USB 2.0 marks 25 years since it became the standard that revolutionized the industry
When the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) unveiled the USB 2.0 standard on April 27, 2000, it completely altered how peripherals, computers, and computing devices were connected. The significant boost in connection speed it provided made it a revolution.
Computers had parallel and serial ports prior to USB. Worst of all, they were incredibly slow, heavy, and the connector pins bent easily. Although USB 2.0 made the standard universal, USB 1.0 made things better.
Up until that point, the slowness of connecting an external storage device made it impractical. High-capacity USB drives and external hard drives are two examples of the new device types that emerged as a result of the new format and are currently very popular.
USB 2.0 is a contemporary and quick connector for PCs.
The faster USB 1.1 standard, which provided 12 Mbps speeds, was superseded by USB 2.0 in 2000. In Hi-Speed USB mode, USB 2.0 can reach up to 480 Mbps, 40 times faster than its predecessor.
It took some time to reach the masses, possibly due to the high bandwidth. According to Tom's Hardware, VIA chipsets were the first to support USB 2.0 in 2002. Intel did not create the first Pentium 4 chip that was USB 2.0 compatible until 2004.
However, USB 2.0 eventually made its way into consumer computers, revolutionizing storage management and device connectivity. Thankfully, it spread outside of the troubled Apple ecosystem because it was quicker and less expensive than Apple's FireWire 400 connector.
USB 2.0 speeds of 480 MB/s enable us to accomplish previously unthinkable or previously possible but too slow tasks.
High-capacity USB drives, particularly external hard drives that can reach speeds comparable to internal drives and free up space inside computers, have become increasingly popular as a result of this new format.
Its elimination of the two previously incompatible standards—serial and parallel ports—is another noteworthy benefit. USB connectors were placed on small peripherals like the previously mentioned flash drives, SD card readers, and so forth because of their small size.
Unfortunately, it still has the main drawback of the original USB, which we have all encountered countless times: the cable can only be used in one direction because it is not a reversible connector. Murphy's Law states that you will nearly always plug a USB cable in incorrectly.
Despite being mostly out of use, the USB 2.0 connector is still a standard in many contemporary devices, including printers, TVs, computers, and many more. It is 25 years old.