USB Who?

We recently have been ordering new models of PCs and I noticed some brand new USB ports on the front.  In the past there has only been two different types with one being a super speed: USB 2.0 and USB 3.0.  But recently I have been seeing new symbols next to the USB ports.  I was curious so to Google I went. 

Port A is a regular USB 2.0 and supports all devices with the same connection.  This is the standard and most common USB type.  Port B is a new type of port called USB PowerShare which allows you to charge small devices like a smartphone while the PC is off.  Normally when you turn the PC off, the USB ports are off as well.  PowerShare allows the port to receive a small amount of power still.

Port C is a USB 3.0 or super speed that allows a fast transfer of files and data.  This is helpful when you are copying a large amount of data to and from a flash drive or using your phone's fast charge feature.  You can tell when a port is 3.0 v.s 2.0 by the "ss" next to the symbol or the internal connection is blue.  Port D is a USB-C port which is a newer, super speed, universal connector which allows the transfer of video or power.  While a lot of devices do not have this yet I do have a hard drive that does, so it is becoming more popular.

Who knew there would be this many different USB ports!

Comments

[Kerri]

Cool! I had not heard of USB PowerShare before. Very helpful explanation!