USB To Get Boost from SuperSpeed

(Business News & Technology News, 29 Jun 2009)

With over three billion devices shipped in 2008 alone, the universal serial bus (USB) has further cemented its position as the most successful interface ever. Dominant in PCs, and PC peripherals, strong in consumer electronics (CE) and communications, and emerging in automotive, USB has proven to be both a popular and versatile technology. And with the late 2008 introduction of the next-generation SuperSpeed USB specification, the question is not whether it will be successful, but how successful will it be.

SuperSpeed will deliver 5Gbps, a ten-fold improvement over high-speed USB. It will be targeted initially at the PC market and in devices requiring high data transfer rates, such as external storage, CE, and communications devices. SuperSpeed USB silicon is currently shipping in sample quantities, with production quantities expected in the second half of 2009. The first SuperSpeed-enabled products will hit store shelves by the end of 2009, primarily in mobile PCs and external hard disk drives.

In the PC segment, wired USB is the dominant interface; the only issue is the speed with which SuperSpeed USB will be adopted. Within PC peripherals, most devices have transitioned from full-speed to high-speed, and the question is how many of those will transition over to SuperSpeed, and on what time table? A key here will be how quickly SuperSpeed is integrated into the application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) and microcontrollers that are the brains of these devices.

In the CE segment, USB has long been dominant in several applications, such as digital still cameras, digital camcorders, portable media players, and game consoles. In other applications, its penetration is not as great, but it is growing. This category includes digital televisions, set-top boxes, standard definition and blue laser DVD players, and A/V receivers. SuperSpeed USB will provide greater throughput for storage options, and will be an excellent interface for digital still cameras, digital camcorders, and portable media players (PMP), especially as their storage capacities increase. SuperSpeed's improved power consumption will also make it attractive in these products. However, these applications are very cost-sensitive, and SuperSpeed prices will have to come down before integration occurs.

In the communications segment, full-speed USB has emerged as a popular option in mobile phones, and a transition to high-speed USB is currently underway. USB is used as the main interface to transport data on and off phones. Although mini-USB ports have not made significant progress as a connector on mobile phones, micro-USB ports are expected to become the dominant standard for connectors in mobile phones by late in the forecast period. The transition to micro-USB will be accelerated by its emergence as a standard connector for phone charging.

The automotive segment has begun to adopt USB ports on car stereo head units to provide connectivity with portable media players and USB Flash drives. Additionally, the proliferation of infotainment products in cars, such as the Ford Sync product line, will drive USB adoption in the automotive segment in the later years of the forecast.

In 2009 we expect fewer USB-enabled devices to ship, a result of the slumping world economy. However, we expect growth to resume in 2010, and over four billion USB-enabled devices to ship in 2013.