TECH

USB-IF announced the USB4 specification version 2.0

The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) announced the USB4 version 2.0 specification after providing previews earlier this year. The new version of the USB4 standard promises major performance improvements, with two-way data transfer speeds of up to 80Gbps using four lanes.

This new standard will be supported by existing 40Gbps USB4 passive cables as well as new specific 80Gbps cables. But in addition to a bidirectional bandwidth of 80 Gbps, the new standard will have a special mode whereby three of the four lanes will be able to transmit data in the same direction and this means that users will be able to benefit from a speed of 120 Gbps in one direction. and 40 Gbps on the other.

This feature (whose support is optional in any case) is designed for specific use cases, such as very high resolution displays, where it makes sense to have a lot of bandwidth in one direction.

And again, among the innovations introduced with USB4 version 2.0 are improvements in data-related protocols (in particular with Enhanced SuperSpeed ​​​​​​USB data tunneling, a feature that allows having a bandwidth of up to 20 Gbps just for data ) and monitors (support for the DisplayPort 2.1 standard is implemented).

The new USB specification also supports PCIe 4.0, which should improve the performance of external graphics cards in devices that support them.

In addition to the new USB4 specification, there are also new versions of the USB Type-C and USB Power Delivery certifications to align with these newly introduced features.

Keep in mind that many of these new features are optional and therefore it will be up to the various companies to decide whether to support them for their respective products. Basically, finding an accessory that flaunts all the new stuff might not be that simple, or cheap.

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