usb 3.0

Why doesn't my laptop have USB 3.0?. I've been asking myself that question a lot lately.

None of my laptops has a USB 3.0 port. Not my 2010 MacBook Air, not my prior-generation Air, nor my Dell laptop. Nor do the laptops purchased recently by my business acquaintances, who typically buy earlier models that have been price-reduced.

Let me be clear, I've talked to Intel, folks at the USB Implementers Forum, PC makers, and analysts. And I've heard every reason under the sun as to why the Universal Serial Bus interface hasn't been upgraded in 10 years. (Intel: We'll get around to it in 2012.)

But those reasons (including: it won't make any material difference for things like printers...not supported in Intel silicon) don't change the fact that devices I use demand a faster USB interface. Now. Or I should say yesterday: I needed it a long time ago.

Thunderbolt, as promising as it sounds, does nothing for consumers today.

Here are just a couple of examples. The Seagate GoFlex external drive, which I purchased this week, prominently advertises USB 3.0 capability on its packaging. As it should. Doing regular transfers of 70 gigabytes (or more) of data demands more than USB 2.0. … Read more

Intel went on the record today saying that its silicon will support USB 3.0 in 2012 and urged developers to target both USB and its new "Thunderbolt" technology.

"Intel is going to support USB 3.0 in the 2012 client platform. We're going to support Thunderbolt capability. We believe they're complementary," said Kirk Skaugen, a vice president at the Intel Architecture Group, speaking at Intel's developer conference in Beijing today. The event was streamed over the Web.

The "2012 client platform" that Skaugen referred to is known more commonly by … Read more

Advanced Micro Devices will support USB 3.0 in its chips, marking the first instance of a major PC processor supplier getting behind the standard. Intel has yet to support the high-speed interface.

The USB Implementers Forum today announced that AMD will deliver the first chipsets to integrate support for USB 3.0, aka SuperSpeed USB. A chipset accompanies the main processor.

"With [today's] announcement AMD is...disclosing our support for SuperSpeed USB 3.0 in upcoming AMD A75 and A70M Fusion [chipsets]. Both chipsets are shipping today," said Phil Hughes, an AMD spokesman, responding to an … Read more

Photographers and videographers with a lot of data spend a lot of time waiting for files to transfer to their computers, sometimes paying a premium for FireWire 800 ports to edge out the speeds of USB 2.0.

Now the USB 3.0 generation of flash card readers is starting to arrive, though, including Delkin Devices' $40 USB 3.0 Multi-Card Reader and Writer. The company announced yesterday that the products are now shipping from its San Diego factory.

Its raw data transfer rate of 5 gigabits per second promises to leapfrog the 800 megabits per second of FireWire 800 … Read more

Apple has been granted a patent for a dock connector that would combine powerful new connectivity technology like USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt with its proprietary 30-pin connector for mobile devices like iPads, iPhones, and iPods.

As reported by AppleInsider, "The invention, entitled 'Reduced Size Multi-Pin Male Plug Connector,' was published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday and describes a smaller 30-pin dock connector with updated connection standards."

The dock connector could also support regular DisplayPort technology, currently found in many Apple notebooks. Combined with the recent filing for a power adapter with a built-in battery, … Read more

Hewlett-Packard will unleash a business ultraportable with Intel's most power-efficient Sandy Bridge processors and USB 3.0 ports, according to reports and HP's Web site.

The upcoming EliteBook 2560p follows HP's successful--and very durable--EliteBook 2540p, which is built around a 12.1-inch display and weighs about 3.5 pounds.

HP has already revealed some 2560p specifications on its U.S. Web site and those of its close cousin, the 2760p, which adds a touch interface, like its predecessor, the 2740p.

Highlights include a range of Sandy Bridge processors, such as Intel's most power-efficient Core i5-2537M and … Read more

One of our favorite laptops in recent memory (and giving rise to one of the most popular laptop reviews we published last year) was the Toshiba R705. This slim 13-inch laptop packed in tons of features and decent performance, all for around $800, and was one of the best Windows-based alternatives for those who like the general size and shape of MacBooks but need a Windows machine.

But with the first few rounds of laptops featuring Intel's second-gen Core i-series processors hitting stores, the R700 series is a bit behind the times.

Toshiba has mentioned the next version, the R800, a few times, but specs, prices, and actual availability information have been sketchy. Now detailed specs and prices are up on Toshiba's Web site (we spotted these via Engadget), and they run from the $889 Intel Core i3-2310M Portege R835-P50X to the $930 R835-P56X, which has a Core i5-2410M processor. All four models have 640GB hard drives and USB 3.0 ports.… Read more

Lenovo is announcing a new model Tuesday in its highly regarded ThinkPad X series of ultraportable laptops that offers a USB 3.0 port, a uniquely sized 12.5-inch screen, and long battery life, as CNET reported on Monday.

The X220 appears to be a variation on the previously announced Lenovo IdeaPad U260 theme. That IdeaPad, like the ThinkPad X220, is 3 pounds and offers a 1366x768 resolution 12.5-inch screen.

But there are some significant differences, the most salient being the ThinkPad's use of dual-core Core i7, i5, and i3 Sandy Bridge processors and a USB 3.0 … Read more

LAS VEGAS--It seems that portable hard drives get progressively smaller as CES 2011 continues.

Yesterday, Verbatim introduced the USB 3.0 External SSD, which beat the recently reviewed LaCie FastKey both in terms of storage space and portability. Now, as the show is nearing its end, Pretec, a company known more as a maker of system memory, has unveiled an ultracompact USB 3.0 flash drive of its own, the i-Disk Rex 100.

Measuring 2.9 inches by 0.7 inch by 0.2 inch, the i-Disk Rex 100 is arguably the tiniest flash drive in the world that offers … Read more