back to article No more turning over a USB thing, then turning it over again to plug it in: Reversible socket ready for lift off

Computer users have moved one step closer to saving a few seconds twiddling with their USB cables now that the port's reversible Type C connector specification has been cleared for volume production. The Type C connector, first unveiled in April, is fully reversible and considerably slimmer than the USB plug we've been used to …

  1. stucs201

    It'll be good in about 5 years time...

    ...once we've got rid of most of the devices using the current connectors. Until then look forward to the slight inconvinience of getting the connector upside down being replaced with the bigger hassle of having the wrong cable or needing an adaptor cable for devices with a built-in A plug that previously needed no cable.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: It'll be good in about 5 years time...

      It's people like you what cause unrest.

      1. Eddy Ito

        Re: It'll be good in about 5 years time...

        Well the standard A plug is 12 mm x 4.5 mm so it might be possible to make a flush mount adapter to convert it to the smaller C plug.

        I for one will be happy to do away with the awful micro-B-with-3.0-sidecar connector.

    2. JeffyPoooh
      Pint

      The nice thing about Standards, ...

      "The nice thing about Standards, is that there are so many from which to choose."

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Standards proliferation

        Today's video ports are already there.

        Bought an HP with VGA and DP outputs, monitors have VGA, DVI and HDMI inputs. Lowest common denominator, VGA. Forced to buy DP (dual mode) to HDMI dongle. Worked out.

        Bought an old Mac Mini, its DVI port and available drivers proves to be incompatible with any of five monitors (with DVI inputs) tried. Forced to buy DVI-I to VGA dongle and reduced to lowest common denominator, VGA. Even then, recommend 1920x1080 doesn't work, incompaible with monitor on the same setting. Hopeless.

        (Macs sure go obsolete fast. Nearly unusable in less than 7 years.)

        1. Frankee Llonnygog

          Re: Standards proliferation

          MacMini? Drivers? What sort of monitor still needs drivers? Every Mac/monitor I've used has just worked (in OSX)

          1. monkeyfish

            Re: Standards proliferation

            Should have just stuck with the USB mini A, instead of the USB mini B. Yes it's technically the wrong one for a device, and it is marginally larger. But it was at least blatantly obvious which way it should go.

            Are they making the same mistake of having A and B versions and different sizes again? Or is it going to be one connector of the same size for both ends, regardless of what you're connecting?

            1. Anonymous Coward
              Anonymous Coward

              Re: Standards proliferation

              "Should have just stuck with the USB mini A, instead of the USB mini B. Yes it's technically the wrong one for a device, and it is marginally larger. But it was at least blatantly obvious which way it should go."

              Should have got it right first time more like.

              Which meant one "normal" and one "small" connector, reversible plugs, and no flimsy tat that breaks or wears out after a few hundred cycles. No weird and crappy A and B types, no mini and micro. What was going through the mind of the designer?

              1. Dr. Mouse

                Re: Standards proliferation

                Which meant one "normal" and one "small" connector, reversible plugs, and no flimsy tat that breaks or wears out after a few hundred cycles. No weird and crappy A and B types, no mini and micro. What was going through the mind of the designer?

                Let's separate these 2 issues.

                First, having an A and B type connector. This was quite a sound design approach. The idea was that A's were hosts and B's were devices. Nothing wrong with that, and it stopped people from trying to plug, say, a USB flash drive up to a USB card reader thinking it would just copy files between them. All connections are from a host port to a device port, so all cables should have one A and one B end.

                Now, the issue about standard, mini and micro ports is different. Initially, there was only the standard, full sized USB (in A and B). It was decided that these were too big for many devices, so mini USB was born. Then it was decided that even that was too big, so micro was born.

                You seem to assume that the entire USB standard, as it exists today, was thought up in one fell swoop. Far from it: The USB standard has evolved over time, and this has entailed some nasty hacks to bring in new features (take USB3, especially micro USB 3). They have done this in an attempt to maintain backwards compatibility, and to keep it "universal".

                Type-C is a logical consolidation step. It could probably have been done better, but it's an evolutionary step, as USB advancements have always been.

                1. monkeyfish

                  Re: Standards proliferation

                  Yes, but the host/device idea got screwed up when USB sticks came along and it made sense to put an A plug on it, so it could plug directly into the host without a cable.

                  It makes even less sense now, since our phones can be both hosts (plugged into a USB drive), and devices (plugged into a PC). I hope someday soon my phone will be able to plug into a camera or printer and pretend to be a PC host as well, as that would be very useful.

