As you know, dear reader, the devices we use include a variety of ports that we use to connect different devices to them. For example, we can easily connect a mouse, keyboard, printer, or other devices to our computer through these ports. As for the best and most widely used ports today, they are USB ports. These ports are characterized by many features such as high speed, support for a large number of devices, as well as the ability to provide power through them and other amazing features. It is worth mentioning that USB ports have several different types in terms of speed and features they offer, as well as a slight difference in appearance. In this topic, we will discuss the features of each of these types and how to easily distinguish between them.
The port has four different types, each of which appeared at a different time as an improvement to its predecessor. These types are: USB 1.x, USB 2.x, USB 3.x, and finally Always power on or Sleep and Charge. Here are the features of each type and how you can distinguish between them:
1- First Generation USB 1.x Port:
USB 1.0 is the first generation of USB port, launched in 1996, with a speed of up to 12 Mbit/s at the time. It had some addressing issues and other problems, and did not spread widely until the next update, USB 1.1, which addressed some of the previous problems. The port of this type is usually white.
2- Second Generation USB 2.x Port:
USB 2.0 is the second generation of USB port, developed in 2000 to increase its speed and add new features. The speed of this generation reaches up to 480 Mbit/s, supporting a large number of different devices, as well as full support for USB 1.x devices. You can usually distinguish it by its black color.
3- Third Generation USB 3.x Port:
USB 3.0 is the third generation of USB port, developed as an improvement to USB 2.x in 2008. It is characterized by very high speed, up to 5.0 Gbit/s, with support for devices working with USB 2.x. USB 3.1 was developed in 2013, with a speed of around 10 Gbit/s. You can usually distinguish it by its blue color.
4- Sleep and Charge or Always power on:
This type of USB port is specifically designed for charging various devices, providing power to the devices connected to it. While all USB ports charge devices connected to them, what sets this port apart is that it continues to provide power to devices even when the device is turned off, unlike other types of ports that cut off power when the device is turned off. You can usually distinguish it by its red or yellow color.
It is worth mentioning that these colors are the basic colors of these ports, but some companies currently change their colors according to their device design needs. However, these colors are usually the ones used in all devices.
In conclusion, this information enables you, dear reader, to identify the type of ports on your device to ensure that you connect the device you want to the port that is most compatible with it, in order to achieve higher speed and better performance for the device.
