I am running a HP i5 desktop with usb 2.0 outlets. Connected to that I have a Plugable USB 2.0 10 port hub. Connected to the hub I have six Plugable 2.0 Display adapters running to six different screens. (Stock Charts) I also have my wireless mouse and wireless keybord and my webcam connected to the hub. Everything works fine and I am happy. I am now wanting to update to a newer Toshiba Qosmio i7 Laptop. I will also be purchasing a Toshiba dynadoc U3.0 Dockingstation. My question is . Will I be able to run the existing hardware being USB 2.0 with the new Docking station that is 3.0 or am I going to have to upgrade everything or is there different cables and adapters I can use so that the system will work.
Hi Olin,
Thanks for posting your question here! As USB 3.0 is backward compatible with USB 2.0, all USB 2.0 devices will work through USB 3.0 ports.All USB 3.0 ports include the necessary pins and logic to process USB 2.0 signals, and all of the ports are physically compatible with USB 2.0.
Similarly, all USB 2.0 ports will be compatible with USB 3.0 signals, as all SuperSpeed devices are required to be capable of interfacing on their 2.0 pins alone. This means that a USB 3.0 hard drive can attach to a USB 2.0 port using a 2.0 cable, or attach to a USB 3.0 port using a 2.0 cable, or attach to a USB 2.0 port using a 3.0 cable. While the device will not benefit from the higher bandwidth of the USB 3.0 interface, it is still required to function properly at full USB 2.0 speeds.
In other words, your USB 2.0 hardware will work without issues on your new system via USB 3.0 ports.
Hope the above information helps! If you need any additional information, please do feel free to shoot us an email at support@plugable.com. We are here to help!
Regards,
Roze
Thanks. Now I can go ahead and purchase the Laptop.
Olin