Why are all the external DVD drives I'm finding USB 2.0?

[Bleedingyamato]

I'm looking for a USB external DVD drive on Amazon and the LG DVD drive along with pretty much every other name brand drive I've found are USB 2.0.  

 

It's been around 6 years or I think longer since USB 3.0 has been a thing why aren't all DVD drives USB 3.0?

 

The only few USB DVD drives I've seen are no name brands I have no interest in tempting fate trusting to use.  

[pwn_intended]

Because usb2 has more than enough bandwidth to play dvd's and using usb3 would be a waste of money.

[knightslugger]

manufacturing costs is likely one very large reason.

 

the other is likely that there isn't a good reason to need the throughput of 3.0 on a CD/DVD/BD reader/writer.

[PlayStation 2]

1 minute ago, pwn_intended said:

Because usb2 has more than enough bandwidth to play dvd's and using usb3 would be a waste of money.

Basically this. Why waste money throwing USB 3.0 on a DVD drive when 2.0 is more than enough. Hell, I'm pretty sure 1.1 would be enough to play a DVD properly.

[Mira Yurizaki]

Another one for that DVDs don't need much bandwidth and USB 2.0 provides more than enough. The only thing it may not provide is power, but I've been able to get away using one USB plug on my portable DVD drive. It probably won't write though, but I rarely burn a DVD anyway.

[Bleedingyamato]

30 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

Another one for that DVDs don't need much bandwidth and USB 2.0 provides more than enough. The only thing it may not provide is power, but I've been able to get away using one USB plug on my portable DVD drive. It probably won't write though, but I rarely burn a DVD anyway.

Then wouldn't power be a reason to use USB 3.0?  

 

Would a Blu-Ray drive need or benefit from USB 3.0? 

[Bleedingyamato]

44 minutes ago, Dan Castellaneta said:

Basically this. Why waste money throwing USB 3.0 on a DVD drive when 2.0 is more than enough. Hell, I'm pretty sure 1.1 would be enough to play a DVD properly.

USB 3.0 has been around for at least 6 years it can't be that expensive to use could it?

[PlayStation 2]

4 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

USB 3.0 has been around for at least 6 years it can't be that expensive to use could it?

It's probably cheaper to use USB 2.0, and by then they're just squeezing margins off of it.

[Mira Yurizaki]

4 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

Then wouldn't power be a reason to use USB 3.0?  

 

Would a Blu-Ray drive need or benefit from USB 3.0? 

It would be, if the USB group decided 0.5A was still the maximum. Now it's "whatever is safe". Otherwise my LG G4 that's still on USB 2.0 would charge at a horrendously slow rate on my computer, but it gets charged pretty quickly.

 

Blu Ray could benefit from using USB 3.0 as the maximum speed is 72 MB/sec, but that's at the top end and those drives either are internal or need external power. If you're playing movies, then USB 2.0 provides plenty of bandwidth still. Even if you're doing x2, you're looking at a paltry 9 MB/sec. (According to this StackExchange post, USB 2.0 has about 53 MB/sec after accounting for overhead)

 

2 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

USB 3.0 has been around for at least 6 years it can't be that expensive to use could it?

It's still five more wires on the cable and an equally annoying to solder connector for what amounts to no benefit. Plus USB 3.0 Micro-B is a very fugly thing.

[Bleedingyamato]

3 minutes ago, M.Yurizaki said:

It would be, if the USB group decided 0.5A was still the maximum. Now it's "whatever is safe". Otherwise my LG G4 that's still on USB 2.0 would charge at a horrendously slow rate on my computer, but it gets charged pretty quickly.

 

Blu Ray could benefit from using USB 3.0 as the maximum speed is 72 MB/sec, but that's at the top end and those drives either are internal or need external power. If you're playing movies, then USB 2.0 provides plenty of bandwidth still. Even if you're doing x2, you're looking at a paltry 9 MB/sec. (According to this StackExchange post, USB 2.0 has about 53 MB/sec after accounting for overhead)

 

It's still five more wires on the cable and an equally annoying to solder connector for what amounts to no benefit. Plus USB 3.0 Micro-B is a very fugly thing.

I thought .5A was the limit for USB 2.0?

As in a USB 2.0 device/cable won't accept more than that.

 

Is that safe for a USB 2.0 device to charge faster than .5A?

 

 

I guess I'm not too worried about having a fast enough connection if you're saying 2.0 is fast enough.  I had just assumed that 2.0 wasn't fast enough before you told me it is.

 

Is USB micro-B that weird shaped connector that I've seen on USB 3.0 external harddrives like the WD ones?

 

[Bleedingyamato]

16 minutes ago, Dan Castellaneta said:

It's probably cheaper to use USB 2.0, and by then they're just squeezing margins off of it.

That makes sense.  The drives are all around $25 so I guess the profit from each drive is not exactly large.

[Mira Yurizaki]

7 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

I thought .5A was the limit for USB 2.0?

As in a USB 2.0 device/cable won't accept more than that.

No. The USB group relaxed that limitation years ago. Otherwise how do you think there are official chargers that supply 1A and 2A over USB 2.0 ports?

 

7 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

Is that safe for a USB 2.0 device to charge faster than .5A?

Yes.

 

7 minutes ago, Bleedingyamato said:

Is USB micro-B that weird shaped connector that I've seen on USB 3.0 external harddrives like the WD ones?

USB 3.0 micro-B is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#/media/File:Connector_USB_3_IMGP6017_wp.jpg

 

It's only plus side is it can still fit a USB 2.0 micro-B plug

[Bleedingyamato]

1 hour ago, M.Yurizaki said:

No. The USB group relaxed that limitation years ago. Otherwise how do you think there are official chargers that supply 1A and 2A over USB 2.0 ports?

 

Yes.

 

USB 3.0 micro-B is: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#/media/File:Connector_USB_3_IMGP6017_wp.jpg

 

It's only plus side is it can still fit a USB 2.0 micro-B plug

Ohhhh.  I hadn't thought about that but yeah the apple brand charge cord for my iPad Air USB 2.0 I believe.

 

 

Oh, yeah I've seen those.  

 

 

But what I'm thinking of is more of a square shaped plug for some type of cord.  I think it's got a blue area (like a band of blue or the inside of the plug/connector is blue.  

 

I wish I could remember what it is..  ?