The USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF)  on Tuesday announced the availability of the USB 3.0 compliance and certification program. The program allows manufacturers to achieve certification and qualify to use the SuperSpeed USB logo by testing their products to ensure compliance to the USB 3.0 specification.

SuperSpeed USB brings significant power and performance enhancements to the popular USB standard while offering backward compatibility with billions of USB-enabled PCs and peripheral devices currently in use by consumers. Delivering data transfer rates up to ten times faster than Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0), or at 4.8Gb/s, meaning that a file as large as 600MB could be transferred in just a second in the best case scenario, with optimized power efficiency, SuperSpeed USB is the next step in the continued evolution of USB technology.

“When consumers see the SuperSpeed USB logo, they will have the assurance that the product interoperates with existing USB 2.0 products and provides all the speed and power efficiency enhancements that SuperSpeed USB offers, while continuing the ease-of-use consumers have come to expect from USB,” said Jeff Ravencraft, USB-IF president and chairman.

The various test suites/test specifications that are part of the compliance and certification program were developed at the SuperSpeed USB platform interoperability lab (PIL), which launched in March 2009. Since it opened, early SuperSpeed USB adopters have taken advantage of the tools and USB expertise offered at the PIL. SuperSpeed USB compliance and certification testing will initially be hosted at the PIL. Eventually, compliance and certification will be offered at USB-IF workshops and at Independent Test Labs, similar to the current Hi-Speed USB (USB 2.0) compliance and certification program.

Vendors can register their products for testing by completing the PIL certification request form available on the USB-IF Web site.

Tags: USB