Understanding USB Cables And Their Types
The universal serial bus or more commonly known as USB is the means for connecting all types of devices. There are various types of best USB Cables in Pakistan and standards available in the market these days.
Let’s take a look at several classifications of USB to help you know which type of lead should connect to which device.
Types Of USB Connectors
USB-A
Type A is the oldest and also called the standard connector. You’ll mostly see this at the end of most USB Cables in Pakistan. A rectangular-shaped connected that connects only one way is how you identify the type A.
Since this is the most common type of USB cable, you will find its port on almost every device: desktop computers, laptops, gaming consoles, media players, and TVs. One important thing you should know is that no cable has a type A on either end because connecting two computers or devices with USB-A can be damaging for the devices.
USB-B
Often used in printers and similar hardware, the type B USBs are an old version and not used much recently. It has a square shape at the end that plugs into devices. Apart from plugging into the printer and similar devices, type B has been replaced by newer versions.
Mini-USB
Mini USBs are mostly used for mobile devices. Judging by the name you can tell that it has a smaller connection. Mini USBs have lost their place in the market nowadays to micro USBs, but you’ll still see it in some cameras and music devices.
Micro USB
The micro USB cable comes with a very small connector on its end and is used with almost every other portable device in recent times. Almost all the android smartphones to power banks, Bluetooth devices, and headphones use micro-USB ports.
USB-C
The type C cable in Pakistan is the latest USB type in the market. All the new and expensive versions of android smartphones are connected through the C-cable. In contrast to the USB-A that have another type on its other end, the USB-C can connect two computers/devices that have C-ports, without any risk of damage. The type C cable in Pakistan is also reversible.
Apart from the new models of Samsung, OnePlus, and other android phone manufacturers, Apple is also making use of USB C now. The latest version of MacBook and MacBook pro use USB- C ports.
Lightning Cable
The lightning cable is not considered as a USB standard by most experts, but it’s still counted because it serves the same purpose. Lightning cables in Pakistan are only used by Apple iPhone. The cable was introduced in the year 2012, and as the type C cable in Pakistan, lightning is also reversible. iPhone and IPads owners use a Lightning to type A cable to charge their devices or to connect with computers.
The Speed Standards
USB had kept updating and reforming its types over the years. Apart from the changes we have seen in the kinds of connectors on the ends of a cable, each USB cable has a different speed as well.
Moreover, the USB 1.0: Released in 1996, the USB 1.1 could only use type A and B connectors. Whereas, USB 1x isn’t in the market anymore.
USB 2.0: The update to USB 1.0 came in the year 2000 and was named USB 2.0. This is compatible with fast speeds as compared to the previous version and supports many ports. Although this version has fulfilled its life, it’s still used in all the affordable flash drives and older versions of mouse and keyboards.
USB 3.0: Launched in the year 2008, USB 3 has been updated with 3.1 and 3.2 recently. This is much faster and transfers data at a far better speed than the previous version. You can easily identify the USB 3 cables or ports with their blue color. The backward-compatibility allows you to plug the USB 3.0 cable into USB2 port and in opposite direction as well.
All the latest hard drives like SSD and other top-notch flash drives make use of USB 3.0.
The type C USB cable is USB 3.0 speed. Whereas, the other cable types like micro-USB can be used with USB 3.0 with special connectors.
