SilverStone USB 3.0 Host Controllers and Card Readers Present at CeBIT 2012

While Sharp and Samsung are letting loose in Las Vegas, SilverStone is attending a different event, one that we consumers are more interested in, namely CeBIT 2012.

The IT trade show is taking place in Hannover, Germany, so SilverStone decided to present some of the things it would ship this year.

The company seems particularly interested in the PC accessory market, according to the ladies and gentlemen at VR-Zone.

The accessories in question are USB add-in boards instead of mice or keyboards (the PC accessories that people tend to think about first).

The arguably most advanced USB product of the several ones at SilverStone's booth is a card reader that, in addition to most memory cards out there, can read from USB devices via an USB 3.0 port.

That means that it occupies a 5.2 bay and connects to USB headers on a motherboard, while also having an USB 3.0 port at the front.

There is a more basic card reader there too, with a SATA port, an USB 3.0 port and an eSATA.

Furthermore, there is the EC04 (finally, a product name), which relies on a 4-port TI TUSB7340 host controller and has two rear ports, plus an internal pin header. It is most useful for systems completely devoid of USB 3.0.

Finally, SilverStone has the EC03-P, the first to use the Renesas uDP720202 host controller. A single pin header is available on it.

Most people won't need any sort of USB 3.0 card, since motherboards have been including that feature from as far back as two years ago, even before Intel and AMD chipsets natively supported it.

That means that the company was thinking about those who felt like they might want to upgrade their I/o speed while not changing their good old maiboard or CPU, or anything else really. They still need a PCI Express slot though.