                  I agree it made sense to begin with, I just hope they aren't planning on repeating it.

                  1. Dr. Mouse

                    Re: Standards proliferation

                    Yes, but the host/device idea got screwed up when USB sticks came along and it made sense to put an A plug on it

                    That doesn't screw it up at all. An A plug goes in to an A socket on a host. If it had an A socket on it (like the touchscreen monitors we have for our tills at work), that would screw it up.

                    As for the whole USB-OTG issue, the devices should have a Micro-AB socket, which can take either a Micro-A plug (when acting as a host) or a Micro-B plug (when acting as a device). Most don't, but it is not the fault of the standard if people don't follow it.

                2. Neoc

                  Re: Standards proliferation

                  Re Dr. Mouse's "All connections are from a host port to a device port, so all cables should have one A and one B end."

                  Unless you have an Android Phone which allows you to plug USB storage devices to it.

                  1. Neoc

                    Re: Standards proliferation

                    So... a downvote, but no reason why. And yet all I stated was a simple fact.

                    1. davidp231

                      Re: Standards proliferation

                      My Nokia E7-00 can do it, and that's not an Android...

            2. jason 7
              Meh

              Re: Standards proliferation

              That reminds me, I have a Tesco bag full of Mini A cables that need to go to landfill.

          2. Anonymous Coward
            Anonymous Coward

            Re: Standards proliferation

            Original Mac Mini (eBay, just for fun, $80) A1103 circa 2005. OS X 10.4.9 Tiger circa 2007, reportedly close to the optimum OS for such retro Macs with PowerPC CPUs. Tried MULTIPLE* modern monitors with DVI connection, got a peculiar video noise (large lines or dots) due to some sort of driver issue (even if the driver is embedded in the OS as such). (*We have many monitors in our dozen-PC household.) Eventually dug out an older DVI equipped monitor from the same 2007 era; plug and play and worked perfectly.

            To use a newer monitor, must use VGA. DVI does not work properly. No obvious workaround; likely need to hack the OS to make use of a newer ini file equivalent.

            Maybe I should drag it into the Genius Bar and see what they think. LOL.

            1. bygjohn

              Re: Standards proliferation

              Maybe this will help with your Mac Mini PPC/DVI issue:

              https://discussions.apple.com/thread/2723110?start=0&tstart=0

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        You know you want it

        > "The nice thing about Standards, is that there are so many from which to choose."

        Go on, quote XKCD 1406, go on... you know you want to. >:-)

        1. ecofeco Silver badge

          Re: You know you want it

          If he won't I will.

          Universal Connector Box

        2. Anonymous Coward
          Anonymous Coward

          Re: You know you want it

          I was thinking more along the lines of XKCD 927

        3. Graham Hawkins

          Re: You know you want it

          Soon there'll be an XKCD 1406 just for USB...

      3. ecofeco Silver badge

        Re: The nice thing about Standards, ...

        ""The nice thing about Standards, is that there are so many from which to choose.""

        I see what you did there. Droll. Very droll. And very true.

        Upvoted.

    3. Mike Bell

      Re: It'll be good in about 5 years time...

      But haven't the EU recently mandated the use of the inferior micro-USB connector for phone chargers? A bad decision that will stick one in the eye of your 5 years.

    4. CheesyTheClown

      Re: It'll be good in about 5 years time...

      Agreed...

      It's a good thing they're working on a new connector, but from the diagrams, while it appears to focus on usability, it seems like a "half way there" solution which says "Sure, you don't have to figure out whether it's up or down" but still has the drawback of requiring too much precision to get it in the right way.

      The edges of the connector and the socket should have been tapered a bit to make sure that if you're trying to plug it in while driving or in the dark, you wouldn't have to wiggle and jiggle it to get it there. The major fail of this design is that it doesn't optimize easy insertion as well.

      Apple should start licensing the lightning connector to other vendors. I am a convert who used to buy Apple everything until Microsoft put out Surface which is much better, but Apple still kicks major butt when it comes to cables. They did it right. I'd love to see a Surface Pro with a lightning port for charging and connecting devices.

      1. VinceH

        Re: It'll be good in about 5 years time...

        "The edges of the connector and the socket should have been tapered a bit to make sure that if you're trying to plug it in while driving or in the dark"

        If you're trying to plug it in while driving, you're doing it wrong.

        Doing what wrong?

        Driving!

  2. William Donelson

    Goodbye WiFi and wireless devices if you try to use USB3 ?

