The world's best-known computer peripheral interface once again receives a major revamp

(following Wireless USB) to stay current with modern demands for connectivity bandwidth. Dubbed
"SuperSpeed USB", USB 3.0 promises a major leap forward in transfer speeds and capability, while
maintaining backwards compatibility with USB 2.0 devices. It may sound straightforward, but a lot
has had to change.

1. What is USB 3.0 (aka. SuperSpeed USB)?

USB 3.0 is the next major revision of the ubiquitous Universal Serial Bus, created in 1996 by a
consortium of companies led by Intel to dramatically simplify the connection between host computer
and peripheral devices. Fast forwarding to 2009, USB 2.0 has been firmly entrenched as the de-facto
interface standard in the PC world for years (with about 6 billion devices sold), and yet still the need
for more speed by ever faster computing hardware and ever greater bandwidth demands again drive us
to where a couple of hundred megabits per second is just not fast enough.

In 2007, Intel demonstrated SuperSpeed USB at the Intel Developer Forum. Version 1.0 of the USB 3.0
(confusing, isn't it?) specification was completed on November 17, 2008. As such, the USB
Implementers Forum (USB-IF) has taken over managing the specifications and publishes the relevant
technical documents necessary to allow the world of developers and hardware manufacturers to begin
to develop products around the USB 3.0 protocol.

USB MILESTONES
2009 NEC ships world's first USB 3.0 host silicon

SuperSpeed USB logo debuted

Linux begins native USB 3.0 support

2008 USB 3.0 specs released
2005 Wireless USB 1.0 specs released
2002 Windows XP SP1 supports USB 2.0 natively
2001 USB OTG specification released.
2000 USB 2.0 specs released 

USB started to gain reputation as a

mainstream bus technology
1998 Apple shipped iMac with USB ports only

USB 1.1 specification released

1997 USB-IF membership increased to over 400
companies

Over 500 USB products were in development

worldwide
1996 USB 1.0 specs released
 First USB product introduced.

First USB Plugfest compliance workshop held.

1995 USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) formed with
an initial membership of 340 companies

Intel introduced the first USB silicon.

1994 USB core companies assembled

In a nutshell, USB 3.0 promises the following:

 Higher transfer rates (up to 4.8 Gbps)

 Increased maximum bus power and increased device current draw to better accommodate
power-hungry devices
 New power management features
 Full-duplex data transfers and support for new transfer types
 New connectors and cables for higher speed data transfer...although they are backwards
compatible with USB 2.0 devices and computers (more on this later)

2. Isn't USB 2.0 fast enough?

Well, yes and no. USB 2.0 for many applications provides sufficient bandwidth for a variety of devices
and hubs to be connected to one host computer. However, with today's ever increasing demands placed
on data transfers with high-definition video content, terrabyte storage devices, high megapixel count
digital cameras, and multi-gigabyte mobile phones and portable media players, 480Mbps is not really
fast anymore. Furthermore, no USB 2.0 connection could ever come close to the 480Mbps theoretical
maximum throughput, making data transfer at around 320 Mbps - the actual real-world maximum.
Similarly, USB 3.0 connections will never achieve 4.8 Gbps, but even 50% of that in practice is almost a
10x improvement over USB 2.0. 

3. How does USB 3.0 achieve the extra performance?

USB 3.0 achieves the much higher performance by way of a number of technical changes. Perhaps the
most obvious change is an additional physical bus that is added in parallel with the existing USB 2.0
bus. This means that where USB 2.0 previously had 4 wires (power, ground, and a pair for differential
data), USB 3.0 adds 4 more for two pairs of differential signals (receive and transmit) for a combined
total of 8 connections in the connectors and cabling. These extra two pairs were necessary to support
the SuperSpeed USB target bandwidth requirements, because the two wire differential signals of USB
2.0 were not enough.
 Furthermore, the signaling method, while still host-directed, is now asynchronous instead of polling.
USB 3.0 utilizes a bi-directional data interface rather than USB 2.0's half-duplex arrangement, where
data can only flow in one direction at a time. Without getting into any more technical mumbo jumbo,
this all combines to give a ten-fold increase in theoretical bandwidth, and a welcome improvement
noticeable by anyone when SuperSpeed USB products hit the market. 

