USB 3.0 is the latest in the line of Universal Serial Bus interfaces. With a data rate of 4.8 Gigabits per second it is ten times the speed of its predescessor USB 2.0.

It needs extra pins and comes with a modified plug. Dubbed "Superspeed USB" this new innovation will be aimed at new applications and devices where new technology can take advantage of a higher data throughput.

The Current version of USB "Version 2.0" has been succesful in cornering the market for Keyboards, Mice and Printers, as well as USB memory sticks, backup devices and external disk drive units. The sucess of the standard has considerably simplified the hardware on many computers which previously needed to have several specialist interfaces for Printers, Keyboards etc.

However early adopters of the New USB 3.0 standard may find that they have to wait a while before any devices which use the interface to its full extent.