The USB 3.0 Promoter Group which includes numerous major tech companies including Microsoft, Apple, Intel, and others, has announced the pending release of the USB 3.2 standard.
The USB 3.2 standard will bring features that takes better advantage of the USB Type-C ports. Traditionally, USB host and devices are single lance solutions. With the Type-C connector, multiple lanes can be hosted over a single connector. USB 3.2 allows device and hosts to be designed with up to two lanes of 5Gbps or two lanes of 10 Gbps devices. The lanes can operate simultaneously, boosting theoretical bandwidth to 2GB/s over a single USB connection.
To take advantage of the speed jump, all components including the cable, host, and device must support the USB 3.2 specification and of course, USB 3.2 devices and hosts will be fully backward compatible with today’s USB 3.0/3.1 specifications.
The USB 3.2 specification has now been drafted for final review. A formal release date will be announced at the USB Developer Days North America event in September 2017.