4. What other improvements does USB 3.0 provide?

The enhancements to SuperSpeed USB are not just for higher data rates, but for improving the
interaction between device and host computer. While the core architectural elements are inherited
from before, several changes were made to support the dual bus arrangement, and several more are
notable for how users can experience the improvement that USB 3.0 makes over USB 2.0:

 More power when needed

o 50% more power is provided for unconfigured or suspended devices (150 mA up from
100 mA), and 80% more power is available for configured devices (900 mA up from 500 mA). This means
that more power-hungry devices could be bus powered, and battery powered devices that previously
charged using bus power could potentially charge more quickly.
o A new Powered-B receptable is defined with two extra contacts that enable a devices
to provide up to 1000 mA to another device, such as a Wireless USB adapter. This eliminates the need
for a power supply to accompany the wireless adapter...coming just a bit closer to the ideal system of
a wireless link without wires (not even for power). In regular wired USB connections to a host or hub,
these 2 extra contacts are not used.
 Less power when it's not needed 
Power efficiency was a key objective in the move to USB 3.0. Some examples of more efficient use of
power are:
o Link level power management, which means either the host computer or the device
can initiate a power savings state when idle
o The ability for links to enter progressively lower power management states when the
link partners are idle
o Continuous device polling is eliminated
o Broadcast packet transmission through hubs is eliminated
o Device and individual function level suspend capabilities allow devices to remove
power from all, or portions of their circuitry not in use
 Streaming for bulk transfers is supported for faster performance
 Isochronous transfers allows devices to enter low power link states between service intervals
 Devices can communicate new information such as their latency tolerance to the host, which
allows better power performance

To paint an accurate picture, not everything in USB 3.0 is a clear improvement. Cable length, for one,
is expected to have a significant limitation when used in applications demanding the highest possible
throughput. Although maximum cable length is not specified in the USB 3.0 specification, the electrical
properties of the cable and signal quality limitations may limit the practical length to around 3 metres
when multi-gigabit transfer rates are desired. This length, of course, can be extended through the use
of hubs or signal extenders.
Additionally, some SuperSpeed USB hardware, such as hubs, may always be more expensive than their
USB 2.0 counterparts. This is because by definition, a SuperSpeed hub contains 2 hubs: one that
enumerates as a SuperSpeed hub, and a second one that enumerates as a regular high-speed hub. Until
the USB hub silicon becomes an integrated SuperSpeed USB + Hi-Speed USB part, there may always be a
significant price difference.

Some unofficial discussion has surfaced on the web with respect to fiber-optic cabling for longer cable
length with USB 3.0. The specification makes no mention of optical cabling, so we conclude that this
will be defined in a future spec revision, or left to 3rd party companies to implement cable extension
solutions for SuperSpeed USB. 

5. Will my existing peripherals still work? How will they co-exist? 

The good news is that USB 3.0 has been carefully planned from the start to peacefully co-exist with
USB 2.0. First of all, while USB 3.0 specifies new physical connections and thus new cables to take
advantage of the higher speed capability of the new protocol, the connector itself remains the same
rectangular shape with the four USB 2.0 contacts in the exact same location as before. Five new
connections to carry receive and transitted data independently are present on USB 3.0 cables and only
come into contact when mated with a proper SuperSpeed USB connection. 

6. Where are those SuperSpeed USB 3.0 products? 

USB 3.0 silicon such as USB host controllers, peripheral chipsets and hubs compliant with the
SuperSpeed bus have arrived in the latter half of 2009. Since then, a handful of external hard drives,
flash drives, storage docks, Blu-ray optical drives, high-end notebooks, and host adapters in both PCI
Express and ExpressCard have begun appearing on retail shelves. Other companies have shown their
plans to roll out solid-state drives and RAID. DisplayLink also revealed plans to ship USB 3.0-compliant
USB video silicons by Q4 2010.

It is important to note that NEC is the only fab to produce xHCI USB 3.0 host silicons as of this writing
(March 2010). Until Intel, nVidia and AMD start bundling USB 3.0 as part of their motherboard chipset,
companies interested in equipping USB 3.0 on their systems will have to source from NEC for the
chipsets.

