USB 2.0

[ThompsonTOT]

Is it possible to convert the low speed USB 1.1 port on my Dinosaur
laptop (purchased 2001) to a high speed USB 2.0 port? If so, how? Do I
need to buy new hardware, or is this purely a driver fix.

I check my device manager and I do not have "Enhanced" USB devices.

Many thanks,
Tony

 

[Guest]

Hi,

Since you have mentioned that you are using a laptop, it is best that you
contact your vendor from whom you purchased the laptop to see if this can be
done. On a normal desktop this involves purchasing a USB 2.0 card and
inserting it in your motherboard.

 

[Galen]

In (e-mail address removed) had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

Is it possible to convert the low speed USB 1.1 port on my Dinosaur
laptop (purchased 2001) to a high speed USB 2.0 port? If so, how? Do I
need to buy new hardware, or is this purely a driver fix.

I check my device manager and I do not have "Enhanced" USB devices.

Many thanks,
Tony

You will need new hardware and it is unlikely something you can accomplish.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/ http://kgiii.info/

"Chance has put in our way a most singular and whimsical problem, and
its solution is its own reward." - Sherlock Holmes

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

Is it possible to convert the low speed USB 1.1 port on my Dinosaur
laptop (purchased 2001) to a high speed USB 2.0 port? If so, how? Do I
need to buy new hardware, or is this purely a driver fix.

Got a card bus slot? You can purchase a 2.0 card quite reasonably.

 

[Galen]

In Uncle Grumpy had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

Got a card bus slot? You can purchase a 2.0 card quite reasonably.

I almost suggested that but - and pardon my ignorance - I didn't want to
make a boo-boo.

So, well, would it be any good? I guess what I don't know is the max
transfer speed for PCMCIA slots as compared to USB 1.1 or 2.0...

I did a wee bit of homework just to see. (I really didn't know the answer
which is why I ask as I still don't know the answer. I keep finding
conflicting information.)

- 32 bit PCMCIA (CardBus) specs have a max throughput of 132 Mb/sec (As near
as I can tell though there are a bunch of vendors seemingly claiming full
USB 2.0 spec throughput and FireWire throughput.)
- USB 1.1 is only 12 Mb/sec which is a lot slower than the PCMCIA standard
allows.
- USB 2.0 specs 480 Mb/sec.

There would, I'm guessing, be quite an improvement in speed but nothing near
the burst rates of USB 2.0 so the question begs, is it really worth it? An
even more looming question is, am I over-tired and missing something? (You
seem a knowledgeable fellow, I figured I'd tap you for an answer if you had
one.)

What I find annoying is the manufacturers and maybe I'm missing something
but even with a Type III or even the 2.1 standards the maximum throughput is
(optimized for synchronous burst-transfer) only 132 Mb/sec and the "PC Card"
(16 bit version based on the ISA bus) is good for 160 Mb/sec and yet vendors
of the devices (PCMCIA/PC Card to USB 2.0 and FireWire 1394b, rated at 800
Mb/sec) claim full throughput. Are they just neglecting to mention the
bottleneck, does the bottleneck not exist, or is it just a creative market
spin allowed because no one bothers to check? (I should probably check, they
probably clearly say "speeds up to" in the fine print buried on page 17 and
I just missed it but even if it says "up to" there's no way it can reach
those speeds unless I'm missing something.)

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/ http://kgiii.info/

"Chance has put in our way a most singular and whimsical problem, and
its solution is its own reward." - Sherlock Holmes

 

[Uncle Grumpy]

There would, I'm guessing, be quite an improvement in speed but nothing near
the burst rates of USB 2.0 so the question begs, is it really worth it?

Even IF the throughput isn't full 2.0 - and that's not certain - the
increase in speed should surely be worth the moderate cost of the card.

 

[Jonny]

USB 2.0 is both a hardware and software driver thing. You need the
hardware, then the driver to make it work. As Galen pointed out, don't
expect full USB 2.0 speed with a PCMCIA addon.
You need a USB 2.0 (enhanced) controller first.

 

[Phisherman]

Is it possible to convert the low speed USB 1.1 port on my Dinosaur
laptop (purchased 2001) to a high speed USB 2.0 port? If so, how? Do I
need to buy new hardware, or is this purely a driver fix.

I check my device manager and I do not have "Enhanced" USB devices.

Many thanks,
Tony

You can purchase a USB2 card, although it doesn't make sense to pour
money at an old machine?

 

[Galen]

In Uncle Grumpy had this to say:

My reply is at the bottom of your sent message:

Even IF the throughput isn't full 2.0 - and that's not certain - the
increase in speed should surely be worth the moderate cost of the
card.

Hmm... Yeah for most I suspect. Personally I wouldn't but that's because I
replace my hardware fairly often though that is a nearly 12 fold theoretical
increase in speed. I'll have to remember this for the next time I see the
question.

--
Galen - MS MVP - Windows (Shell/User & IE)
http://dts-l.org/ http://kgiii.info/

"Chance has put in our way a most singular and whimsical problem, and
its solution is its own reward." - Sherlock Holmes

 

[Guest]

I have tried two (count em) two pcmcia usb conversion cards for my acer
tablet pc. circa 2004 after extensive time (hours) spent on the phone
with support people from both pcmcia vendors and the acer people we simply
scould not make these devices work. my computer would simply stop working
when these devices were plugged in.

Acer claims there is no reason that the tablet operating system should not
work with the cards.

In some cases you need to purchase both a power supply and a pcmcia card.
I've tried everything. I've just given up on it.

This was over a year ago