Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

First-Ever USB 3.0 Hard Drive

Posted by timothy on from the if-you're-tired-of-the-current-cables dept.

dreemteem writes "After 8 years of success, the USB 2.0 standard has begun its long journey into obsolescence. Dutch storage company Freecom has announced the first mainstream storage product based on 'SuperSpeed' USB 3.0. Buyers will be interested to hear that the new external Hard Drive XS 3.0 doesn't cost the earth at £99 (approx $160) for a 1TB drive, even though that excludes the £22.99 for a desktop PCI-bus controller necessary to make it work at its intended throughput. Laptop users can pair it with a £25.99 plug-in PC Card to achieve the same effect."

3 of 191 comments (clear)

  1. Re:3.0 Wheres 4.0? by geekoid · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Spec, or it didn't happen.

    --
    The Kruger Dunning explains most post on /. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect
  2. Re:Let's see some all-3.0 computers now! by RedWizzard · · Score: 2, Interesting

    That's true of the A end of the interface, but not the B end... http://www.hailink.net/uploadfiles/CAUSB30-01_USB_Cable_01.jpg

    So it looks like you'll be able to:

    • Plug a USB1/2 device into a USB3 socket with a USB1/2 cable
    • Plug a USB3 device into a USB1/2 socket with either cable (at USB2 speeds with the older cable)

    What you can't do is plug a USB2 device into anything using a USB3 cable. Doesn't seem like much of a problem to me.

  3. Re:Let's see some all-3.0 computers now! by RedWizzard · · Score: 2, Interesting

    But USB3: You say it cannot use USB3 cabling to connect USB2 devices? Hogwash. Bullshit. [grr.]

    Even if it's currently true, it's crap. Expect vendors of actual chipsets (once some actually emerge...) to make this a non-issue before it ever hits the populace.

    Take a look at the link from the part I quoted: the B end of the cable won't fit in a USB2 B socket. How are the chipset manufacturers going to get around that?