    -- Intel's OWN report here --

    http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/io/universal-serial-bus/usb3-frequency-interference-paper.html

    1. phuzz Silver badge

      The message of that paper is, make sure your USB3 harddrive actually has a case, and whoever made your device with a USB3 port has actually followed the specifications for shielding the port.

      They did show that if you run your USB harddrive with no case, and remove all the RF protection from around your motherboard, and put your wireless mouse antenna right next to the port, it might get a bit laggy.

    2. IkerDeEchaniz

      Why does intel use kapton tape to shield against radio interferences?

      http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/io/universal-serial-bus/usb3-frequency-interference-paper.html

      http://www.dupont.com/content/dam/assets/products-and-services/membranes-films/assets/DEC-Kapton-summary-of-properties.pdf

  3. Andrew Tyler 1

    Size

    The size is a bit of a concern for desktop-type applications. Smaller makes sense for a lot of things, but the standard A and B connectors are the right size for desktops. Now instead of which way does it go, the problem will be 'where's the damn port... no... that's an air vent... no... an ethernet port.... no... that's a hole for screw.....no... that's just a gap in the chassis.... ouch... that was a fan... etc."

    Unless I'm misunderstanding and the 100W workstation variants aren't 8.3x2.5mm.

    1. roger stillick
      Happy

      Size Part 2...

      A size 1 arist round brush and a small bottle of acryllic paint color codes both the cable end and the device...

      IMHO= the odd dot of color, even on military gear has never been questioned, ever... having that MFP (modified for parts) stamp w/caramine ink jar helped...RS.

      1. VinceH

        Re: Size Part 2...

        The odd dot of colour isn't going to help one single jot if, as I suspect Andrew meant, you're reaching around to the back of the PC, effectively blind, trying to find where to plug in the lead.

        1. Crisp

          Re: Size Part 2...

          I've always been surprised that the port labels back there aren't written in Braille.

          1. John Sturdy
            Boffin

            Re: Size Part 2...

            If you've got the fingertip sensitivity to read braille, you should be able to feel which side of the plug/socket has the plastic strip in it (a blind friend of mine, who is an experienced braille user, does this without difficulty).

      2. JeffyPoooh
        Pint

        Re: Size Part 2...

        I tried that. I put ink dots on the top of some USB connectors. Especially the Micro USB used for charging things. Turns out that some gadgets have upside down sockets. * One can't win for trying.

        (* This is the usage case where one has many gadgets and one wishes to share one charger and charger cable with the several Micro USB charge port gadgets. Each gadget gets recharged on different days or nights as required. Bedside table already has four chargers going, even with such sharing.)

      3. Colin Miller

        Re: Size Part 2...

        The USB trident should be on the top-side of the connector, and USB ports should have the top-side upwards, when the device is lying naturally. However, not all devices and cables follow this standard, and if the USB port is sideways, it's not clear which way is top.

  4. pip25
    Thumb Down

    I don't need another damn connector type

    USB connectors already come in so many shapes and sizes, why the heck do we need yet another variant? Type A plugs will still remain the default especially on desktops, if for no other reason then because of compatibility. I don't even really see the ones who can make big money out of this (the converter manufacturers, maybe?), so I simply cannot fathom why this idiotic move was necessary.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: I don't need another damn connector type

      No other USB connector delivers anything like 100 watts. You don't really want to use one of the existing connectors, so you may as well make it not suck while you're at it.

    2. Arctic fox
      Headmaster

      pip25 Re: " why the heck do we need yet another variant?"

      I think that the potential answer to that lies in:

      "is similar in size to the current breed of micro-USB plugs"

      This would permit the implementation of the equivalent to full size type B USB 3 ports in modern highly mobile/slim form factors. That would, IMHO, be a genuine advantage.

  5. roger stillick
    Go

    In Service for 2 Months - Yum...

    Costco - USA sold me a 1TB external drive for my laptop / USB-2 port...2 months ago... the port on the storage device was one of these 'new' devices, a check in the current L-CON catalog finds all the necessary cables / stuff to make them work anywhere...

    IMHO= compaired to that stupid jack on my Samsung cell phone, this new thing is a no-brainer... we could have had this at the gitgo if it wern't for the Bean Counters...

    caveiat= the US military has been using turnover proof AC generator cable plug sets for over 50 years, the idea was always there, No One wanted to get the few extra pins needed past the Engineering Bean Counters... Size and Fit is something the Bean Counter Folks seldom look at as it doesn't involve a possible savings of build money (their reason to exist)... i've found out that 'Doesn't Work' or 'Won't Fit' gets past those folks every time... but that is another story...RS.

