AT LAST!!!

AT LAST!!!

It is the best thing ever happened in the field of convergent devices.

Circa 2007–Nokia, Samsung, Motorola, Sony Ericsson and LG have unequivocally agreed to make micro USB the new common charging connector across devices. There's no doubt that USB is the preferred standard for connections to mobile phones. It's fast, efficient, can charge the device, and is highly compatible. Micro USB is a new format developed by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF). Designed to replace all the mini USB type plugs that are so common on MP3 players, PDAs and cellphones (Moto Razr, L7, L9, N91 etc.), micro USB is thinner and smaller than mini USB, plus it has all the regular features of USB like fast data transfer and battery charging. Given the collective strength of these companies in the mobile space, the others will be forced to follow suit. This implementation will be seen soon, and has already started with the Motorola RAZR V8 (also known as Moto Razr 2).

Micro USB VS Mini USB

There are a number of reasons why this happened. Portable devices are getting smaller. And the space that they can allocate to a connector is shrinking too. That's why one port is now taking up the functions of what three ports did earlier: charging, earphones and data transfer!

It's just that till now, manufacturers preferred to use their own proprietary connectors-examples of which are Nokia's pop-port and Sony Ericsson's fast port. But with this new decision, there's a lot to celebrate. You will be able to use any charger for your cellphone, wherever you find one.

No more looking around for an LG flat pin charger or a Nokia N-Series type charger. And you won't need to carry a USB cable around either.

Just pick up any data cable from any portable device and you're good to go.

Another piece of good news is that, removable memory cards are being standardized by the same companies responsible for introducing the concept of micro USB.

The new specification, dubbed Universal Flash Storage (UFS), reflects the industry's need for a universal memory solution that removes the need for adaptors to accommodate different removable memory card sizes.

UFS Flash Memory Card

Widespread demand for higher densities and higher performance, plus the surging popularity of multimedia content, is accelerating the need for advanced memory solutions as removable card or embedded formats. UFS will provide a revolutionary leap towards supporting very low access times required for memories, as well as enabling high-speed access to large multimedia files, while reducing power-consumption in consumer electronic (CE) devices. The target performance level is expected to be a significant advancement beyond that of the varied flash cards popular today. Today, users experience a three-minute access time for a 90-minute (4 Gigabyte) high-definition movie; with the new standard, this would be reduced to a few seconds.

Major applications such as mobile handsets, digital still cameras and other CE devices will benefit from the convenience of a universal open standard based specification that is intended to reduce the time-consuming process of enabling interoperability among the various types of removable and embedded memory solutions at the system level. UFS is planned to provide consumers in the future with the convenience of a unified removable memory card that can be shared among various mobile, portable and other CE devices without the need for any adaptors.

The UFS standard is expected to be finalized in 2009.