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Any New iMac Buyers Worried About USB 3.0!
- Thread starter solman
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Well, it for me it won't be a huge problem. USB 3.0 devices will not be so commonplace for now, and even if they are, it's backward compatible. I don't have much peripherals, my camera uses an SD card, and I don't really need to transfer data (I don't add huge amounts of songs and apps to my iPhone).
So I guess you should be worried if you transfer large amounts of data via USB regularly.
So I guess you should be worried if you transfer large amounts of data via USB regularly.
If you can wait 6 - 8 Months for the next POSSIBLE imac refresh then go ahead. Unfortunately there is nothing we can really do about it especially if you need a computer.
Technology is always changing. The next refresh will have i5 in entry level , keep waiting and things keep changing is an impossible race to win unless you have lots of cash.
Technology is always changing. The next refresh will have i5 in entry level , keep waiting and things keep changing is an impossible race to win unless you have lots of cash.
USB 3 is something i am worried about, more so than BD because I can just buy an external drive down the track if Apple incorporates it into OS X. But USB 3 different.
However the USB slot has made things easier, my HD Camcorder and my Camera both use SD card, so USB is superfluous there.
I can see my USB external HD being used as a wireless drive anyway, and any new drives will have firewire 800 which is fast enough for me...
So no I'm not too worried, as was said above it is backwards compatible so any USB 3 devices will work fine in USB 2 ports.
I can see it being at least a year before it starts really catching on in devices, and at least 18 months till Apple incorporates it into its iMac line. I don't want to wait 18 months!
i think the thread starter asked a very valid qn...
currently all my comps are still running on USB 1.0... i faced many problems when i try to connect my comp to devices that run on USB 2.0... although we know USB 2.0 is back compatible, but when conducting updates on these devices, i still face a lot of problems...
especially if one wishes to use their comp for more than 5 years, this is definitely an aspect one must really take into consideration...
currently all my comps are still running on USB 1.0... i faced many problems when i try to connect my comp to devices that run on USB 2.0... although we know USB 2.0 is back compatible, but when conducting updates on these devices, i still face a lot of problems...
especially if one wishes to use their comp for more than 5 years, this is definitely an aspect one must really take into consideration...
And if you wait 18 months, I'm willing to bet that light peak will be the "I won't buy until" reason/excuse folks will use.
There will always, always be something new/better coming just around the corner. Pick a trigger, some feature or option you really want or need. For me it was the i7. I wanted BD and USB 3.0 would have been nice, but I'm sure I'll be very happy with the current 27 - i7.
There will always, always be something new/better coming just around the corner. Pick a trigger, some feature or option you really want or need. For me it was the i7. I wanted BD and USB 3.0 would have been nice, but I'm sure I'll be very happy with the current 27 - i7.
Since Apple is going back to the Intel chipsets, likely whatever Intel incorporates will sort of force Apple to add it as soon as the chipsets adopt it.
Apple can extend a current chipset and add it ahead of the market, but I doubt that will happen.
Still, the way things are happening Apple will either get a new chipset 90days ahead of the market, or be 3-6 months late in releasing their version of a machine.
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However if you really are worried about having USB3 on a machine ou buy now ... you are stuck with a Mac Pro.
intel will not provide USB 3.0 on their chipsets until 2011, so it's not likely to show up in the next iMac anyway.
Yeah that is what I had read originally as well, late 2010/early 2011. Then however long it takes Steve Jobs to decide it is worthy to be in his computers.
could care less.
it'll still be compatible with my iMac so..
it's not a big issue for me lol.
besides, only USB thing I ever care about is my 1TB HDD where I back up my music, movies, pictures, and just stuff like that.
so to me, it wouldn't make any difference whatsoever.
it'll still be compatible with my iMac so..
it's not a big issue for me lol.
besides, only USB thing I ever care about is my 1TB HDD where I back up my music, movies, pictures, and just stuff like that.
so to me, it wouldn't make any difference whatsoever.
The same way USB2 was DOA because Firewire 400 was far superior?
But I agree with what others have said... USB3 is still a couple years away from mass availability, and that doesn't assume that it will be the next gen connector that peripheral makers opt for. LightPeak or something else might be the one that takes off.
As usualy, the Golden Rule of new technology applies: If you need it now, buy it now. If you can wait, then wait.
The same way USB2 was DOA because Firewire 400 was far superior?
But I agree with what others have said... USB3 is still a couple years away from mass availability, and that doesn't assume that it will be the next gen connector that peripheral makers opt for. LightPeak or something else might be the one that takes off.
As usualy, the Golden Rule of new technology applies: If you need it now, buy it now. If you can wait, then wait.
Exactly.
Personally, I'm unconvinced USB 3.0 will be the ultimate next-gen connector, if only because it has been talked about for SO long and still hasn't managed to make it to market. Plus, you've got to figure that it'll take time for device makers to start making peripherals that are not just compatible but also take advantage of the faster connection.
Like Rex said, if you need it -- get it. If you are always waiting for the next thing, you'll always be waiting.
I'm waiting for USB 3.0 like I'm waiting for Duke Nukem Forever... yeah, sure, it could show up next week, but I'm not planning my computer purchases based on it.
If you need a computer now buy a computer now. If you don't need a computer now don't buy one now. Waiting when you need one is not good. Buying something you don't need is not good.
About USB 3.0, What would you plug into the iMac hat uses USB 3.0? It will be years before 3.0 devices are common
Of course, this is the fundamental iMac trade-off. With a Mac Pro, at least, you could always add a card to add whatever new fangled ports are invented, and eek a couple more years from the box. But you pay for the privilege.
Yes. It was poor marketing and high royalty and hardware cost that caused FW to fail.
For that price it is!
USB 3.0 may not be a mass market commodity but it is alive and shipping. I can't even begin on the status of Light Peak compared to USB 3.0.
Sony is all excited about LightPeak and even rumored to be backing Intel on R&D. I'm not a huge fan of them or their products but they sure have deep pockets and many, many fronts. Usually where Sony goes, so goes the market. That being said my money is on optical cable technology rising to the top in due time. Until then USB 3.0 should see some play for at least a couple of years. As many have already said, if you need it now then pull the trigger.
If I were you I'd buy it now. It will be ages before the next iMac refresh. And by then something new will be coming up... You can't always have the latest, unless your super rich!
If Apple made a midrange tower with PCI slots (you know, like they used to) that wouldn't be a forced choice.
Ironic that I may be able to add USB 3.0 to my nine year-old desktop system.