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Simplify Your Environment!

Called Universal Serial Bus (USB), this advancement in technology is designed for use with numerous devices, including printers, digital cameras, game pads, joysticks, keyboards and mice, and storage devices. USB is the new industry standard for attaching peripheral devices to a computer.

USB hardware is identical across platforms. Simply put, USB effectively eliminates previous platform distinctions between peripherals, allowing users to choose from a much wider range of devices with complete confidence that they are making a safe investment even if they decide to share devices with users of other platforms. USB makes adding peripheral devices so easy, anyone can do it.

First, USB replaces all the different kinds of serial and parallel port connectors with one standardized plug and port combination. It looks like this:

With USB-compliant computers and peripherals, you can just plug them in and turn them on! USB makes the whole process automatic. It's like adding instant new capabilities to your computer system. You never need to open your PC, and you don't need to worry about add-in cards, DIP switch settings or IRQs.

Features:

USB 1.1 Brings An Array Of Technological Benefits Over Other Connection Mediums:

• Data Transfer Rates Up To 12Mbps (Megabits Per Second)
• Connect up to 127 different devices
• Faster than traditional legacy connections
• Hot Swappable, Plug-N-Play
• Maximum unassisted cable length 16 feet
• Maximum assisted cable length 80+ feet

Basic Components

Most PCs, including many notebooks, on the market today are fully USB-ready. You can already select from USB digital cameras, computer telephony products, digital speakers, digital gaming devices, and even a new USB peripheral that protects your security by scanning fingerprints.

USB connections allow data to flow both ways between the PC and peripheral. This means you can use your PC to control peripherals in new and creative ways.

For example, you can use your PC to automatically manage a telephone call center to maintain voice, fax and data mailboxes, screen and forward your calls, and even deliver a variety of selected outgoing messages.  Or you can use your PC to tune a set of USB-compliant stereo speakers to match the acoustics of your listening environment.

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USB 1.1 Cables

Not all USB cables are created equal. Only those certified, as true USB 1.1 cables, will allow you to transfer data at USB 1.1 speeds. To ensure you have the proper cable, look to see that your cable is 1.1 certified.

Works with Macs and PCs

USB 1.1 works with both Macs and PCs, which guarantees a wide range of USB capable products at reasonable prices. USB also works with other operating systems to varying degrees like Linux and BSD.

USB 1.1 F.A.Q.

Q. Who developed USB?

A. USB was developed by the personal computing and telecommunications industries, including such companies as Compaq, DEC, IBM, Intel, Microsoft, NEC, and NorTel (Northern Telecom)

Q. What kinds of USB peripherals will I be able to attach to my Macintosh or PC?

A. Numerous devices can take advantage of USB such as digital cameras, modems, keyboards, mouse devices, joysticks, game pads, removable storage devices, scanners, and printers. Because of the increased data rate of USB compared with older legacy connections, we expects numerous new "first time" solutions to become available utilizing USB.

Q. Do I always need to purchase a hub to go with my computer when using USB?

A. No. With USB, a customer can hot-plug or unplug a device at any time without having to put their computer into sleep or restart it so any number of devices can be used in just one port. A hub is only necessary when a customer wants to use several devices at the same time or for convenient access to a USB port (instead of the rear panel of the computer).

Q. How does USB compare with the IEEE 1394 FireWire standard?

A. USB's data rate (12 Mbps) is more than adequate for many common, low-cost applications such as keyboards, mouse devices, joysticks, game controllers, printers, etc. and is much lower cost to implement than FireWire. However, USB is not intended for ultra high-performance peripherals such as digital video, DVD and high-speed disk drives where FireWire's data rate (400 Mbps) is much better suited. Because of their complementary nature, many computer manufactures have aggressively adopted both standards in its future products.

Technological Comparison

USB 1.1 is a lot faster than the traditional connection mediums we are used to attaching keyboards, mice, and other peripherals to our computers. Though not the fastest USB still offers many features that have made it an industry standard.

Let's compare. USB can transfer data at 1.5 Mbps or 12 Mbps. Taking into account that the current FireWire implementation can transfer data at 400 Mbps, it becomes clear that USB's place is at the low end of the performance scale.

Bottom line, both USB and FireWire are two complimentary technologies that offer great cost/performance benefits for customers. Many companies have implemented USB and FireWire in all its products so customers can enjoy a wide variety of choices in peripherals for their computers.

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Types of USB Connectors

There are two common types of USB connectors:

The Type A connector (below) is used to connect a USB device to a hub or CPU and is sometimes referred to as a "downstream" connector (The CPU is always the "upstream" direction). It is rectangular in shape and is friction fit into a Type A plug. Type A plugs exist in the CPU and keyboard.

The type A connection has a flat elongated look.

 The Type B connector (below) is used to attach a USB cable to an endpoint device such as a camera, scanner, or mouse and is sometimes referred to as an "upstream" connector. It is easily identified by its "house" shape (square with a V-shaped "roof").

The type B connection has a boxier look to it..

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Benefits

Why is everyone so excited about USB? Here are some very important advantages and benefits your customers will receive when utilizing USB! Let's consider how USB surpasses the shortcomings of traditional I/O (input/output) interconnect schemes.