7. What is the future for USB 2.0? 

For at least the next five years, we do not see the market for USB 2.0 devices of all types to dwindle.
High-bandwidth devices, such as video cameras or storage devices will likely be the first to migrate to
SuperSpeed USB, but cost considerations, which in this industry are mainly driven by demand and
volume, will restrict USB 3.0 implementation to higher-end products.

By 2010, computer motherboards should start to come equipped with USB 3.0 ports supplementing USB
2.0 ports. USB 3.0adapter cards will likely play a large role in driving the installed base of USB 3.0
ports up, but as SuperSpeed-enabled ports become standard on new PCs, device manufacturers will be
further motivated to migrate to the new standard.

In time, USB 2.0 may be phased out as was USB 1.1, but for now and the foreseeable future, USB 2.0
isn't going anywhere. 

8. What operating systems support USB 3.0?

At the SuperSpeed Developers Conference in November 2008, Microsoft announced that Windows 7
would have USB 3.0 support, perhaps not on its immediate release, but in a subsequent Service Pack or
update. It is not out of the question to think that following a successful release of USB 3.0 support in
Windows 7, SuperSpeed support would trickle down to Vista. Microsoft has confirmed this by stating
that most of their partners share the opinion that Vista should also support USB 3.0.

SuperSpeed support for Windows XP is unknown at this point. Given that XP is a seven year old
operating system, the likelihood of this happening is remote, as Microsoft in our opinion, will have to
focus on the biggest bang for the buck applications.

With the open-source community behind it, Linux will most definitely support USB 3.0 once the xHCI
specification is made public. Currently available under non-disclosure agreement in version 0.95 (a
draft specification), organizations are forbidden to ship code because it might reveal or imply what is
in the specification. Once that hurdle is out of the way, the Linux USB stack would have to be updated
to add support for USB 3.0 details such as bus speed, power management, and a slew of other
significant changes detailed in the USB 3.0 specification.

As is customary, Apple remains silent on the issue of SuperSpeed USB support in MacOS X. Our opinion
is that if USB 3.0 realizes the promise of plug and play simplicity like USB 2.0 with dramatically
increased speeds, the market for SuperSpeed devices will take off, and Apple will follow the trend.
Whether or not this signals a threat to Firewire is not known, but you can be sure that Apple will need
to support SuperSpeed if the rest of the industry adopts this interface standard.

Given the iterative nature of any software release, USB 3.0 O/S support will come in stages and phases,
where initial support may be buggy, slow, or lacking in some features. Over time, these bugs will be
ironed out, but expect some growing pains as systems migrate and the development teams struggle to
catch up to the high expectations of the computing community at large. We will get there, but it will
take time. Anyone remember how buggy and unstable USB support was in the MacOS in all versions of
OS 8 and OS 9 before OS X 10.2 arrived? 

9. What new applications does USB 3.0 enable? 

In a nutshell, any high-bandwidth device that works with USB 2.0 will become better if updated with
USB 3.0 support. At the moment, devices that tax the throughput of USB 2.0 include:
o External hard drives - capable of more than twice the throughput available from USB
2.0, not to mention bus-powered portable drives that require non-compliant Y-cables to get the
current they require for reliable operation
o High resolution webcams, video surveillance cameras
o Video display solutions, such as DisplayLink USB video technology
o Digital video cameras and digital still cameras with USB interface
o Multi-channel audio interfaces
o External media such as Blu-Ray drives

High end flash drives can also push USB 2.0 pretty hard, and oftentimes if multiple devices are
connected via hub, throughput will suffer.

USB 3.0 opens up the laneways and provides more headroom for devices to deliver a better overall user
experience. Where USB video was barely tolerable previously (both from a maximum resolution,
latency, and video compression perspective), it's easy to imagine that with 5-10 times the bandwidth
available, USB video solutions should work that much better. Single-link DVI requires almost 2Gbps
throughput. Where 480Mbps was limiting, 5Gbps is more than promising.

