micro-USB Will Replace mini-USB in Many Devices

[Ed Hardy]

The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) has announced the completion of the micro-USB specification, a new connector technology that, because of its smaller size, it expects to replace many of the mini-USB ports now used in mobile devices.

The Advantages

As small as mini-USB ports are, some companies still find them to be too large for the latest ultra-thin devices. A prime example is the HTC Star Trek, a Windows Mobile Smartphone also being sold as the Cingular 3125. To save space, HTC felt needed to develop its own connector that is smaller than a mini-USB one.

"As portable devices such as mobile phones, PDAs, and digital cameras get smaller and more compact, manufacturers recognized the need for a new USB connector specification to suit the design of these new products," said Jeff Ravencraft, chairman and president of the USB-IF. "USB-IF developed the Micro-USB specification to adapt to sleek new design needs."

Despite its smaller size, this emerging connector format still offers the latest technologies. It supports the USB On-The-Go (OTG) supplement, which was created in response to the growing need for portable devices to communicate directly with each other when a PC is not available.

Coming When?

This revelation of the micro-USB specification was not accompanied by any announcements of products using this new format.

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[Ed Hardy]

I'm generally not a person who likes new formats, but I like companies developing proprietary ones even less. HTC had to come up with its own microSD-type port to fit in the Star Trek, which has made this device less handy than it should be.

I expect the Star Trek is only the first of many, so it makes sense to me that the USB Implementers Forum came up with a standard to fit this need, rather than forcing companies to develop their own proprietary ports.

[Glasstream15]

Dang, I hope not. My old eyes and old fingers have enough trouble with mini-USB. Micro????

[tanbam]

I've been using these in my phone (they were called TransFlash back then) for a year or so, and I just bought another one for my daughter's new Chocolate. They are really tiny; it's amazing how small these things are getting now.

[SGosnell]

Everything is a compromise of some sort. Tiny cards are easy to lose, but can fit in small devices. The proposed Spectec SDIO GPS is an example. It needs to be small, but it needs to be able to hold lots of data, for the maps. It all gets sorted out in a few years.......

[jigwashere]

Note: This thread is referring to micro-USB cables, not microSD cards (formerly known as TransFlash).