Modern computing would surely be very different if this type of connector that we use every day had not been developed. The USB port has become essential in everyday life, since it is present in all types of devices and peripherals. At the Taipei International Computer Exhibition in Taiwan, ASMedia presented the USB4 V2 allowing speeds transfer up to 80 Gbps.
The USB connector is used in all types of peripherals and also in smartphones, in the latter case for charging devices. There have been several attempts to replace it, such as in the case of FireWire, which proved to be a failure.
The Universal Serial Bus has a problem and it is difficult to identify. Concretely, it is complex to know its version and the functionalities it can offer. It goes through so many revisions and the design is the same, that it’s generally difficult to know its capabilities.
ASMedia presents its USB4 V2 prototype
A few days ago, Taiwan celebrated Computex 2024 and now the Taipei International Computer Show is being held. This is a much more specialized event where prototypes and developments of future technologies are presented.
At the event, ASMedia demonstrated its USB4 V2 physical layer (PHY) chip that achieves speeds of 80 Gbps and 120 Gbps. The USB-IF regulator, responsible for development and standardization, published the USB4 V2 specifications in October 2022. The new version allows an increase from 40 Gbps between pairs to 40 Gbps between pairs to 80 Gbps between stops and 120/40 Gbps asymmetrical. configuration.
ASMedia’s new PHY chip is based precisely on the new USB4 V2 standard. The idea is to offer higher data transmission speeds via USB.
The company highlights that it will demonstrate a prototype FPGA platform for USB4 docking stations at CES 2025. This docking station will support transfer speeds of 40 Gbps between peers. It would offer multiple USB ports, as well as HDMI and DisplayPort with UHBR20 support, wired network connections, and a power delivery of up to 240 watts.
This is not the only new thing that ASMedia presented during this event. They also introduced a PHY chip for the PCIe 5.0 interface, ensuring their dominance in this segment. The particularity of this chip is that it was designed to meet the needs of traditional servers, high performance computing (HPC), Big Data processing and AI. The goal is to increase data transfer speed and reduce latency, which is essential in all these segments.
ASMedia also announced the delivery of packet-switched PCIe Gen4 multi-link chips by the end of 2024. These chips are also aimed at professional environments such as Big Data, servers, AI or high-performance computing.
Note that USB4 support is just starting to roll out. This connector is characterized by being native USB-C and offering transfer speeds of 40 Gbps. It may take a few years for USB4 V2 to be available, as it is still in the development phase of physical layer solutions.