With its promised 4.8Gbps speed, the standard will find its way into some products that previously
weren't USB territory, like external RAID storage systems. (Though, there are already plenty of USB-
only RAID solutions (e.g. LaCie HDD Max, WD My Book Mirror despite being limited by the interface.) 

10. How does USB 3.0 compare to competing interfaces (i.e. eSATA,
FireWire 3200, ExpressCard 2.0)?

Firewire has long been the "forgotten" other mass market, high-speed interface standard. Previously
available in Firewire 400 or 800 flavors, it has gradually fallen in popularity as USB 2.0 has surged.
Apple, the inventor of the original IEEE 1394 "Firewire" standard, has repeatedly sent mixed messages
with the ditching of Firewire first from iPods, and more recently from the mainstream MacBook laptops
(except for the lowest-end MacBook, oddly enough).

In late 2007, the 1394 Trade Association announced Firewire 3200, called "S3200", that builds upon the
existing Firewire 800 standard that was released in 2002. Utilizing the very same connectors and
cabling that is required for Firewire 800, S3200 is basically a drop-in replacement once the internal
system components are updated in devices. To date, S3200 has not gained much traction, even in
traditional Firewire markets such as digital video.

Firewire's main claim to fame is that it is a highly efficient peer-to-peer, full-duplex, non-polling data
communications protocol with very low overhead. Firewire delivers much higher actual throughput than
USB 2.0, and can achieve much closer to its theoretical 800Mbps data rate than USB. Where Firewire
800 can deliver sustained data transfers of around 90MB/s, USB 2.0 hovers more around 40MB/s.

It remains to be seen what impact S3200 will have on the computing landscape.

eSATA, or External SATA, was brought to market in 2004 as a consumer interface targetted directly at
an external storage market crowded with USB 2.0 and Firewire solutions. It successfully address the
issue of the interface bottleneck, and allowed fast hard drives to fully realize their performance
potential when located external to a server or PC. eSATA supports a data rate of 3.2Gbps, which is
more than enough for the fastest hard drives, which can transfer about 120MB/s, easily better than USB
2.0 and significantly better than Firewire 800.
eSATA is not without drawbacks, however. Cable length is limited to a mere 2m, it cannot supply
power to devices connected on the eSATA bus, and the connectors are neither small nor terribly
suitable for consumer devices where aesthetics are important. Over the last several years, eSATA has
steadily eroded both USB and Firewire market share in the data storage space, although its applications
are limited, and really not well-suited to the portable device market.

ExpressCard 2.0 was released practically the same day as the USB 3.0 specification (November 2008)
and promises to significantly enhance the ExpressCard standard for the increased speed requirements
of today's mobile technologies. Closely tied to both the PCI Express and USB 3.0 specifications,
ExpressCard 2.0 supports a variety of applications involving high throughput data transfer and
streaming. Maintaining backwards compatibility with the original ExpressCard specification, the hot-
pluggable interface standard for I/O expansion in smaller form-factor systems will by definition co-
exist with the world of USB 3.0 devices. 

 USB 3.0 has arrived. Not only can it move data faster and provide more power, but it's
compatible with USB 2.0 devices.

The first round of USB 3.0 cards and devices works with Windows Vista andWindows
7; Apple hasn't decided whether to support the new standard. The basic software for USB
3.0 has been in the Linux kernel since last fall, and the needed drivers are slowly coming
out.

 USB 3.0 brings actual physical differences to the connectors. The flat USB Type A
plug (that goes into the computer) looks the same, but inside is an extra set of
connectors; the edge of the plug is colored blue to indicate that it's USB 3.0.

On the other end of the cable, the Type B plug (that goes into the USB device) actually
looks different -- it has an extra set of connectors, so it looks a bit like a USB plug that's
been crimped a little ways down one end. There's also a new Micro Type B plug that
has all its connectors laid out horizontally.
The USB 3.0 plug has an extra set of connectors.

As a result, you won't be able to fit a USB 3.0 cable into a USB 2.0 device. However,
you will be able to plug USB 3.0 devices -- and cables -- into your current computer;
you just won't get the speed advantage. (Note: To get the most out of USB 3.0, the
cable needs to be less than about 9 feet long, down from the USB 2.0 16-foot limit.)

