What the ‘C’ in USB-C actually means (it isn’t what you assume)

You doubtless work together with a USB port on daily basis, whether or not you are plugging in your telephone to cost or connecting a tool to your PC. Lately, USB-C, also called USB Sort-C, has turn into the commonest sort of USB port, seen on most smartphones, laptops, tablets, gaming consoles, e-readers, and lots of different units.

Within the cellular world, Android telephones have had USB-C for a very long time, however Apple lastly caught as much as the occasions and adopted USB-C on the iPhone again in 2023 with the iPhone 15 collection, lastly saying goodbye to its proprietary Lightning port.

I actually hadn’t thought a lot about USB-C recently as a result of it is turn into so synonymous with all of the tech I take advantage of that I’ve simply grown used to it. Nonetheless, that modified lately when my buddy, who purchased a brand new iPhone with USB-C for the primary time, requested me a easy but eye-opening query: “What is the C within the USB-C stand for?” It made me consider a humorous facet of expertise: regardless of its widespread use by hundreds of thousands and even billions of individuals day by day, many may not truly know what the ‘C’ in USB-C represents. And to be clear, I do not blame them.

As for what the reply is, in all equity, it is not the obvious. If you take a look at a USB-C port or connector, it is not truly formed just like the letter C, so that is not the which means. My buddy assumed it stood for connector, which is an affordable guess however not the reply both. To essentially perceive the which means of the “C” in USB-C, it requires a little bit of exploration into the historical past of the USB port itself.

USB-C is the newest USB connector

It’s the successor to USB-A and USB-B

The rationale USB-C has its identify is not as a result of the C stands for one thing like charging, cable, or connector. The C would not stand for a selected phrase, neither is it an acronym for something. The C in USB-C serves as an identifier for the design, because it’s the newest connector sort within the USB household, which incorporates two prior older design sorts: USB-A and USB-B.

The USB made its debut in 1996, when seven main tech firms — Intel, Microsoft, IBM, Compaq, DEC, NEC, and Nortel — launched the Common Serial Bus (USB), a common connector for computer systems. USB was designed to make connecting peripherals like keyboards, mice, and printers to PCs simpler. Within the 25 years since its introduction, it has turn into important to many technological improvements, together with smartphones, tablets, e-readers, and extra.

USB-A might be the USB port you are most conversant in, because it’s the oblong connector that is been used on units for nicely over twenty years now, and remains to be generally seen right this moment on USB flash drives, computer systems, gaming consoles, and extra. It is a thick connector, and given what number of laptops and tablets have been specializing in thinness in recent times, USB-C has largely taken over its place, because of its compactness and in addition its means to deal with quicker information switch and charging speeds.

You may be much less conversant in USB-B, a bulkier sq. connection sometimes seen on printers and exterior onerous drives. You might also discover USB-B ports on the again of displays, the place they function upstream ports, which means they ship information from the opposite USB ports in your monitor again to your PC. So if you happen to join a keyboard to your monitor’s USB-A port, you will have to plug the USB-B port into your PC as nicely, so it may possibly use it. Micro USB, which was on plenty of smartphones again within the day, can be a sort of USB-B port, it is only a miniaturized model.

That lands us on USB-C, the most recent sort of USB connector. Not like USB-A and USB-B, USB-C is a reversible connector with a symmetrical design, permitting it to be plugged in any orientation. Along with its user-friendly design, USB-C can be rather more compact than USB-A and USB-B, which means it takes up approach much less area on units. In an age the place telephones just like the iPhone Air and the Galaxy Z Fold 7 exist, having a small but extraordinarily highly effective USB port is integral to retaining the units skinny and light-weight.

So, to recap, the “C” in USB-C would not have any hidden which means or stand for an additional phrase. It’s merely a label that signifies the kind of USB connector you are utilizing, which is USB Sort-C. The letter C is used as a result of it follows the sequential order of the USB household, which had USB-A and USB-B previous it.

The ‘C’ in USB-C would not point out its energy both

USB-C ports assist varied USB protocols that decide information switch pace

One other essential element to find out about USB-C ports is that the “C” would not truly point out how briskly it’s both. Whereas one advantage of USB-C over USB-A and USB-B is its versatility, because it helps quite a lot of USB protocols that its predecessors do not, this additionally makes USB-C a bit complicated as a result of not all USB-C ports are the identical.

The info switch pace of a USB-C port is dependent upon the USB protocol supported by its inner controller chip and the standard of the cable used. USB-C helps many protocols, together with USB 2.0 with speeds as much as 480 Mbps, USB 3.2 Gen 1 with speeds as much as 5 Gbps, USB 3.2 Gen 2 with speeds as much as 10 Gbps, and USB 4, Thunderbolt 3, and Thunderbolt 4 with speeds as much as 40 Gbps.

For those who’re interested by how briskly the USB-C port in your gadget is, examine the producer’s spec sheet. For instance, the iPhone 17 Pro’s USB-C port is USB 3.2 and helps as much as 10 Gbps, whereas the bottom iPhone 17’s USB port is simply USB 2, which suggests it’s restricted to 480 Mbps. Moreover, the charging pace of a USB-C port is dependent upon the gadget’s inner design and the way a lot energy it may possibly settle for from a charger. Like information switch, charging speeds additionally rely on the standard of the USB-C cable, so earlier than shopping for simply any USB-C cable, examine the supported speeds to keep away from limiting your gadget’s efficiency due to the cable.