USB 2.0 Cable Question

[jwhee0615]

Happy holidays! I just purchased a Canon I960 printer and I am wondering if there is any difference in USB cables as far as are there specific ones for USB 2.0? I have several USB cables that I am sure are pre USB 2.0 and looking in the stores they are now labeled 2.0 capable but is there really a difference? I have USB 2.0 ports on my motherboard but is there a way to test speed?

[su719]

Yes the connector is different from Usb 1.x to 2.0. If the end is really small then it is 2.0. If the end is more square like it is 1.x.

[bshef]

I have the old 1.x
My system won't recognize the port during the install of my new pixma 8500 software!
I've made certain that I have the cable correctly installed into the lower usb printer port but still no luck.
I've spent a couple hours trying to get this right......rebooting and such......and yes.....i'm not turning the printer "on" till the prompt ask me to......sigh!

I'm running win xp Pro without the major #2 patch.

Any help/direction appreciated!

Thanks
Brad

[PacAce]

Happy holidays! I just purchased a Canon I960 printer and I am wondering if there is any difference in USB cables as far as are there specific ones for USB 2.0? I have several USB cables that I am sure are pre USB 2.0 and looking in the stores they are now labeled 2.0 capable but is there really a difference? I have USB 2.0 ports on my motherboard but is there a way to test speed?

My i9900 printer comes with USB 1.x and USB 2.0, and the sockets for both are identical (kind of sqaurish). The only way I can tell which is which is by reading the label beside the USB 2.0 socket which reads "Hi Speed". I'm using the USB 2.0 ports on the printer and the computer but I'm using the same USB cable that I used on my Epson printer which is USB 1.x. And on the computer end, the USB 1.x and USB 2.0 sockets are the same, too. So, without reading the label or knowing for a fact that the prot is USB 1.x or USB 2.0, it's really hard to tell what the speed of the USB port is. However, they're both compatible with each other so it won't be a problem connecting a USB 1.x device into a USB 2.0 port or vice versa.

[jwhee0615]

Thank you for the replies. I do know that the connectors are in fact not different as far as the printer goes. I know that my camera has a different small conector on the cam for hooking up the usb cable but this of course is not the same on the printer. My I960 has the same two ports, one high speed and one low. I just wonder if there is something different in the construction of a cable made for USB 2.0 or if a conventional USB cable would reduce speed if used.

[PacAce]

Thank you for the replies. I do know that the connectors are in fact not different as far as the printer goes. I know that my camera has a different small conector on the cam for hooking up the usb cable but this of course is not the same on the printer. My I960 has the same two ports, one high speed and one low. I just wonder if there is something different in the construction of a cable made for USB 2.0 or if a conventional USB cable would reduce speed if used.

From what I've read, USB 1.1 cables are fully compatible with the USB 2.0 speeds. The older USB 1.0 cables are not but as long as you have the USB 1.1 cable, you should be OK.

[jwhee0615]

and how would one tell?

[PacAce]

and how would one tell?

Good question and I can't answer that. However, if you bought the cable within the last couple of years, chances are that you have the 1.1 version since they stopped selling the 1.0 version ages ago. AAMOF, I don't think there are too many 1.0 cables around because they're not even compatible with USB 1.1.

[Jesper]

Yes the connector is different from Usb 1.x to 2.0. If the end is really small then it is 2.0. If the end is more square like it is 1.x.
That's not true.....

There are three kinds of USB connectors:
Type A - the flat one, usually found on the side of the computer
Type B - the square one, usually found on the side of the printer or scanner
Mini - the very small one, usually for digital cameras which don't have a lot of space for a connector

USB 1.x and USB 2.0 cables look exactly the same. There are some cables that are "USB 2.0 certified", which means they've been tested to work with USB 2.0 devices. But a non-certified cable often also works.

All your questions about USB will be answered here: http://www.usbman.com/