USB organization will bring three USB 3 speeds under the USB 3.2 gen designationaanduiding

The USB 3.2 specification will include three USB 3 speeds and this will also be reflected in the specification naming, the USB Implementers Forum announced. There will be three USB 3.2 variants, which can be distinguished with a gene suffix.

The USB Implementers Forum announced this during Mobile World Congress, Computerbase writes. The 3.2 variants that according to the new specification deliver the speeds of USB 3.1 Gen 1 and Gen 2, which themselves originally appeared as USB 3.0 and USB 3.1, will continue as USB 3.2 Gen 1 and USB 3.2 Gen 2 with the arrival of USB 3.2 life.

Usb 3.2, or the 20Gbit/s variant of SuperSpeed ​​Usb, will then be specified as usb 3.2 gen 2×2. The ‘2×2’ stands for the property of USB 3.2 to use two 10Gbit/s lanes to achieve the total throughput speed of 20Gbit/s. The official marketing name remains SuperSpeed ​​Usb, followed by 10Gbit/s or 20Gbit/s to indicate the speed. In practice, however, manufacturers hardly use these names and mention the specification names.

This spec designation threatens to create new uncertainty for consumers. When moving to USB 3.1, many manufacturers reported that name for all USB 3 ports, without using the gen suffix, or continued to use USB 3.0, or incorrectly used USB 3.1 for all connections with the USB Type-C plug. . According to Computerbase, it is also certain that usb 3.2 gen 2×2 can only be used in combination with the type c plug, because the type a plug supports a maximum of 10 Gbit/s.

The usb organization announced usb 3.2 in 2017. Existing USB-c cables can be used for the 20Gbit/s throughput, provided they are certified for SuperSpeed ​​USB 10Gbit/s. The hardware for USB 3.2 gen 2×2 should be ready this year, after which availability will probably follow next year.

Update, Thursday 12.00: Clarified the difference between specification designation and marketing names.

Generation Spec name usb 3.1 variants Spec name usb 3.2 variants Marketing name