If all you needed was a quick run-down of USB types and versions then you came to the right place.

Think of this as versions similar to the new iPhones (11, 12, 13) that tend to come out every year. Usually, they are chronological and add few, if any dramatic changes. Similar to that, USB versions started at 1.0 and have gone up to 3.2 since its inception in 1998.

As for types, think of this as the model of the phone. Remember when Apple started to release their iPhones on a range from the lower end to the higher end such as their iPhone 5 lines with the iPhone 5, 5C and 5S. Each were part of the same iPhone 5 series, but they had their noticeable differences. Similar to USB, they are all USB cables, but they have noticeable differences based on the appearance of the cable.

USB-A – Traditional blunted rectangular cable

USB-B- Squarish-type of cable that is used mainly with printers .

USB-C- Rounded rectangular edges with white connector that looks similar to an Apple Lightning Cable .

Micro-USB (Introduced 2007): Flatter, curved rectangular-shaped USB cable seen in smart phones, tablets and power banks

Dimensions : 6.85 x 1.8 mm

Durability: 10,000 plug-ins/plug-outs

Transfer Speed: 480 Mbps

Tx Systems’ Products that Use Mini-USB as an Additional Port:

SUPPORTS OTG for data transfer on Android smartphones and the usage of external peripherals

Mini-USB B ( Introduced 2005 ): Squarish anvil shaped with indentations towards the bottom seen in GPS units, Mp3 players, mobile phones (pre-Android) and digital cameras

Dimensions: 3 x 7 mm

Durability: 5,000 plug-ins/plug-outs

Tx Systems Products that Use Mini-USB as an Additional Port:

Remember when USB ports came in a few types like the USB 2.0 cable and a micro-USB cable? You might plug in your flash drive and possible an Mp3 player into an available port to transfer files. Well, now thanks to the latest tech innovations, there are multiple USB connectors on the market with those being the USB-C and USB 3.0+ connectors. Each of these promise, faster data transfer speeds than the last generations. Think of your smart phone with some of the earlier phones such as the HTC Evo 4G having a single-core 1 GHz processor, mind you, that this was released in early 2010. Now compare that with the Google Pixel 6 with an octa-core processor running at almost 3 GHz with this device being released in Fall 2021.

As you can see, time definitely changes technology a lot! Imagine trying to transfer the thousands of photos on your phone to your PC over USB 2.0 with a maximum bus speed of 480 Mbps . You would definitely benefit from USB 3.0 which upped the ante in 2008. It has a maximum of data transfer speed of 5 Gpbs which means even higher data transfer speeds. You won’t be waiting for long to get those photos transferred.

Don’t act surprised when you find out that some of our smart card readers are still using USB 1.1 . Smart cards do not store large amounts of information relative to memory cards or flash drives, so they do not need to transfer at speeds beyond 12 Mbps. So, if you take a look at the datasheets and see USB 2.0 Full Speed, be aware that that esentially means USB 1.1 because they are capped at 12 Mbps.

Most of the readers that we sell operate on the USB 2.0 Full Speed standard or what is commonly known as USB 1.1.

* USB Hi-Speed is what USB 2.0 is truly capable of which is 480 Mbps.

USB 1.1 Supported Devices a.k.a. USB 2.0 Full Speed:

USB 3.0 Extended Operability/Compliant (DOES NOT NECESSARILY MEAN 3.0 SPEEDS):

With regards to the type of USB cable, certain products have both USB Type-A and USB Type-C models to accommodate current PC trends. A list of products that have both USB-A and USB-C models include:

USB-A Version:

USB-B Version:

USB-C Version:

ONLY USB-C Version:

*Always pay attention to the model number as one is ACR38U and the other is ACR39U as this signifies an update. There are also differences with the acronyms if it is -A1,-N1 and -NF

Some of our own products that we sell come in different varieties of ports such as the USB Type-A, Type-B and Type-C varieties, so it is important to keep an eye out on which one you are buying. Some suggestions include looking at the product title which may include certain keywords such as USB Type-A/Type-C or USB 2.0. You might also want to look at the “Features” section with the product page which will include the USB cable type (Type-A or Type-C) and the speed of the USB port whether 1.1, 2.0 or 3.0. If worse comes to worse, then take a look at the datasheet included as a downloadable file on our product page. They are located below the “Download Datasheets” section. They are not as bad as they seem once you realize that they are structured the same exact way regardless of manufacturer.

** REMEMBER: The majority of our products run on USB 2.0 and are USB Type-A.** ‘

Luckily, some of our devices are connectable via Bluetooth, so you will not have to worry about USB types or versions. Bluetooth tends to be supported mostly on mobile devices such as laptops, smart phones and tablets, but PCs can have that built in internally. You can always find external Bluetooth adapters on Amazon or in brick-and-mortar stores such as Best Buy.

Bluetooth Supported Devices:

USB types and versions can be a little bit tricky to wrap your head around. Before you pull the trigger on a new smart card reader or biometric reader, check to make sure that you are getting the proper USB connector that will fit your needs. Feel free to send us an email if you need additional clarification at sales@txsystems.com or give us a line at 858.622.2004 for our technical support.