Mikey Campbell
A day after iPad Pro launched on Wednesday, teardowns and reviews of the gigantic tablet reveal Apple quietly included USB controller hardware capable of supporting high-speed USB 3.0 data connections, suggesting a faster Lightning protocol is in the works.
In its iPad Pro teardown, repair firm iFixit discovered the inclusion of Fresco Logic's FL1100 USB host controller, a package capable of delivering USB 3.0 "SuperSpeed" bandwidth to four separate ports. The chip is overkill considering all iPads, including the Pro, connect to host computers via a Lightning platform that tops out at USB 2.0.
As pointed out by MacRumors, a review from CNET claims iPad Pro's Lightning port will support "USB 3-level speeds with forthcoming adapters." Lightning already sports pin-outs to handle USB 3.0 configurations, so these "adapters" could very well be modified Lightning cables. If and when Apple releases compatible Lightning connectors and appropriate firmware updates, iPad Pro is in a good position to be the first iOS device to offer support the fast USB protocol.
The USB 3.0 spec can reach signaling rates of 5 Gbps, a tenfold increase in bandwidth compared to USB 2.0. A boost in data transfer speeds would be a welcome addition to Apple's iOS device lineup given each successive iPhone and iPad generation comes with an increase in processing power. Running Apple's latest A9 series SoC's, iPhone 6s and iPad Pro are capable of chewing through 4K video files in iOS 9 apps like iMovie, though the resulting file size makes exporting to a Mac or the Web somewhat of a challenge.
Apple introduced Lightning connector in 2012 as a replacement for the aging 30-pin connector. Instead of going with an industry standard, the company opted to build its own bidirectional connector, facilitating orientation agnostic plug insertion for a better user experience.
Apple is not averse to USB 3.0, however, as evidenced by its inclusion across the entire Mac lineup. Interestingly, Apple chose to implement USB-C — with a USB 3.1-capable controller capped at 5 Gbps — in the new 12-inch Retina MacBook, a protocol featuring a bidirectional plug design similar to Lightning.
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41 Comments
Please no please no please no. Please switch to USB-C
1) If the iPad Pro can support USB 3.0 via the Lightning port with that Fresco logic controller, then why didn't tout this feature or at least silently offer up a Lightning cable with support for a USB 3.0 Type-A plug at the other end? 2) Why a 4-port controller? In Macs, the keyboard, trackpad, BT, and even the cameras have been connected via a USB bus. I wonder if that's the case with iDevices. I also wonder if the dynamic ally switching speakers from left and right audio, and treble (top) and bass (bottom) might be best served with USB-connected speakers for each channel as the gyroscope detects a shift in the iPad Pro's placement.
[quote name="Krawall" url="/t/190109/ipad-pro-contains-usb-3-0-controller-hints-at-ultra-fast-lightning-connector#post_2805770"]Please no please no please no. Please switch to USB-C[/quote] Considering Pencil and the Siri Remote are Lightning, I'm guessing that's not happening.
I hope the next-gen AirPorts/Time Capsules get a USB 3 port as well; archiving a Time Capsule drive over USB 2.0 can take upwards of 24 hours.
[quote name="imac.usr" url="/t/190109/ipad-pro-contains-usb-3-0-controller-hints-at-ultra-fast-lightning-connector#post_2805785"]I hope the next-gen AirPorts/Time Capsules get a USB 3 port as well; archiving a Time Capsule drive over USB 2.0 can take upwards of 24 hours. [/quote] Would that make a difference with single-drive 7200RPM HDD write speeds?