cross-posted from: https://discuss.tchncs.de/post/22828099
USB was supposed to rule them all but it’s now a mess of standards sharing the same connector. Different speeds, voltage, charging protocols, alt modes, even the number of pins used is variable… For those asking, the thing is available on Kickstarter
If only USB-IF would do their fucking job and create actual standardized names with standard features instead of shit like USB 3.2 Gen 2x2
Did you see that the newest version is called USB 4 2.0? lol
That is very very explicitly just the name of technical the specification. Its a documents for people who design usb devices. The tech media failed us by reporting on it like they did.
The spec also explicitly tells us that we should refer to the usb cables/ports/devices as e.g. “USB4 40Gib” or “USB 3 20GiB”. So in fact we have easy to understand names but only a few manufacturers actually print that on the boxes or cables.
It could have been USB 4 Spec 2.0, couldn’t it?
That’s a really good idea! So good in fact that that is actually what they did call it! https://www.usb.org/document-library/usb4r-specification-v20
This 100%. Wi-Fi Alliance did it right ditching the standard names like 802.11ac and 802.11ax and going to simple names like Wi-Fi 5 and Wi-Fi 6. Everyone knows 6 is better than 5 so there’s no confusion.
USB-IF needs to do the same thing, and also stand up a little bit to the manufacturers who want to build the cheapest possible products. Set a couple of certification levels. Like level 3 cable supports 30 w and 480 Mbps USB 2.0, level 4 cable supports 100w and 2 gbps, level 5 cable supports 100w and 10gbps, level 6 cable supports 240w and 20gbps etc We don’t need infinite variations of power and data capability. It just confuses customers. But customers will understand a level 5 cable is better than a level 4 cable. And if the device says you need a level 5 cable for full capability, they will understand a level 4 cable isn’t good enough.
And then relabel all the old standards when they create a new one so every generation you need to figure-out what al the new names mean.
They actually renamed the types which makes everything even more confusing