14 DAY TRIAL // You might not know this, but despite the theoretical maximum performance of USB 3.0 technology, devices that use it don't actually reach that limit. Corning might have finally made it happen though.
Universal Serial Bus 3.0 has a theoretical maximum throughput of 5 Gbps, roughly 10 times the 500 Mbps (480 Mbps really) of USB 2.0.
The cables that the data moves through, however, don't allow for that top rate to be achieved.
Corning has just released a high speed data cable that allows it to happen though. Optical technology is at the core of the achievement.
Corning named its invention, rather straightforwardly, USB 3.Optical Cable.
The 5 Gbps rate should be sustained over distances of up to 30 meters / 100 feet. All the while, the cables are half the thickness of copper cables, as well as a fifth of the thickness.
An optical Thunderbolt cable was created as well, but that's neither here nor there.
The Corning USB 3.Optical Cable sells in length of 10 meters / 33 feet for now and has a price of $129 / €93 - €129. Both B or micro B device-compatible connectors exist. Now we just have to hope that flash drives and USB-enabled HDDs/SSDs are, themselves, fast enough to use them properly.