SuperSpeed drive: the transfer rates! Corsair today gave its Flash Voyager USB 3.0 thumb drive the green light to land on store shelves, and assuming you have the requisite hardware to take advantage of USB 3.0 devices, you'll enjoy file transfers up to four times faster than typical USB 2.0 drives. You'll be able to pilot a Flash Voyager USB 3.0 drive later this month in one of three models, including 8GB ($20), 16GB ($30), and 32GB ($70). Corsair Ships Flash Voyager USB 3.0...
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It's not quite infinity and beyond, but Corsair did take its Flash Voyager USB memory stick as high as it can currently go, which is USB 3.0. The new SuperSpeed models sport the same rubberized mold as previous Voyager USB sticks, only now they're potentially much faster, assuming your system has a USB 3.0 port. Otherwise, the retooled Voyagers are backwards compatible with USB 2.0/1.1, just obviously not as fast. "The faster read speeds offered by USB 3.0 make high-speed data storage much more convenient," said Thi La, vice President of Memory Products at Corsair. "For example, high-bandwidth videos can be viewed directly from the USB drive, so you no longer have to wait while they are copied...
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Zotac today announced its first Zbox series of mini-PCs equipped with USB 3.0 technology -- the Zbox ID41 series. The boring name belies what's a fairly sexy nettop, made even more so with the addition of SuperSpeed ports (two on the back panel). There's also four USB 2.0 ports (two on the back, one on the front, and one on the top panel). "External expansion is vital with mini-PCs. By adding SuperSpeed USB 3.0 technology to our award-winning Zbox mini-PCs, we are able to offer external connectivity capable of speeds up to 5Gb/s," said Carsten Berger, marketing director. Other notable features include: Intel Atom D525 dual-core processor 2GB of DDR3 memory 250GB hard drive Nvidia Ion graphics...
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Solid state drives (SSDs) and the USB 3.0 "SuperSpeed" specification seem meant for each other, and that hasn't been lost on Iomega. The digital storage firm today unveiled new host-powered external USB 3.0 SSD flash drives available in 64GB, 128GB, and 256GB capacities. "When time is money and you need the latest technology in portable storage, Iomega's new high performance external solid state Flash drives are the ideal solution," said Jonathan Huberman, president of Iomega Corporation. "Iomega's new external USB 3.0 SSD Flash drives are compact, rugged portable storage devices that deliver data transfer speeds considerably faster than any standard rotating disk drives, as well as the confidence...
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Do you hear that noise? That's the sound of Iomega tooting its own horn. Why, you ask? Iomega claims to be moving all of its USB 2.0 portable hard drives over to the new (and much faster) SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface, starting with the Iomega eGo lineup. But that isn't all. Iomega also promises that these newly spec'd drives won't cost a dime more than their slower USB 2.0 brethren. "As a market leader in external hard drive solutions, Iomega is proud to be the first to move towards an all USB 3.0 portable hard drive lineup – and at no extra price premium to our customers," said Jonathan Huberman, president of Iomega Corporation and the Consumer and Small Business Products Division of EMC....
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Sure, Intel isn't quite ready to dive into USB 3.0 territory with its chipsets, but that hasn't stopped computer peripheral makers from launching SuperSpeed devices nonetheless. The latest comes from Samsung, which just unveiled its S2 Portable 3.0. This sleek and spunky 2.5-inch external drive is built for speed, and as such it comes configured with an on-board SuperSpeed USB 3.0 interface and a 7200RPM spindle speed. "As digital content continues to evolve from standard definition to HD and now 3D content, we expect the demand for high performance external HDDs to increase, especially among IT enthusiasts," Ho-Seong Lee, vice president, storage marketing, Semiconductor Business, Samsung Electronics....
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So what if Intel is taking its sweet little time adopting the USB 3.0 spec, let the transition begin. Sure, it sucks that the world's largest chip maker isn't on board yet, but when Intel finally comes around, at least we won't be complaining about a lack of SuperSpeed devices. The latest piece of USB 3.0 hardware to come to market is Super Talent's new Express Drive, an ordinary looking USB thumb drive with extraordinary transfer capabilities. The new drive comes in two capacities, 16GB ($69) and 32GB ($119). In exchange for the pricing premium (compared to USB 2.0 drives), Super Talent promises transfer speeds over 125MB/s on USB 3.0, and over 43MB/s on USB 2.0. In other words, buy it today...
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Not sure if you've heard, but USB 3.0 is "the hot new thing." We're expecting a full rollout of devices that support the faster protocol early next year, but it looks as if Buffalo is joining Freecom in pushing out products before most folks even have a chance to add USB 3.0 support to their PC. Starting this week, Buffalo is shipping its first-ever SuperSpeed USB 3.0 External Hard Drive, labeled the DriveStation HD-HXU3. It promises transfer rates up to 625 MB per second (or five Gbits per second), and it's backward-compatible with USB 2.0 ports and devices. It's shipping in 1TB, 1.5TB and 2TB capacities, and just in case you're also on the hunt for a USB 3.0 expansion card so you can take advantage...
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USB 3.0 splashed down in earnest this past week at IDF in San Francisco, but aside from a webcam and a few prototype devices on the show floor, we've yet to hear of any real groundbreaking USB 3.0 products. Until now. Freecom, a lesser known maker of external hard drives and the like, has today confessed that it has a USB 3.0 external HDD in the pipeline, and unless we're missing something, that makes it the first to do so. The Hard Drive XS 3.0 doesn't look all that special on the outside. It's just a plain portable HDD, with a regular exterior and no real flash to speak of. But as with beauty, it's the inside that counts. As the planet's first HDD to utilize SuperSpeed USB technology, this...
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Can you feel the excitement? We can. USB 3.0 is inching closer and closer to reality, which means your current PC is inching closer and closer to being a token of yesteryear. USB 2.0 has been around for years now, and by and large, it has been sufficient. Transfer rates are fairly quick, and industry support couldn't be higher.But hey, this industry is all about progress, and we aren't about to complain about newfound speed. The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) today announced the availability of the USB 3.0 (SuperSpeed USB) Compliance and Certification Program, which basically means that companies can have their products tested to receive the SuperSpeed USB logo/certification. Jeff Ravencraft,...
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