![]() ![]() ![]() Short cables are great for portability, but that can leave you sitting on the floor next to a power outlet as your phone charges. It's a small difference in price, but it's worth it.Īnother important aspect is cable length. While you don't have to buy a cable from your phone's manufacturer, you should stick to recognized brands. It will become the norm over the next several years, just like it took USB 3 a while to catch on. USB 4.0 is the newest standard, but at the time of writing it's not generally available.Most new computers have at least one USB 3 port, and high-quality flash drives use this standard. Some USB 3.0 ports also have an SS symbol (which stands for Super Speed). You can typically identify a USB 3.x port or connector by its blue coloring. It's much faster than USB 2.0, and thus recommended for devices like external hard drives. USB 3.x is the current standard for USB speeds.Most computers still include a few USB 2.0 ports. You'll find it used on cheap flash drives, devices like mice and keyboards, and similar. It's the slowest speed of USB still used today. USB 2.0 introduced many modern USB norms, including support for Mini and Micro cables, USB OTG (see below), and more.You're very unlikely to find devices using this standard nowadays. USB 1.x was the original standard, and is ancient by modern benchmarks.The cable's connector doesn't necessarily mean that it uses a certain standard. USB connection types are only half the story, as USB has also gone through multiple standards of varying data transfer speeds. This is to prevent potential damage that would be caused by connecting two computers via USB-A, for example. The type-A end powers the device, while the type-B end receives power. In most cases, you'll find USB cables have one standard type-A end and one type-B end of some sort. We've covered more on cables, adapters, and ports for Apple devices if you're curious. Older Apple devices use the much larger 30-pin proprietary connector, and newer iPad Pro models use USB-C. It's a similar size to USB-C and comes standard on most Apple devices released since September 2012. Lightning: This isn't a true USB standard, but is Apple's proprietary connector for the iPhone, AirPods, some iPad models, and more.You'll see it on many modern laptops and smartphones, including MacBooks, Pixel phones, and controllers for the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series S|X. It's also capable of juggling multiple functions. It's a reversible connection that packs higher transfer rates and more power than previous USB types. Type-C: This is the newest type of USB cable.While you'll still find micro-USB on some smartphones, tablets, USB battery packs, and game controllers, many have moved onto USB-C. Micro-USB: Another past standard, slowly declining in popularity, for mobile and portable devices.These include cameras, the PlayStation 3 controller, MP3 players, and similar. While not that common today, you'll still see these on some devices, which are mostly from Sony. Mini-USB: A smaller connector type that was standard for mobile devices a while back.They're not very common these days, as most devices have moved onto a smaller connection. Type-B: An almost-square connector, mostly used for printers and other powered devices that connect to a computer.You'll find them on game consoles, TVs, and other devices too. Most computers have multiple USB-A ports for connecting peripherals. Type-A: The standard flat, rectangular interface that you find on one end of nearly every USB cable.Here are the six most common types of USB cables and connectors: Why is this? As it turns out, they each serve different functions, mainly to preserve compatibility and support new devices. USB is supposedly universal, but there are so many different types of USB cables and connections. ![]()
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