A and B-side USB connectors
Intel and other companies have formed a group to promote the USB 3.0, which should deliver more than ten times the speed of the existing USB 2.0 standard.Ten times faster than the old USB spec, USB 3.0 can transfer a 27GB file in just 70 seconds. Plus, with more "lanes" of data within the connector, new USB will be able to simultaneously send and receive information—that might not sound like much, but the old USB couldn't do so.
President and general manager of the chipset business unit at AMD, Phil Eisler, released a statement saying, "The future of computing and consumer devices is increasingly visual and bandwidth intensive. Lifestyles filled with HD media and digital audio demand quick and universal data transfer. USB 3.0 is an answer to the future bandwidth need of the PC platform.”Intel stated that the USB 3.0 specification would be optimized for low power and improved protocol efficiency. The USB 3.0 ports and cabling will be designed with both copper and optical cable capabilities, meaning even higher speeds will be possible in the future.
Jeff Ravencraft, Intel's technology strategist, said: "The digital era requires high-speed performance and reliable connectivity to move the enormous amounts of digital content now present in everyday life. USB 3.0 will meet this challenge while maintaining (USB 2.0's) ease-of-use experience."