With various standards and charging technologies at work, it is much more difficult to find out what a cable can do. There are a few things worth knowing when shopping.
USB standards: The standard standard for Seriesbus (USB) dates from 1996, but has recorded many new standards, revisions and plug -in types in the years since then. Instead of running through everyone here, we try to highlight what is important.
Connections: While USB-C becomes a standard connection type, you want cables with connections that match your existing devices. That could still mean USB-A, Lightning or even MicroUSB today. Remember that the functions of a cable are limited to the oldest type of connecting.
Data: The data transfer speed is always in megabit per second (MBPS) or gigabit per second (Gbit / s). You know how quickly a cable should be able to be able to do:
- USB 2.0 supports 480 Mbit / s
- USB 3.0 supports 5 Gbit / s
- USB 3.1 supports 10 Gbit / s
- USB 3.2 Gen 1 supports 5 Gbit / s
- USB 3.2 Gen 2 supports 10 Gbit / s
- USB 3.2 Gen 3 supports 20 Gbit / s
- USB 4.0 supports 40 Gbit / s
Perfomance: While cable manufacturers always list the maximum charging rate, your device determines how much electricity is to be drawn. It is therefore important to know which standards it supports and combine your cable with the correct performance adapter. The load rate of a cable is measured in Watts (W). Sometimes the manufacturers list specifications on the cable in tiny printing. If no W is listed, you can calculate it by multiplying the voltage (V) and the current (a), provided you are listed.
Basic USB C cables are passive and can only wear up to 60 watts. Cables that can carry 100 watts or more, which are sometimes referred to as active, must contain e-marker chips that identify the cable and its functions.
The PD standard (Power Delivery) is as tight as we are a common standard. Some manufacturers, such as OnePlus, Oppo and Xiaomi, still have proprietary charging standards. Afterwards there is Qualcomms Quick Charge (QC) Standard, which has been the most popular for telephones for many years, although Quick Lades supports 4+ PD. Even PD has a variant that is referred to as the programmable power supply (PPS) and is part of the USB PD 3.0 standard. PPS enables real -time adjustments to maximize efficiency and load phones such as loading Samsung Galaxy S22 Range With up to 45 watts instead of the usual 18. The latest supplement to PD is an extended power range (EPR), with which USB-C cable can wear up to 240 watts (they used to be limited to 100 watts).
Thunderbolt was a proprietary interface developed by Intel and Apple, but is now for the use of licenses (still certified by Intel). With Thunderbolt 3, the standard took over the USB-C connection and can be able to transmit data transfer speeds of up to 40 Gbit / s and deliver 100 watts with the PD standard. Thunderbolt 4 brings various improvements with the video signal (support for two 4K displays or an 8K display). It also supports the USB 4 standard and is compatible with previous standards.
Cable certification: There are some types of cable certification. If a cable is certified, this usually means that it has been tested independently and corresponds to the specific standards. As a buyer, it gives you the calming that your cable as a manufacturer claims. Certification can be expensive, so many cable manufacturers avoid, but that does not necessarily mean that your cables are of poor quality. The USB implementer forum (USB-IP) is a non-profit organization that is dedicated to promoting USB technology. It specifies specifications from members such as Apple, Google, HP, Microsoft and Intel. If a cable from the USB IF is certified, it was tested to ensure that it corresponds to its standards. Apple has made its own certification for iPhone (MFI) for flash cables. Intel certified Thunderbolt cable. Certified cables usually have the relevant logo on the connection. (For example, Thunderbolt cables have a flash.)