    1. localzuk Silver badge

      Re: In Service for 2 Months - Yum...

      I have one word for this - what?

      Type-C connectors aren't out yet. No-one has implemented them on any hard drives yet, as it has only just been finalised.

      Are you referring to the USB 3 Micro-B plug? It entirely different from the USB Type-C connector. Or are you referring to one of the various proprietary USB-like connectors?

      1. ecofeco Silver badge

        Re: In Service for 2 Months - Yum...

        Don't be so OCD. He's talking about the concept.

        Reversible connectors as a CONCEPT and applied in other engineering designs have been around for literally generations, let alone connectors that are obvious from the outside which way is up.

        USB as it exists today is FAIL.

  6. Barbarian At the Gates

    USB Type A has a quantum spin of 1 1/2

    I'm looking forward to this new plug. No more of this:

    1) Attempt to insert USB Type A plug blindly into the back of a device (doesn't go in)

    2) Flip plug 180 degrees. Still doesn't go in.

    3) Curse

    4) Flip plug 180 degrees again. NOW it inserts.

    1. JeffyPoooh
      Pint

      Re: USB Type A has a quantum spin of 1 1/2

      You're holding it wrong.

      1. JeffyPoooh
        Pint

        Re: USB Type A has a quantum spin of 1 1/2

        Downvotes for a hilariously funny, smart phone themed joke?

        What a waste, using good jokes on this crowd... Sigh...

    2. MyffyW Silver badge

      Re: USB Type A has a quantum spin of 1 1/2

      You forgot the bit where you change cable, underwear and religion, still fail to get it working...

      ...then go back to the original setup with a world-weary look on your face and it works first time.

  7. Chad H.

    USB isn't turning out to be that... Universal is it. You've got to have the right socket, and the right gender, and then every few years they invent a new socket that doesn't work with the old ones, so you have to go and buy more adaptors and cables....

    Now there's another one. Woo.....

    1. phuzz Silver badge

      At least they're all backwards compatible as long as you can physically connect things. A USB 3 disk will work fine (abit slowly) in a computer with only USB1, and a USB1 device will work fine in your USB3 equipped computer.

      1. localzuk Silver badge

        USB itself is universal. The bus is the same everywhere. Its just the connector part which has got a little mixed up...

  8. Sven Coenye

    So then the question is...

    Does anyone know what shape the Apple and Samsung variants will take?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: So then the question is...

      not sure about samsung, but I'm pretty sure the apple variant looks like this...

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lightning_(connector)

    2. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: So then the question is...

      and how long ago Apple invented it

  9. ptmmac

    Apple already has theirs. Any one notice the Black hat conference talk about USB having permenant security holes?

    1. Michael Thibault
      Childcatcher

      And so, sooo very ...

      user-serviceable. In a pinch, I mean. Like the sockets. And the cables will cost the moon at the outset. The sockets the earth. And they'll both be fragile. However, Sum Won Somewhere will make loads o' cash selling barely-functioning facsimiles. Unless, of course, someone else comes along and decides to put a cap in this whole USB madhouse, which would be the preferred outcome in a rational world.

    2. JeffyPoooh
      Pint

      "...USB having permanent security holes?"

      Speaking of "security holes", these new USB slots seem to be about the right size to be mistaken for Kensington Security Slots. I hope that they're current limited when Gramps shoves a solid block of metal into the socket.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: "...USB having permanent security holes?"

        > Speaking of "security holes", these new USB slots seem to be about the right size to be mistaken for Kensington Security Slots.

        What's the bet someone will come up with security locks DESIGNED to use USB sockets. :(

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Proof that there is a god

    how else can you explain my 90%+ failure rate in inserting aUSB the right side up the first, - sometimes second and third - time.

    If there was no god my failure rate should be around 50%

    {}:>))

    1. kyndair
      Coat

      Re: Proof that there is a god

      USB is an abimation unto Nuggan

      1. markw:

        Re: Proof that there is a god

        Lightening!

        The turtleneck moves ...

    2. Arctic fox

      Re: Proof that there is a god

      No, it is proof there is a devil!

    3. Nigel 11

      Re: Proof that there is a god

      Due to a macroscopic quantum effect even more astonishing that superconducting ceramics, USB plugs, like single electrons, are Fermionic in nature. You have to rotate them not 360 degrees but 720 degrees, to get them back into the state you started from . Failure rate 3 in four sound about right?

