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I have a bunch of USB cables which I’ve been using for many years.

Do they have a “version?” I mean, if the cable is old and only USB 2.0 existed when it was made and sold, and I connect it to a USB 3.0 port with a USB 3.0 device in the other end, does that mean that the transfer speed will be limited by the cable itself?

Or can the USB cables, as long as they physically fit, transfer at any USB speed, old or future?

Giacomo1968
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Maarten S.
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1 Answers1

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USB cables are manufactured for the port version they represent. Although USB is backwards compatible, and yes, that does mean a slow cable will work on a fast port, the cable is limited in its performance.

The answer is therefor going to be: Yes, USB cables have different maximum capabilities that could be considered tied to the version of the port it was made for during manufacturing.

This will show up in a maximum speed the cable can transmit data over, but also the maximum power it can transfer. If we look at USB-C with phone charging, you will know that some phones have fast charging. They do need a matching powerbrick, but if you don't also use a matching USB-C cable that supports this power usage, it will simply not charge as fast or as consistent as with the cable provided with the phone.

LPChip
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    Well, what about USB connectors as indicators? A USB 1.1 device can connect use a USB 2.0 cable. But a USB 3.0 device has a specific connector on one end to add 4 more connectors so a USB 2.0 cable would never be USB 3.0 speed. And then USB C cables are more confusing because they _all_ look the same: A USB C cable that is good for 480Mpbs looks the same as one that is 5GBps or 10Gbps and it even looks like a Thunderbolt 3/4 cable but sure as heck won’t work at this speeds unless it is spec’d for Thunderbolt 3/4. So if the original poster has a lot of old cables, they are all USB 1.1/2.0. – Giacomo1968 Aug 06 '22 at 15:15
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    @Giacomo1968 yeah, that is true. I did not want to include that part because it makes the answer overly complicated. The biggest part that is necessary to know is that there are cables that appear to be the same, but they will not work the same. Its obvious that if a cable has different ends, they will not be the same. – LPChip Aug 06 '22 at 15:51
  • Understood. Also, remember that there are many cables out there that are USB charging only. Micro USB mainly. – Giacomo1968 Aug 06 '22 at 16:02
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    Notably, a lot of less expensive cables made for USB-PD are USB 2.0 only. USB-PD requires actual communications between the charger and device, but it doesn’t need the SS lanes for that, and by not including them the cable can be made cheaper and more flexible for a given rated wattage. – Austin Hemmelgarn Aug 07 '22 at 01:16
  • And then there are USB-C cables and Thunderbolt cables. – jrw32982 Aug 09 '22 at 16:11