First USB 4 devices to be launched at the end of 2020

USB 4 is the successor of USB 3 and combines technologies like Thunderbolt 3. The first USB 4 devices are expected to be on the market in 2020.

USB 4: faster and including Thunderbolt 3

The USB Implementers Forum continues to work on the new standard USB 4 (notation: USB4). It is the successor of USB 3.0 and all variants like USB 3.1, USB 3.2. Strictly defined it is not a complete new development. Intel has passed the Thunderbolt 3 standard to the USB-IF. The company no longer requires licenses for Thunderbolt 3, which is why USB 4 is now being developed on the basis of Thunderbolt 3.

The new standard has it all. In comparison to USB 3.2 the double speed is reached with up to 40 GBit/s. Through Lane-Bonding a backwards compatibility to the old USB standards down to USB 2.0 is also given. Thanks to Thunderbolt 3, display connections such as DisplayPort are now standard in the new USB 4 standard. The standard port for this is USB-C again. The standard is also particularly interesting for notebooks that can be charged with up to 100 watts.

First devices with USB 4 from the end of 2020

AnandTech had an extensive talk with the USB Promoter Group at Computex 2019. The main topic was the schedule of the new interface. The USB Implementers Forum wants to finish specifying USB 4 this summer. The standard is currently in version 0.7, so it is already close to series production. The USB Promoter Group therefore expects the first devices that use USB 4 to be available by the end of 2020. The general spread of the standard should begin from that point. Intel should be an early adopter, since Thunderbolt 3 also comes from this company.