  11. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    I hope the new connectors aren't as fragile as the micro-USB connectors.

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Flame

      Unfortunately, they know better...

      I can't tell you how many cheap, not-so-cheap and downright expensive USB-to-micro-USB cables I've bought and subsequently had to buy again. Now I'd agree that it doesn't need to be as strong as a Type-N connector, but goddamnit...

      The best design I've seen thusfar, which was discontinued in the subsequent model, is on the Samsung Galaxy SII, where the socket is recessed and the connector's hood is integral to the connection. It does tie you to specific cables, but the person I know who has one...hasn't had to replace any.

      1. Gene Cash Silver badge

        Re: Unfortunately, they know better...

        > the socket is recessed and the connector's hood is integral to the connection

        Fuck that shit. My TomTom GPS had a USB port recessed so far you needed the specific TomTom cable with the tiny connector, and it screwed me on a trip where the cable got lost, so I was no longer able to charge it.

        Mr. Dremel had a little chat with Mr. TomTom's case and suddenly it wasn't so recessed.

    2. Tom 7

      Re AC:"I hope the new connectors aren't as fragile as the micro-USB connectors."

      Most will be. If there is not a fault in the design one will be added in production.

      Personally I cant see any need for upgrading any of my machines in the next 5 years for any reason other than 'want one'. I may need to replace failures (see above) but fast connection between devices will be wireless over short range anyway so and anything that requires these sort of speeds will probably be permanently wired with that ethernet stuff where connection times include testing and several 180 degree flips have never been a problem.

    3. ecofeco Silver badge

      Micro USB is THE very definition of FAIL.

      There is a special place in hell for the creators and approvers of this design.

  12. mathew42
    Trollface

    20V at 5A

    "delivers faster data rates of 10Gbps and up to 100W of power – from 5V at 2A for handhelds, to 20V at 5A for workstations and hubs."

    Finally USB fridges and coffee warmers might work properly or more likely the escaping magic smoke will be more spectacular.

  13. Frankee Llonnygog

    Reminds me of something

    Can't think what. I'm sure it will hit me soon - like lightning. Wonder if there is any prior art?

  14. Richard 32

    100 watts?

    Isn't 20VDC X 5A = 200 watts because DC power to watts has a multiplier of 2?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      100 Watts

      No 5VDC x 20 A is 100 W. A connector that small that is specified for 5A seems quite a lot and there must be some smarts to manage compatability with devices that cannot accept or provide 20V 5A. What is the connector resistance especially after 500 or a 1000 insertion and removal cycles? Will it get significantly warm?

    2. monkeyfish

      Re: 100 watts?

      No.

      P = V * I

    3. A Twig

      Re: 100 watts?

      Rather than charge in with a downvote, I'm curious as to what makes you think "DC power to watts has a multiplier of 2"?

      Are you getting confused with RMS (root 2) AC power?

  15. Rol

    Gimme, gimme, gimme

    "So you want type C functionality on your PC. Hmm. Well here's my pitch"

    "I can install a PCI card at a cost of £25.99, with a front panel in a spare 5 and a 1/4 for £15.99, but then you're 450 watt PSU will need tearing out and replacing with at least a 750 watt "Ultra C" compatible. Ooo I'd say £75ish for a middle of the road one. Add to that, my time, VAT and several cups of tea and you're looking at £180 to add the new USB standard to your tired old i5."

    "What? You don't want it now. You'll buy a new PC with it already crammed in. Would you mind waiting a few days while I swap my shares in PSU inc for PC inc ?"

  16. Nuke
    FAIL

    Just what the world needs ...

    ... another connector standard. As for first post thinking 5 years is a turnover time for kit, my camera is 10 years old and going no-where yet, and bits of my PC kit are >20 years old - I am typing on a 1992 IBM AT keyboard with a PS/2 connector right now. I don't think the world can afford to follow the throw-away cult for many more years anyway.

    Saving a few seconds? ... balance that against the time you spend earning the money to replace your all leads or buy cumbersome adaptors, or even new kit itself. Doesn't even take me a few seconds - I glance in USB plugs as I pick them up.

    I don't know why they could not have made the orientation of such plugs obvious in the first place. They could have adopted a semi-circular profile for example (my PS2 keyboard plug body at least does have such a flat on it). Oh, wait, I am forgetting there is a fashion for "flat" shapes.

    1. Psyx
      Joke

      Re: Just what the world needs ...