The reason for the new connector is that the USB 3.0 cable contains nine wires (four
more than a USB 2.0 cable); eight carry data and one is used as a ground. Despite the
increase in wires, however, the cables should be no thicker than those used by USB
2.0. There will be a big difference in performance, however. USB 2.0 is like a single-
lane country road that needs to handle the morning-commute traffic in and out of L.A.
There are jams and slowdowns when too much data is going back and forth. With nine
wires available, USB 3.0 has an additional two lanes of traffic in each direction to
smooth the flow between the computer and the device

Unlike USB 2.0, which requires synchronous transfers, where the data is asked for and then
sent, the 3.0 host controller doesn't have to poll the USB device every time it wants to send
data. This streamlines the flow with high-speed asynchronous transfers.

Some quick facts about USB 3.0

It's fast. The new standard breaks the 480Mb/s data transfer limit of USB 2.0 and takes it to a new
theoretical maximum of 4.8Gb/s. Keep in mind that real-world performance can be considerably lower
than that. USB 3.0 devices are not expected to reach their full potential at launch, but as the standard
matures the USB-IF considers it reasonable to achieve a throughput of 3.2Gb/s, or just about enough to
transfer a 27GB high definition movie in little over a minute rather than 15 or more with USB 2.0.

It's bi-directional. Unlike previous versions where data can only be piped in one direction at a time, USB
3.0 can read and write data simultaneously. This is achieved by adding two new lanes dedicated to
transmit SuperSpeed data and another pair for receiving it, bringing the total number of connections from
four on USB 2.0 (power, ground and two for sending/receiving non-SuperSpeed data) to nine counting the
3.0 ground contact.

Furthermore, the signaling method, while still host-directed, abandons device polling in favor of a new
interrupt-driven protocol. This ensures that the USB host controller doesn't continually access a
connected device in anticipation of a data transfer. Instead, USB 3.0 devices will send the host a signal to
begin a data transfer.

It's more power efficient. The signaling method mentioned directly above also means that non-active or
idle devices won't have their power drained by the host controller as it looks for active data traffic.
Minimum device operating voltage is dropped from 4.4 V to 4 V. On the other hand, the USB-IF has
upped the maximum bus power output from about 500 mA to 900 mA, which will enable power-hungrier
devices to be bus-powered and USB hubs to support more peripherals. There's also the bonus that
battery-powered devices should charge faster.

It's backwards compatible. Your existing USB 2.0 gear will work on version 3.0 ports and vice versa.
You'll be able to maximize your bandwidth when using a USB 3.0 cable with USB 3.0 devices and ports,
otherwise plugging a 3.0 device into a 2.0 port or a 2.0 device into 3.0 a port will get you standard USB
2.0 data rates.

Since the new interface has been carefully planned from the start to peacefully co-exist with its
predecessor, the connector itself remains mostly the same with the four USB 2.0 contacts in the exact
same location as before. Extra pins for the new lanes dedicated to transmit and receive SuperSpeed data
are located on the back and only come into contact when mated with a proper USB 3.0 port.
The receptacle is deeper as a result of this and USB 3.0 plugs will be longer than existing ones to reach
the rear contacts. Also, due to the use of additional wires the new cable will be about as thick as an
Ethernet cable.

Available and upcoming products, price points

After co-creating the USB 3.0 Promoter Group more than two years ago, and being criticized forallegedly
blocking hardware partners from accessing needed information, Intel finally released the Extensible Host
Controller Interface in August 2008. This meant that other members of the USB 3.0 Promoter Group
would be able to start developing their own solutions once the finalized spec was made available.

Unfortunately Intel itself has no plans to support the technology on their own chipsets until at least 2011,
holding back mainstream adoption, but NEC has a single-chip solution on the market right now known
asthe µPD720200. The chip measures 10 x 10mm, consumes up to 1W and is priced at $15 in bulk
quantities.

