Some computers are built with both the 2.0 and the 3.0. To check this on your computer look for a distinct blue coloured port. Well most new laptops, PC’s/Macs come with a built-in USB 3.0 port. The 3.0 was clearly faster but posed a question how relevant this was in your world?
Of course we wanted to test this and in theory 1GB of data to be uploaded running at max speed was suggested to take around 5 seconds and having tested this with a USB 3.0 with the same data on the same PC (in a USB 3.0 port) the time was 2mins 05 seconds to complete the transfer. So in a nutshell the 3.0 provides a faster read/write speed overall when transferring a lot of information. Whereas USB 3.0 can handle up to 5gbps of data transferred - over ten times faster than its predecessor. So, in theory 1GB of data to be uploaded running at the max speed is suggested to take around 18 seconds however in practise, DCD test results show the USB 2.0 taking 3 mins 18 seconds to complete a 1GB transfer. Now, the write speed on a 2.0 is 480mbps (megabits per second) at its maximum but often can be as low as 60mbps. Both vary depending on the USB manufacturer and the components used. The short answer - yes and yes!įor some background all USBs have a read speed (time taken to read the USB device from the USB port once loaded) and a write speed (time taken to write information to the USB). "Should I shift to USB 3.0 and does it matter?" I hear you ask. 80% of the orders we've fulfilled in the last year have been supplied as USB 2.0 instead of USB 3.0 but there does seem to be more enquiries for the newer version. USB flash drives are now a part of our daily lives from having them on our key rings to USB’s being used as giveaway promotional items.