USB4 Promises Less Confusion
USB4, the upcoming standard for the USB computing interface, promises to integrate the Thunderbolt 3 specification and simplify the technology for computer buyers.
USB4 is a combination of USB, the high-speed Thunderbolt 3 specification, and the USB-C connector. Supposedly, the new specification will end the current confusion surrounding high speed computer connections and cables.
With over 20-plus years in existence, the USB interface has continued to add new speed tiers, including USB 2.0, USB 3.0 and USB 3.1, while remaining backward-compatible with older versions.
A USB-C port has also been created alongside the older USB-A port, in a bid to simplify the connector scheme. USB4 will use the USB-C port, and run at 40Gbps. That’s about double the speed of the preceding USB 3.2 specification.
USB4 hardware, however, is in the future. The USB 3.2 specification was published in 2017 and is due to show up in new products this year. The USB4 standard has not yet been published and is expected to arrive in the middle of this year. This means it will not show up on computers until 2020 or 2021.
To aid the transition, Intel said that it will contribute the Thunderbolt specification to the USB Promoter Group, the same organization behind the USB4 specification. Doing so will enable other chip makers in the USB Promoter Group to build Thunderbolt 3 chips on a royalty-free basis.
USB4 promises to clarify and simplify the USB specifications, form factors, and branding. It’s goal is to consolidate these elements into something more understandable for a general audience. As the inventor of Thunderbolt, Intel wants to see that technology become more popular.
Intel said more than 400 PC designs ship with Thunderbolt ports, as well as virtually all of the latest Apple Macintosh computers. About 450 peripherals have also been designed around Thunderbolt.
It is unclear, however, whether everything in Thunderbolt 3 will carry over in USB4. Multiple data and display protocols is how USB4’s capabilities were described to PC World by Jason Ziller, general manager of the Client Connectivity Division at Intel. “It’s definitely designed to simplify things.”
Many of the details won’t be clarified until the actual specification is released later this year. It is still unknown whether USB power delivery will be upgraded from its current 100-watt limit or the length of supported USB cables.
The only certainty is an admission that USB is sort of a mess right now that badly needs clarification. USB4 will (hopefully) simplify it for computer users.