Tech Time: USB 3.0 is Here (Well Kind Of)

If you don’t know by now that I’m a computer geek, then you don’t know me very well! I love technology. And I love promotional marketing. So you won’t be surprised when I tell you that I get excited about new tech-oriented promotional products.

Whether you save files to a USB drive, own a digital camera, listen to music on your MP3 player, or keep your coffee warm with a USB coffee warmer (that we can imprint with your logo), you’re likely utilizing USB devices all the time. As are your customers and your employees. We offer a wide variety of USB devices that make exceptional promotional gifts.

USB 2.0 has been the standard for several years. But now we have USB 3.0. What does that mean and why should you care? According to PCWorld, “The theoretical throughput improvement offered by USB 3.0 is dramatic — a theoretical 10X jump over existing USB 2.0 hardware. USB 2.0 maxed out at a theoretical 480Mbps, while USB 3.0 can theoretically handle up to 5Gbps.” You can read the full PCWorld article here.

Sound like gibberish? Sorry about that. I’m a geek. All you need to know is that USB 3.0 is fast. REALLY fast.

Few computers are available with USB 3.0 technology, and few devices are available that are USB 3.0, but it will quickly become the standard on all computers and devices. And today I spotted the first USB 3.0 memory drives available in our industry.

USB 3.0 devices should be backwards compatible, meaning that you can use them with computers that are USB 2.0. Like all new technology, expect to pay a little more for the newest and fastest. And if any of your employees and customers are as tech-geeky as I am, they will love you if you give them a new USB 3.0 drive.