HP today announced it will start shipping certain configurations of its laptops equipped with USB 3.0, becoming one of the first major brands to offer the new 'SuperSpeed' interface. Specifically, if you order an Envy 15 with a Core i7 processor and an ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5830 GPU for around $1,449, the new ports come along for the ride.
The company also has plans to sell two models of their EliteBook, the 8540p and 8540w laptops, with USB 3.0 within the next couple of weeks. Adoption of USB 3.0 is expected to be slow due to Intel's decision not to support the technology in its chipsets until sometime in 2011, but HP's early entry certainly is encouraging. Others who are following fast on HP's heels include Fujitsu and Asus.
For those unaware, USB 3.0 is the latest revision of the ubiquitous interface and will allow for data transfer rates as much as ten times faster than with the USB 2.0 ports that we've been using for a few years now. You can read more about the technology here.