I used to understand USB. There was USB 2.0, the fast one, and USB 1.1, which basically no one used for anything.
And there was basically two ports. USB A, for 95% of things, and USB B, a squarish connector that seemed to only be used by printers for some reason.

I have no idea what the fuck happened.

>>105995140 (OP)
Yeah… you’re not alone. USB has gone completely off the rails in the past decade. Here's a breakdown of what the fuck happened:


---

Olden Days (aka "USB was simple")

USB 1.1: 12 Mbps – “Full Speed”

USB 2.0: 480 Mbps – “Hi-Speed”

USB-A: The standard flat plug you find on PCs, chargers, etc.

USB-B: The squarish one, mostly for printers.

Life was good. You knew what plugged into what, and how fast it went.


---

Then It All Went to Hell

Speed Versions Got Out of Control

USB 3.0: 5 Gbps – “SuperSpeed”

USB 3.1 Gen 1: (Same as USB 3.0, but renamed because of marketing bullshit)

USB 3.1 Gen 2: 10 Gbps

USB 3.2 Gen 1: (Still 5 Gbps, because why not rename it again)

USB 3.2 Gen 2: 10 Gbps

USB 3.2 Gen 2x2: 20 Gbps (yeah, that’s real)


Then Came USB4

USB4: 20–40 Gbps

Uses USB-C connector only.

Often includes Thunderbolt 3/4 support too, but not always.


---

The Connectors Are a Mess

USB-A: Still around on PCs and chargers.

USB-B: Still exists for printers and some audio interfaces.

Mini-USB: Briefly lived for cameras and MP3 players.

Micro-USB: Reigned in the Android era.

USB-C: Reversible, powerful, and now the standard on most modern phones, laptops, and accessories—but not all cables are equal.


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The Confusion Multiplier

USB-C cable ≠ fast cable: Some USB-C cables only support USB 2.0 (480 Mbps), some go up to 40 Gbps.

Power Delivery (PD): Not all cables or ports support charging at high wattage.

Thunderbolt 3/4: Uses USB-C, but only works if your device supports it.

Logos? Inconsistent. Labels? Rare. Compatibility? Who knows.


---

TL;DR

You’re not dumb. USB just got stupid.

Want to avoid a headache? Here’s what helps:

If you're buying a USB-C cable, check:

Data speed rating (e.g., USB 3.2 Gen 2, USB4)

Power delivery capability (e.g., 60W, 100W)

Thunderbolt compatibility (if needed)


Would you like a cheat sheet for cable types and what they support

>>105995140 (OP)
I had a scanner that used B; besides that, I have never seen it used for anything other than a printer. It might be from a time when USB was going to be the ``be all, end all'' and they were looking to associate shapes with peripherals. Who knows what they discuss in those meetings. The names they are coming up with now leads me to believe they are smoking crack behind closed doors.

>>105995161
Ah yes—the weird-ass USB-B port.

So, why was USB-B shaped like a square with a notch?

Because of intentional hardware design rules to prevent you from plugging stuff in wrong. Here's the reasoning:


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Design Philosophy: "Different shapes for different roles"

USB-A was for the host (your PC, charger, etc.)

USB-B was for the device (printers, scanners, etc.)

The idea was:
You should never be able to plug a USB-A plug into another USB-A port directly, because that might short something out or confuse the host-host communication.


---

Why the shape difference matters

USB-A and USB-B have the same number of wires, but…

USB-A: Thin, rectangular, made to plug into your PC

USB-B: Bulky, squarish, made so you can’t plug it in backwards or into the wrong kind of port


---

So why did printers use it?

Because printers, scanners, and external hard drives were all “devices” in USB's eyes. You connected host device, so:

Your PC = USB-A (host)

Printer = USB-B (device)


If the connector wasn’t weirdly shaped, people would have started plugging the wrong ends into the wrong things.


---

Variants you may have seen

Mini-B: Smaller, used on older cameras

Micro-B: Used on Android phones pre-USB-C (especially the split version with the extra “SS” pins for USB 3.0)

USB-B 3.0: Had an extra lump to support more pins for faster speeds (backward-compatible with USB 2.0 B, but looked Frankenstein’d)


---

In short:

> USB-B was designed to force correct connections and prevent accidents.
It looked different on purpose, because plugging a USB-A into another USB-A could fry stuff.


