Last year, we heard that the next version of the USB standard will bring about a completely different plug and connector design, making it not only much smaller but reversible. This is the first big change in both male and female USB connectors since the standard was introduced in the mid-1990’s.
While the existing two “A” and “B” plug standards will still exist for backwards compatibility sake (and higher transfer speeds), the brand new “Type C” connector will look similar to today’s microUSB standard but feature a flat input design that can be plugged in both orientations. This is similar to the way Apple’s new Lightning connector works.
While transfer speeds are set to broach 10Gbit/s for USB 3.1, double that of the current USB 3.0 standard (which is only now coming to mobile devices), the good news is that those they will not require the auxiliary connector like they do on today’s products. The smaller “Type C” connector will also be able to carry a 2A current at 5V for a maximum output of 10W, but larger devices will be able to carry 2A at 12V or even 20V for a maximum output of 100W, making the standard capable of powering even the most demanding of peripherals.
It must be noted that the final “Type C” connector design has not yet been finalized, and these photos are just concept renders. But they do prove that the standard is coming soon, and that’s good for all mobile devices.
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