USB-C: What it is, what you can do with it and why you will see it everywhere

The new connection present in the new MacBook is a standard that will reach more laptops and devices.

The arrival of the new MacBook has brought with it a new controversy that is not for nothing new, the elimination of ports and connections. Apple is very given to being the first companies to launch products that eliminate traditional data input sources. It happened with the floppies, it happened with the CDs and now it's happening with the USB.

The new MacBook only has a USB-C connection that will be used mainly by its battery power cable, but in which you will be able to connect more devices, either with this connection or with one of its adapters. What is clear is that this is the beginning of the end of the laptops as we know them, if something can do Apple is create trend and surely in the next few years we will see ultrabooks with fewer connections, focusing more and more on the cloud and technology wireless Ca.

What is USB-C?

This is a standard created by several companies that are included in the USB Implementers Forum Inc., responsible for the specifications of this standard whose latest release was the USB 3.0 that is now present in all new products with a USB size Normal.

The USB standard has had a lot of competition over the years, for example the Apple or Thunderbolt FireWire connections which is so far the fastest connection.

With the new USB Type-C or USB-C you can reach speeds up to 10 Gbps and an output power of 20v (100w) and 5a bidirectional. This allows you to load virtually any notebook, tablet or smartphone today.

More about USB 3.1

This connection present in the new MacBook is based on the new standard USB 3.1, this should not lead to mistakes, USB-C is just a type of connection, there are more and not a USB-C connector does not have to be version 3.1.

USB 3.1 will be available in its "standard a" mode which is the standard connection we all know, rectangular with only one way of introducing it. There is also the USB 3.1 type micro-B, ie known as micro USB but maintaining the same speeds as your siblings.

It all resides in the bandwidth and connections that can be added to it. It is also important to understand your new design.

The first thing is the design, it is the first USB with reversible design of the story. You, like anyone who has encountered a USB will have had the same problem, insert a USB incorrectly, try the opposite way and fail again. The Lightning connector showed as a reversible cable design is positive and prevents frustrations. The cables have the female connection and the ports of the devices will have the male part, where a small tab resides with the data pins and energy.

At the end, speed is everything. With USB-C you get up to 10 Gbps of bandwidth, while in USB 2.0 the maximum is 480 Mbps and USB 3.0 is 5 Gbps.

Single USB-C cable compatible with 5 k screens

VESA announced in 2014 that USB-C would be compatible with the DisplayPort standard. This allows this connection not only to charge the battery of a laptop or to pass data between devices, it will also allow high resolution video signals to arrive.

USB-C supports video resolution 5 K while maintaining a bandwidth more than baggy for data, audio and energy.

Compatible with other video connections

A USB-C connection is compatible with more than one video standard, as we have seen on the Apple adapter you also have an HDMI output for the vast majority of external monitors and TVs.

In addition to the HDMI, USB-C is compatible with DisplayPort, DVI and VGA, being these last two oldest connections but still present on a lot of monitors.

Why are we going to see it on more devices?

The good thing about USB-C versus USB 3.1 standard is its size, flatter and small that is capable of inserting into very fine equipment, especially important in equipment such as ultrabooks.

Although we will surely see an update of equipment in mid-2015 with UBS 3.1, it would be no wonder that the USB-C starts to see in more ultrabooks. If it would be rare for other manufacturers to thrown ultrabooks equipment with as few connections as the Apple, it is still useful to have an SD card reader or a standard USB port 3.1 if not problem with its design.

USB-C is a problem for other connections

First of all, USB-C is a big problem for other connections. It is above all practical, more than anyone you can use, like Thunderbolt or Lingtning, both used almost entirely by Apple products. In the end what we all want is that a cable is fast and that allows you to do more in a natural and transparent way, but without forgetting the compatibility with more devices, laptops and equipment.