Adaptec to release USB 2.0 drivers

Adaptec will next month release drivers for the forthcoming USB 2.0 peripheral connectivity standard that work with older versions of Windows. It will give firms the option of using faster USB 2.0 devices without having to upgrade to Windows XP on the desktop.

The drivers, which are already available in beta form for hardware developers, will allow USB 2.0 peripherals to work with Windows 98 SE, Me and 2000. Adaptec's release of the drivers extends support for USB 2.0 beyond that offered by Microsoft.

So far, Microsoft has only stated its intention to offer USB 2.0 drivers for Windows XP. However, the drivers will not ship with XP itself.

Microsoft recently demonstrated its drivers at the USB 2.0 developers' conference.

USB 2.0 is expected to offer transfer rates of up to 480Mbit/s for external devices, 40 times faster than the USB ports built into current systems. Desktop storage, scanners and multimedia peripherals are expected to support the new interface.

Although no peripherals are currently available and no PC motherboards yet have USB 2.0 ports, the standard is heavily backed by Intel. It does, however, have serious competition from the FireWire standard, which Adaptec also supports. Microsoft is backing FireWire, and is even sponsoring its next developers' conference.

A recently released revision to FireWire - IEEE.1394b - could deliver data transfer speeds of up to 800Mbit/s when devices using it appear later this year. Current FireWire technology supports speeds up to 400Mbit/s.

While it is expected that many firms will support both standards for the time being, many believe that this situation is unlikely to last.

Robert Schneider, chief executive at SCM Microsystems, a peripherals vendor which currently supports both interfaces, said that the computer industry would not back both standards in the long term.

IDC analyst Andy Brown said that the problem with FireWire has been cost. "In today's deflated market that could easily be the deciding factor. Firms are saying they don't want greater speed, just equipment that is suitable for employees' needs," he explained.

See also:

Monitors, scanners and printers

A look at the latest developments in imaging technology.  08 Nov 2001

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