World's first USB4 2.0 cables promise 80Gbps speeds

[zohaibahd]

What just happened? USB4, which is supported on most recently launched motherboards and devices, caps out at an impressive 40Gbps throughput. But with USB4 2.0 cables finally here, users will soon experience double those speeds and up to 240 watts (48V/5A) power delivery.

The cables come courtesy of Elecom, which just became the first company to have its USB4 2.0 cables officially certified, as reported by PC Watch. The Japanese company is set to launch two varieties in mid-December: one offering a transfer rate of 80Gbps with 60W power delivery, and another cranking that up to a whopping 240W at 48V/5A. These will be limited to Japan initially and it's unclear if availability will be expanded.

Beyond speed, that 240W power delivery option is incredibly fast for a simple USB cable and should be able to juice up powerful laptops or whatever power-hungry device you can throw at it – as long as they support the wattage levels. The cables will also support DisplayPort passthrough for up to 8K @ 60Hz (7680 x 4320 pixels) video output.

Despite Elecom's options landing in December, the adoption of actual USB4 2.0 ports by major hardware makers will likely take longer. Currently, no available motherboards offer native support for the standard. The tech was first announced back in 2022 but hasn't rolled out in the form of a product yet.

Microsoft has already started preparing Windows 11 for USB4 2.0 in Insider preview builds. However, PC and device manufacturers will need to integrate support for PCI-Express 5.0 x4 bus connections to fully enable the high bandwidth USB4 2.0 allows. Sadly, that means next-gen hardware is required.

The USB governing bodies plan an official launch for USB4 2.0 this December though, so the ball is now rolling.

It's worth mentioning that USB4 2.0 is theoretically capable of delivering up to a whopping 120Gbps, though that's limited to a single direction and requires an asymmetric configuration. When configured this way, it maintains 40Gbps in the other direction.

The new specification is also backward compatible with previous USB versions, including USB4 Version 1.0, USB 3.2, USB 2.0, and even Thunderbolt 3.

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World's first USB4 2.0 cables promise 80Gbps speeds

 

[bviktor]

Oh I was just thinking about 240W charging the other day. At least now we have the cables. Chargers also soon incoming I hope.

 

[TheBigT42]

I am going to wait for Superduper Speed USB 4 2.23 Gen 2.5 rev 4

/s

 

[ChrisH1]

That’s great and all, but 240 watts is quite a bit of power through a relatively small cable. If it gets damaged I hope there’s some sort of cutout otherwise that thing will get white-hot, melt and possibly start a fire.

 

[ddferrari]

That’s great and all, but 240 watts is quite a bit of power through a relatively small cable. If it gets damaged I hope there’s some sort of cutout otherwise that thing will get white-hot, melt and possibly start a fire.

After all the R&D that goes into new tech, do you really think this scenario was not considered? You sound like an overly protective mom.

 

[Theinsanegamer]

That’s great and all, but 240 watts is quite a bit of power through a relatively small cable. If it gets damaged I hope there’s some sort of cutout otherwise that thing will get white-hot, melt and possibly start a fire.

That cutout was already implemented, back when voltages higher then 9v were used on the OG 65w USB PD was introduced.

Also, WATTAGE does not determine heat, amperage vs Ohms does. Higher voltage = lower amperage. Derp.

 

[Megalomaniac]

I personally think you're better off just buying a couple 100W GaN chargers with dual or tri charging ports. Usually it's 2 USBC or 2 USBC with one USBA.

I travel internationally and these new charging stations are not neat to deploy in a lounge or on the plane - and it's easier to have two or 3 points of charging in your hotel room/ overseas condo that can be repurposed at will.

One of my 100W GaN chargers can charge my iPhone, applewatch and Air Pods simultaneously with my travel charger stand over a single USB cable. As far as laptops, a single 100W GaN charger can handle that very quickly - or you use the charger that came with it for uninterrupted power delivery without overheating.

240W charging sounds nice, but nothing but a laptop will typically allow or demand that kind of speed/ energy delivery. The phones typically don't. Accessories typically don't.

 

[scoffer]

"Microsoft has already started preparing Windows 11 for USB4 2.0 in Insider preview builds. However, PC and device manufacturers will need to integrate support for PCI-Express 5.0 x4 bus connections to fully enable the high bandwidth USB4 2.0 allows. Sadly, that means next-gen hardware is required."

Well naturally................Anybody the days of so-called "WINTEL" ...??

 

[Puiu]

I personally think you're better off just buying a couple 100W GaN chargers with dual or tri charging ports. Usually it's 2 USBC or 2 USBC with one USBA.

I travel internationally and these new charging stations are not neat to deploy in a lounge or on the plane - and it's easier to have two or 3 points of charging in your hotel room/ overseas condo that can be repurposed at will.

One of my 100W GaN chargers can charge my iPhone, applewatch and Air Pods simultaneously with my travel charger stand over a single USB cable. As far as laptops, a single 100W GaN charger can handle that very quickly - or you use the charger that came with it for uninterrupted power delivery without overheating.

240W charging sounds nice, but nothing but a laptop will typically allow or demand that kind of speed/ energy delivery. The phones typically don't. Accessories typically don't.

I bought for my Lenovo legion laptop their special 140W GaN USB-C charger so that I don't travel with the 300W brick

Although you can definitely feel the performance going down in games, the extra power helps compared to a normal 100W one. For phones and other devices I have a cheaper and lighter charger than can do 2 outputs (45W total if I remember correctly).

 

[Deathdealers747]

I feel like the URL doesn't match the title. Am I going crazy? https://www.techspot.com/news/105025-lunar-lake-allegedly-smokes-z1-extreme-handheld-gaming.html

 

[Megalomaniac]

I bought for my Lenovo legion laptop their special 140W GaN USB-C charger so that I don't travel with the 300W brick

Although you can definitely feel the performance going down in games, the extra power helps compared to a normal 100W one. For phones and other devices I have a cheaper and lighter charger than can do 2 outputs (45W total if I remember correctly).

Well that's what I'm saying. Bring the 300W charger and you don't suffer the performance decline. You also needn't spend outrageously to get a third party charger capable of that performance.

 

[Puiu]

Well that's what I'm saying. Bring the 300W charger and you don't suffer the performance decline. You also needn't spend outrageously to get a third party charger capable of that performance.

"Bring the 300W charger " - traveling with that, especially in other countries is not fun as it weighs 1.25kg. I'm not talking about going from my home to a friend/family

That extra kg is huge when I want just a simple backpack to travel 3-4 nights for a city break and the size isn't small either. The 140W charger is just 270grams.

 

[toooooot]

That’s great and all, but 240 watts is quite a bit of power through a relatively small cable. If it gets damaged I hope there’s some sort of cutout otherwise that thing will get white-hot, melt and possibly start a fire.

That is very possible. These days, a lot of cables already have tiny electric boards built in.
I know because I like to watch random stuff teardown.