USB stands for Universal Serial Bus. It is a device used to attach to keyboards, mice, and printers, basically any external device to the computer. USB is also used to charge portable devices. It is a device used for communication, power supply, establishing connections, etc. between computers and peripherals. There are many versions of USBs, four generations of them have been launched till now. Two of them are USB 2.0 and USB 3.0.
USB 2.0 vs USB 3.0
The difference between USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 is the data transfer rate of the USB. 480 Mega Bits per second is the maximum speed of the USB 2.0. While the maximum speed of USB 3.0 is 5 Gigabits per second. Also, USB 2.0 is a half-duplex system, only one-way communication USB while USB 3.0 has two-way communication.
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USB 2.0 was introduced in the year 2000. It was a better version of USB 1.0 with better speed and features. Though later USB 3.0 was launched with much better features. USB 2.0 is also known as Hi-speed USB. It supports half-duplex communication. And have an On-The-Go supplement feature.
USB 3.0 was introduced in the year 2010. It is the third version of the USB. Its speed is ten times faster than its old version with many improvements and therefore it is known as Superspeed USB. Its data transfer rate is up to 5 Gigabits per second. And it can both transmit and receive the data.
Comparison Table
| Parameters of Comparison | USB 2.0 | USB 3.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Launched In? | It was launched in the year 2000. | It was launched in the year 2010. |
| Speed | The maximum speed is 480 Mbps. | The maximum speed is 5 Gigabits per second. |
| Power | It delivers a 500 mA amount of power. | It delivers a 900 mA amount of power. |
| Color Significance | The USB 2.0 comes with the port of black color. | The USB port of 3.0 is blue. |
| Cost | It is less costly than USB 3.0. | It is more costly than USB 2.0. |
What is USB 2.0?
USB 2.0 is the second version of the USB, which is a device that establishes connection and communication between computers. The USB 2.0 in use since April 2000, when it was launched. Hi-speed USB or High Bandwidth is also the name used for the USB 2.0. This version was better than its previous version. The Speed is more of this version than that of USB 1.0.
The data transmission rate of this version is 480 Megabits per second (Mbps). This is the maximum data transfer rate through 280 Mbps is the practical data transfer rate. And the amount of power it delivers is about 500 mA.
Also, USB 2.0 has 4 connector wires and supports half-duplex communication. It is a one-way communication USB. It has an On-The-Go supplement feature. It is a feature that allows two USB devices to communicate with one another, and they do not require a separate USB host.
Its cable length is up to five meters. And the standard black color is used for its port to distinguish it from other versions. Since this is an older version and there are many new versions with better features it is not used much these days. And so its price is low as well.
What is USB 3.0?
USB 3.0 is a much-improved version and is the 3rd version in the USB versions. This version was launched in 2010. Because of its high-speed rate, it is also called super-speed USB. The manufactures distinguish between the USB 2.0 and USB 3.0 by giving the USB 3.0 the initial SS, which stands for SuperSpeed.
The data transfer rate of this version is 5 Gigabits per second. And the power it delivers is of the amount 900 mA. The speed of the USB 3.0 is 10 times faster than that of USB 2.0. Also, a new feature is added which is called Stream protocol. Within an endpoint, a large number of logical streams are allowed through this feature.
Also, the bandwidth of the USB 3.0 is increased. It is a full-duplex system and uses two unidirectional data paths. One data path is to receive the data and the other path is to transmit the data. Also, it has 9 connector wires. And its cable length is up to three meters. The USB port of the USB 3.0 is given a blue color to distinguish it from the other versions.
USB 3.0 is used mostly these days because of the improved features. Though it is costly than that it’s older versions. After the 3rd version i.e. USB 3.0, two more versions of this 3rd generation have been launched: USB 3.1 and USB 3.2.
Main Differences Between USB 2.0 And USB 3.0
- USB 2.0 has slower data transfer rate than USB 3.0, it is up to 10 times slower.
- USB 2.0 is called high-speed USB. On the other hand, because of its speed, the USB 3.0 is called super-speed USB.
- USB 2.0 is the preceded version of USB 3.0.
- USB 2.0 is in use since its launch year, 2000 while USB 3.0 was launched in 2010.
- USB 2.0 is half-duplex, having only one-way communication while USB 3.0 is full-duplex.
- USB 2.0 is lesser in price than USB 3.0.
- To distinguish the USB from the outside the port of the USB 2.0 is given the standard black color while USB 3.0 is given the blue color.
- 4 connector wires are used in the USB 2.0 while USB 3.0 has 9 connector wires.
- https://www.mindshare.com/files/resources/mindshare_intro_to_usb_3.0.pdf
- http://mobilewill.us/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2016/04/Introduction20to20USB203.020Protocol.pdf
- https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/5403002/
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
