Some basic info about USB - eviltoast
  • Plopp@lemmy.world
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    2 months ago

    Behind the scenes, here’s what those labels correspond to:

    • USB 5Gbps: USB 3.0 and 3.1 Gen 1

    • USB 10Gbps: USB 3.1 Gen 2, 3.2 Gen 2×1, and 3.2 Gen 1×2

    • USB 20Gbps: USB 3.2 Gen 2×2

    • USB 40Gbps: USB4’s initial version as currently shipping

    That’s cool. But even though it finally adds simplicity, it’s still yet another renaming of the same things.

    Here’s a snippet from an article from 2019:

    The upcoming 20 Gb/s USB 3.2 connection, which offers twice the speeds of the previous iteration, will be known as ‘USB 3.2 Gen 2x2’. Its predecessor, ‘USB 3.1’ will be rebranded to ‘USB 3.2 Gen 2’, while ‘USB 3.0’, which ran at 5 Gb/s speeds, will be termed ‘USB 3.2 Gen 1’.

    Reading that I want to shoot myself, and even the latest change, which probably is a good one, drives me slightly mad due to the history of renaming everything so many times.

    • s_s@lemm.ee
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      2 months ago

      the history of renaming everything so many times.

      Every time a new USB spec comes out the version number goes up. A new spec comes out because they add more features. The spec is a whitepaper that explains all the features. It’s a “The King is dead, long live the king!” situation.

      If you just never used the version numbers to mean something that they never meant (transfer speeds) then literally none of this is confusing.

      They’ve officially renamed the transfer speeds one time after people made a big huff. here’s how they changed:

      • USB SuperSpeed -> USB 5Gbps

      • USB SuperSpeed 10Gbps -> USB 10Gbps

      • USB SuperSpeed 20Gpbs -> USB 20Gbps

      And If you can’t follow along with that, I’m really, really sorry. There’s not much I can do from a internet discussion board. XD

      • Plopp@lemmy.world
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        2 months ago

        Yes, I am the only one confused. It’s not like half the tech internet blew a gasket over how confusing and bad the renaming of the generations were. Just me. I guess I should just read the whitepapers of every standard going forward, silly me.

        • s_s@lemm.ee
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          2 months ago

          Well if there’s anything I expect from the new-cycle masses, it’s rationality.

          Heaven forbid, we try and do better!

          I guess I should just read the whitepapers of every standard going forward, silly me.

          You don’t have to read whitepapers to know the difference between Ethernet, CAT6 and RJ45 even if your grandpa doesn’t know the difference.

          It’s not too much to expct the “nerds” to know the real names of PAN connections, too.