• Cross-Platform - Because USB is industry standard, Apple customers gain the benefits of the lower pricing of peripherals through larger volume manufacturing. Only software drivers are required to make them work on a particular platform. This can save an institution or small business money because peripherals can be shared more quickly and easily without involving a computer technician, and there's no duplication of purchases to support multiple platforms.
• Virtually unlimited expansion - Never again will there be "not enough serial ports" on the back of a Macintosh. You can add up to 127 devices to a single USB port!
• Auto Configuration - Plug it in and it works instantly! The Mac OS automatically loads the required drivers and takes care of configuring the device. Users don't need to worry about ID numbers, terminators, or causing a conflict with a previously installed device.
• Hot Plug and Unplug - Customers will save time because they can plug in (or unplug) a device at any time just when they need it. There is no need to restart or reconfigure their system to use the device so they can be more productive immediately. Customers can also can unplug and share a USB peripheral with another user without having to stop their work, shutdown or restart their system.
• Convenient power - Low-power devices can draw power from USB and don't require a bulky, heavy power adapter. This saves users the trouble of finding an available AC outlet and can allow developers to reduce the cost of their product.
• No more adapter cards - reduces management cost by avoiding time consuming hardware card installation, configuration, and conflicts with other installed devices.
• Higher Performance - USB can sustain up to 12 Mbps vs. other interconnect systems like 10kps ADB or 230k Apple Serial. This is significantly faster than PC serial and parallel ports.

UPDATE:  USB 2.0 -- A Faster Way To Connect! 

USB 2.0 is the next generation of Universal Serial Bus (USB) connectivity, providing additional bandwidth, increased stability, and blazing fast speeds beyond our imaginations. The first USB technology (USB 1.1) emerged in response to the proliferation of external peripheral devices (i.e. scanners, digital cameras, removable drives, mice, keyboards, joysticks, printers, etc.). Over the last few years the availability and use of USB devices has increased significantly. This has decreased the need for legacy dependent devices thus increasing the demand on USB technology.

Due to the high demand on this new technology, USB developers have raised the bar of what was USB. A conglomerate of companies, spearheaded by Intel, with the desire to provide consumers with a better more expandable connectivity solution created USB 2.0. USB 2.0 can move data at a blazing speed of up to 480Mbps (Megabits per second). USB 2.0 is fully backward compatible with the first generation of USB devices. USB 2.0 will continue the excellence of a true Plug-N-Play interface allowing you to connect up to 127 different devices to a single computer. With the increase in speed, USB 2.0 will also offer increased functionality, increasing number of devices sharing the available bandwidth.

Features

Hi-Speed USB 2.0 Brings An Array Of Technological Benefits Over Other Connection Mediums:

• Data Transfer Rates Up To 480Mbps (Megabits Per Second)
• For use with WIN 98, 2000, ME, XP and Mac OS X, and LINUX
• Connect up to 127 different devices
• 40 Times Faster Than The Original USB
• Hot Swappable, Plug-N-Play
• Fully Backward Compatible With USB 1.1

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Basic Components

USB 2.0 will soon be found on a countless numbers of products we use today. Currently Hard Drives, Printers, Scanners, CDRWs, FlashCard Readers, File Transfer Cables and motherboards are taking advantage of this new connectivity standard.

USB 2.0 is the latest connectivity standard providing all the benefits of the original (USB 1.1) with the advantage of increased speeds (up to 480Mbps), increased functionality, and stability.

The USB Implementers Forum monitors USB 2.0 Products for quality. Only those who meet their rigorous standards receive the USB 2.0 Logo (right).

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USB 2.0 Cables

USB 2.0 uses the same cabling connection standard as USB 1.1. However not all USB cables are created equal. Only those certified, as true USB 1.1 cables, will allow you to transfer data at USB 2.0 speeds. To ensure you have the proper cable, look to see that your cable is 1.1 or 2.0 certified.

Works with Macs and PCs

USB 2.0 works with both Macs and PCs, which guarantees a wide range of USB capable products at reasonable prices.

USB 2.0 Benefits

The USB 2.0 advantage can be summed up in three words: speed, speed, and more speed—at 480Mbps, it has more than 40 times the bandwidth of the original USB, which makes it the perfect choice for high-speed storage and other high end devices. Remember that the Hi-Speed USB 2.0 technology is fully backward compatible with all of your USB 1.1 devices.

USB 2.0 F.A.Q.

Q - Why USB 2.0, Is it right for me?

A - As USB 1.1 writes its final chapters in the connectivity history books all of our new devices will begin to use this new standard. Why buy a USB 1.1 product that will be replaced in the near future by one that is better, faster, and cheaper when you can add the latest in technology to your computer NOW for a marginal price difference.

Q - What about Macs, do they have USB 2.0?

A - Like the PC, USB 2.0 is not currently shipping as a standard component. However with the drivers provided, you can take full advantage of USB 2.0 no matter if you use a Mac or a PC.  (Mac OS 10.2.x supports USB 2.0)

As you can see, USB 2.0 has many advantages. It offers a wide variety of uses and is really simple and easy to use. USB 2.0 is becoming an industry standard. As more and more companies add USB 2.0 to their products the uses will grow.

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Will USB 2.0 Replace FireWire?

USB 2.0 will coexist with FireWire providing a lower cost alternative to peripheral developers. FireWire will still be the connectivity choice of higher end devices.