      "...my camera is 10 years old and going no-where yet, and bits of my PC kit are >20 years old - I am typing on a 1992 IBM AT keyboard with a PS/2 connector right now. I don't think the world can afford to follow the throw-away cult for many more years anyway."

      You could always throw your clogs into the cooling fans of all the terrible new kit. That'll put a stop to it.

    2. stucs201

      Re: OK, so I was overly optimistic

      I too have stuff older than 5 years old knocking around, but since most of my non-techy friends think my stuff is antique then I tried to guess at more typical time-scales. Perhaps I should have said this will start to be a good thing in 5-10 years?

      1. monkeyfish

        Re: OK, so I was overly optimistic

        You only start to want a new version of USB when you buy a product with the latest one on, and you know it's not as quick as it could be. Besides, a new phone with a type C will probably come with a type C (small) to type A (large) cable anyway, otherwise there will be all kinds of people complaining the cable doesn't fit.

  17. Nigel 11
    Joke

    But will it help?

    I expect we'll soon discover that the plugs won't go into the sockets either way up, but when again rotated they'll finally connect.

    OK, I'm a pessimist.

    cf Murphy's law, third time lucky, and the fermionic nature of connectors.

  18. Maventi
    Thumb Up

    Why so much hate folks? Pushing USB 3.0 into existing legacy USB connectors was an ugly hack at best (especially the micro ones) and this seems like a good plan to move forward with. Heck, it's still electrically compatible with all the existing stuff we have!

    USB cables of any description are such a commodity these days that even having full size/mini/micro B connectors is rarely an issue anywhere I've ended up. I doubt it would take long at all for these C-type connectors to be just as ubiquitous.

    1. elyl

      Re: Why so much hate folks?

      This is The Register comments section. It's filled with grizzled old "IT professionals" who have been in the job 30 years by virtue of the fact that they were the only one in the company who knew where the On switch was on the computer 30 years ago.

      Anything new is bad. Didn't you get the telex?

      1. Arctic fox
        Windows

        @elyl Telex?

        Don't you mean the heliogram?

  19. Anonymous Coward
    Coat

    Thanks a lot.....

    "since the spec was introduced 18 years ago."

    Well, that's me feeling old. I remember when it was the next big thing.... In the icon, that's not actually my coat, that's my zimmer frame.

  20. John Sturdy
    Boffin

    Connecting things properly

    I'd much rather see USB replaced by Ethernet with a connector that can take a decent power level, has an obviously directional shape, and is genderless (like an Anderson power connector, but smaller and with more than two contacts). Then you won't get distinctions like "A" and "B" connectors, or like USB-on-the-go being different from USB; things can just connect, and let the software/firmware sort out whether they have anything to talk about. NICs are cheap now; from a quick look at the protocols, I think they probably take less silicon to implement, too, and you'd probably get far better performance for most things without the grossly inefficient USB protocol.

    For a little extra, make the connection reasonably mechanically robust and it can even hold devices onto each other (e.g. bluetooth/wifi dongles onto phones/computers) without worrying about bending connectors.

    Vendors could add value to the products a bit, then we can let market forces push the prices down; tiny NAS units could take the place of USB flash drives, wifi dongles could be routers, and so on.

    1. Allan George Dyer

      Re: Connecting things properly

      So not a modular plug with a plastic locking lever that catches in every obstruction behind the device and breaks off at the most inconvenient time? Apart from the genderless requirement, you could almost be describing DB-25 of DE-9 connectors.

  21. Rampant Spaniel

    I wonder why it took them this long to address this issue?

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      > I wonder why it took them this long to address this issue?

      They couldn't decide which way was up.

  22. Chris Evans

    Close up Photo please!

    A photo is pretty critical to the article. If they haven't released one yet then surely it should have been mentioned. It seems to be lazy reporting to me.

  23. ilmari

    They should have made it round. Rectangular still requires aligning angles on 3 axes, though now on the one axis you've got 2 correct angles instead of just one.

  24. Kev99 Silver badge

    Too lazy to look?

    Oh, bloody hell. I've only seen one USB connector of any format that didn't have the top clearly marked in some manner, usually with the USB symbol. First the carmakers are designing for incompetent morons and now computer gear makers. Idiocracy is coming true.

  25. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Could be worse .... at least all the actual cables are the same unlike the days of RS232 when some connecting needed a straight through connection and others needed a twist never mind the differences of male and female connectors. Used to have a box of assorted cables and converters ready in case I find I needed a twisted gender bender!

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