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Do you have a USB device? Look carefully at the port – do you see any color? This shows that it actually means something. There is a standardized color scheme that communicates information about the capabilities of that device.
mind blown? If you’ve never noticed it, you’re not alone. Most USB devices work fine on any compatible port, but they may not be optimized for optimal performance. For example, if you noticed that a mouse works better in one port than another, it’s not your brain. One probably supports USB 3.0, and the other does not.
Also: drawer full of USB cables? This little tester tells you which ones actually work as advertised
Despite the fact that they share a universal port size, not all USB-A and USB-C devices are created equal, with similar devices potentially having very different transfer speeds, power transfers, and generations. Even the capabilities of two USB-C ports located right next to each other on the same laptop can be very different when it comes to data transfer speeds and power delivery.
Let’s take a look at what they mean.
There are seven key colors that indicate the generation of the device and what type of data transfer speeds you can expect. If you have any rare equipment whose color is not listed here, let me know in the comments.
- Black:Denoting USB 2.0, it is the second most common that you will see on all types of devices, supporting speeds of up to 480Mbps.
- White: These are first generation devices – USB 1.x – with the slowest possible transfer speeds that usually do not exceed 12 Mbps. They are also some of the most common, found on devices that do not require data transfer or high power delivery.
- Yellow: These ports can support USB 2.0 or 3.0, and are “always on”, meaning they can supply power even when the device they are connected to is turned off.
- Orange: Like yellow, but with support for USB 3.0. always on. You can see these on your pair of headphones.
- Blue: Supporting USB 3.0 SuperSpeed technology and above, blue ports identify a device capable of faster data transfers: up to 5 Gbps (ie 5,000 MBps) – a significant leap from previous generations. In addition to laptops, you’ll see blue ports on thumb drives and external storage.
- Teal: Just like blue, but denoted as USB 3.1, supporting faster transfer speeds of up to 10 Gbps.
- Red: These are the latest and fastest devices available, classified as USB 3.1 Generation 2 and USB 3.2. They support another significant increase in data transfer speed – up to 10-20 Gbps. The red USB ports are also always on.
The blue USB-A port indicates transfer speeds of up to 5 Gbps.
Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET
The colors of your laptop’s USB ports can also tell you at a glance which generation of USB technology it supports. For example, the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514 has two identical USB-A 3.2 ports, capable of transferring data at speeds up to 5 Gbps. If your laptop’s USB ports have no color, it simply means that the manufacturer chose not to use color for design or budget reasons.
When purchasing a new laptop, consider the speed supported by its USB port, as this is an aspect that most consumers do not examine closely. Lower-priced or older laptops may have ports with more limited speeds, while newer laptops may forgo USB-A connectivity altogether in favor of faster USB-C ports.
Also: What is Thunderbolt, and how is it different from USB-C?
In that vein, USB-C ports may also have their own colors, but they’re a bit more distinctive. Most USB-C ports are differentiated between standard connectivity with USB 2.0 (common in older laptops, with speeds up to 480 Mbps) and 3x, which supports speeds of up to 10-20 Gbps.
A step up from standard USB-C are Thunderbolt ports, often marked with a Thunderbolt icon next to the port, that support speeds up to 40 Gbps. These ports support some of the fastest USB transfer speeds available on the market, and you’ll see them on high-end laptops.
USB 4 is one of the newest and most powerful technologies available, select laptops currently support this technology. The MacBook Pro M4 is one such example, with speeds up to 120 Gbps. USB 4 and Thunderbolt ports are backward compatible, so they have no problems running slower devices when plugged in.
bottom line
So what does all this mean for you? I recommend looking at your laptop’s spec sheet to determine the differences (if any) between the USB ports on your laptop. If one of them is faster than the other, it will be specified, and you can expect better performance by connecting the correct device to the corresponding port.