Motherboards

Several board manufacturers have been relying on NEC's host controller for adding USB 3.0 functionality
to their products. Asus has four variations of the P7P55D-E for Intel LGA 1156 (Lynnfield) processors,
with prices ranging from $180 to $280, as well as the $300 P6X58D Premium for Intel LGA 1366
(Bloomfield) chips. Gigabyte also has four boards currently available as part of its P55A branded series
priced between $135 and $250. Also the GA-X58A-UD7 for $350 and a pair based on AMD's 790X and
790FX chipset each going for $140 and $185, respectively.
MSI is known to be working on at least one USB 3.0-equipped P55 motherboard, the P55-GD85, and
another based on AMD's forthcoming 890FX chipset which is expected to arrive in the second quarter of
next year.

Devices

It might take at least a couple more years until we see the market for USB 3.0 devices really explode.
High-bandwidth devices will naturally be among the first to migrate to the new interface, but cost
considerations, which are mainly driven by demand and volume, will restrict implementation to higher-end
products for now.
As of this writing we know of only a handful of devices offering support for USB 3.0 and most of them are
prohibitively priced for the average user. Super Talent, for example, has unveiled a line of thumb
drivesthat will debut with a 64GB model priced at $400. The promised 320MB/s transfer speeds sure are
tempting, though.

Buffalo's newest external hard drive, the DriveStation HD-HXU3, steps into a slightly more reasonable
price point with the 1TB model to start selling for $200 and the 2TB version for a whopping $400. The
company has also announced a USB 3.0, 12X Blu-ray burner which should sell in Japan at a price
equivalent to $451.

We expect several other devices to be announced in little over a week at the Consumer Electronics Show
(CES) in Las Vegas, including an external solid-state drive from OCZ and a dual-drive RAID storage
solution from LaCie, both based on a new Symwave storage controller. There will also be several USB
3.0-infused DisplayLink products at the show and a number of other products from all the usual suspects
-- we'll make sure to keep you up to date in our coverage when the information becomes available (and
updating this guide as required).

Adapter cards

Adapter cards will likely play an important role in driving the installed base of USB 3.0 ports up. Instead of
shelling out upwards of $150 for a new USB 3.0-equipped motherboard, users would need to spend
roughly $30 to $50 for a 2-port PCI Express card compatible with their current hardware.
It should be noted that Windows 7 doesn't have native support or drivers for USB 3.0, but Microsoft
intends to deliver them in an upcoming update to the operating system.

Compatibility Guarantee

And this time around, the way the USB spec is written, says Jeff Ravencraft, consumers should have
an easier time finding products that are truly USB 3.0. Before, in the transition from USB 1.1 to USB
2.0, the USB 2.0 spec was written in a way where it "encompassed low, full and high-speed USB,"
explains Ravencraft, president and chairman of the USB Implementers Forum. "Since those are all
encapsulated in the USB 2.0 spec, [vendors] could have a certified product that's low-speed, but still
call it USB 2.0.

"We don't have that issue with USB 3.0 To claim you're USB 3.0, you have to deliver 5Gbps. There's
no other way to get the certification."

Ravencraft adds that the group is prepared to protect the USB 3.0 logo, to make sure that only
manufacturers who go through certification use it. "We'll take legal action if anyone infringes on our
marks."

By end of year, Ravencraft says the loggerjam of products awaiting certification should be past, and
the organization's network of worldwide test labs will be handling USB 3.0 certification.

According to In-Stat Research, by 2013, more than one-quarter of USB 3.0 products will support
SuperSpeed USB 3.0.

Ravencraft says this is the fastest ramp up of USB products he's seen in the past ten years, across
the previous versions of USB.

I say the change can't come fast enough. The trick, though, will be getting the interface into our
notebooks (without requiring a kludgy ExpressCard adapter). So far, though, only HP and Fujitsu
have announced limited USB 3.0 support on notebooks. And Taiwanese notebook and desktop
maker MSI indicated that it wouldn't have USB 3.0 until, at the earliest, the third-quarter of this year;
product managers for both notebooks and desktops cited manufacturing concerns like chipset
availability in large quantities, and the need to test USB 3.0 chipsets.

And in the meantime, the only announced peripherals remain storage devices. At next year's CES,
it's likely we'll hear more about specific consumer electronics devices such as digital cameras and
camcorders and video cameras moving to USB 3.0. Hopefully by then we'll start getting a critical
mass of PC hardware with USB 3.0 integrated, too.