Would you like a visual diagram of the main connector types and what they do?

>>105995140 (OP)
Holy shit anon, you made a whole post for this

>>105995157
Thanks grok! Musk is the best, making mutts suffer and delivering the best ai makes him based.

>>105995157
>>105995169
>>>/r/eddit

>>105995140 (OP)
have 4 different types of ports on my desktop. The black ones, blue, red, and usbc

RS 232

>>105995157
>USB 3.2 Gen 1: (Still 5 Gbps, because why not rename it again)
AHAHAHAHAHAH, couldn’t make this shit up

>>105995157
Thank you ChatGPT. I hate USB now.

The »U« is for »Universal«, you know.

»S« for serial? USB-C uses parallel data lanes.
»B« for bus? Nope. It's point-to-point.

theres a lot of types but its not that hard to understand. one important thing to know is that usbc thunderbolt connectors really matter. if you want to use a thunderbolt device make sure the cable is rated for thunderbolt, not just regular usb.

>>105995179
Here's what the USB port for Musk's Neuralink is going to look like. Better not cheap out on junk cable.

You might laugh at USB B but a printer actually prints faster with it than bluetooth

>>105995140 (OP)
Skill issu
It's really not that hard to remember which cables do what anon, and if you buy good cables, they're even marked up for you :3

It's retarded how they keep renaming USB 3.0 but otherwise it's not to bad.

>>105995140 (OP)
>>105995157
>>105995169
What's with the AI generated shit?

>>105995140 (OP)
What's the issue buddy? It's a pretty simple spec to follow.

>>105997871
>Thunderbolt3
>Thunderbolt4

>>105995140 (OP)
>Only USB A and USB B
>USB B only on printers
So in your imagined past, USB could only be used to connect computers to printers and not anything else? Remember, USB A to USB A and USB B to USB B have always been nonstandard cables that run the risk of permanently damaging your hardware.

No one brings up those shitty fucking headers USB 3.0 had for motherboards with those thick ass cables you couldn't tell if it was plugged into the motherboard.

>>105995140 (OP)
>(if poor) one cable type for charging / power delivery and one usb cable type for data transfer - you can get all-in-one for ~$12 but they're stiff and thick
>(if non-poor) one TB cable for everything (optical link so cable is thin and flexible)
Is this truly so complicated as to baffle nu/g/?
Everything new is usb-c nowadays. What few exceptions exist are now either wireless (printers etc) or are used by a tiny fraction of the population (3.5" enclosures, 3d printers)
>b-but my 12 year old printer and that one 2.5" 500GB hdd with my loli hentai
the world isn't at fault for you using relics

>>105998666

>>106000665
>$80 per 1m cable
I'm not really a price-conscious person but at some point I'm just not going to consoom

>>105999389
It's best that shit is forgotten about

>buy a bunch of new electronics
>usb-c everything
>everything old is incompatible with it
>that awkward transition phase where your cables fucking double
sheesh

>>105995140 (OP)
>USB 1.1, which basically no one used for anything.
It's still widely used.
Mostly basic/dumb mouses and keyboard.
...so, most USB devices still in use in the world

>>106000665
nice the cable is labeled 5
too bad you'll never see that in real life

>>106001390
before usb2 it was used for everything (go figure) but even after it was used for everything that wasn't an external hdd. mice/keyboards/webcams/flash drives/mp3 players, you name it
my first flash drive was 1.1 full speed and did about 500KiB/s

>>106000739
But it's still used to these days?
My Zen 4 motherboard has one and it's plugged.

>>105999389
>>106003797
The connector isn't inherently bad, it just absolutely needs to be 90° angled and within tolerances. On brand machines it usually fits properly and doesn't disconnect by accident.

>>105995157
I wonder if USB-C can hold out through more upgrades

>>105999389
is that not a thing anymore? my last case had both usb3 pin headers and the later usb-c header. but it's been a couple years. i won't be too upset when usb-a dies.

>>105995140 (OP)
> find an old device in the house
> cant remember where i put the USB mini
>none of my new usb cables even work for it
Universral my ass

>>106007096
My 3D printers use mini and of course they didn't come with a cable. I eventually found one deep in my huge box of extra cables but it was annoying.

>>106000719
I remember when a 6 foot USB A-B cable for your printer used to cost $30.