The fast track: universal connectors USB and Thunderbolt

By Renate Grimming Oct 30, 2011, 4:06 GMT

Berlin - It wasn't until a universal connector came along, towards the end of the 1990s, that people could hook up their printer, scanner or camera to a running computer without a lot of fuss.

That's when USB (universal serial bus) connections came along. The first one was released in 1996 and created a revolution. Since then it has become universal indeed, with all kinds of computers and components using its connections to communicate.

Of course, nothing can last forever and a successor system, Thunderbolt, seems to be waiting in the wings. It is capable of multiple times more performance, which could one day put it ahead of USB.

But USB remains a draw. Chip manufacturer Intel has recently released an ad campaign acclaiming staff member Ajay Bhatt, an American of Indian descent who helped create the USB standard, as a 'rock star.'

The creation was a big step. Finally, it was possible to do without a multitude of connections and use devices as plug and play components, without first having to go through a lengthy software installation process before the computer would recognize them. Nowadays, no-one thinks twice before plugging a USB stick into a computer to download data.

It's become so common that almost every producer of computers and peripherals builds the sockets into their products in an effort to ease communication. It makes sense, since USB 2.0 is still widely used in the industry.

The newer USB version was first released in 2000, a high speed interface that could theoretically transfer data at rates of 480 megabits per second (Mbps). Since it could transfer data 40 times faster than its predecessor, it could finally be used with video players.

Of course, as data files have grown ever more complex and common, USB has become something of a bottleneck, since people want today's larger files transferred as quickly as those from 10 years ago.

Many external hard drives connected to computers can now hold hundreds of gigabytes of data. Of course, it's not always USB's fault. Other components, like controllers, can play a role in slowing the movement of data. And USB 3.0 went on the market this year, promising an increase of speed by a factor of 10.

That would mean a gigabyte (GB) of data could be transferred between a flash drive and a computer in just 3.3 seconds. A high definition 25 GB film would, thus, only need 70 seconds to upload to a computer, instead of today's 13.9 minutes.

In the mean time, Intel has teamed up with Apple and Sony to come up with a faster, cable-based transfer standard. Dubbed Thunderbolt, Apple has already incorporated it into its Macbook Pro, Macbook Air and its newest Mac mini.

Sony also uses it, under the name Lightpeak, in its Vaio 721, providing a connection between the laptop and its docking station. LaCie is working on the first peripherals using Thunderbolt, including a just-released, Apple-compatible, 2-terabyte external hard drive.

By transferring data at speeds of up to 10 Mbps, Thunderbolt could transfer a full-length high definition movie in less than 30 seconds. Speeds like that could quickly turn Thunderbolt into an industry standard. 'We've made our idea about a simple and fast way to transfer data between devices and PCs reality,' says Intel manager Mooly Eden.

Thunderbolt has another advantage beyond speed. It can simultaneously transmit audio, video and files, while also transmitting power.

'Thunderbolt is perfect and universally useable,' says Johannes Schuster, an editor with the German computer magazine Mac & i. But the system's transmission cables are expensive, even when copper is used instead of the more expensive glass fibre. 'Thunderbolt will more than likely remain a high-end market item.'

Apple is using its new monitors to showcase the standard. Along with USB ports, Ethernet connections and a Firewire port, the Thunderbolt port is there to turn the monitor into the command station and a high-performance docking station for a laptop.