Faster Usb3.0 ExpressCards on tap for laptops

For the new standard for PC expansion cards began to appear in notebook computers, greater bandwidth and standard product approach to be used to increase the capacity of thousands of PC. Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA) showed some of the first ExpressCard products, including such as Fujitsu Siemens Computers (Holding) BV, IBM, Toshiba Corporation and the CeBIT show in Hannover, Germany, the company's new notebook computers, on Friday

Usb3.0 ExpressCard is the PC card expansion card as standard design of a successor, said Manny Pitta, the market for PCMCIA, a non-profit organization's Standards Committee Chairman. It uses the new PCI Express interconnect technology advantage and USB (Universal Serial Bus) 2.0 standard to improve, such as TV tuner, Bluetooth adapter, or flash memory card peripheral bandwidth.

New Usb3.0 ExpressCard modules than the old PC cards are smaller, only 34 mm wide and 54 mm, the all PC cards. The first new ExpressCard 54 mm, some of the remaining products will be visible when the card terminals connected to a ExpressCard slot, but the card with the connector pin end of only 34 mm wide, Pitta said.

The use of the card smaller and more power, and lower manufacturing costs, Pita said. PCMCIA idea to shift to 34 mm card, but a number of cards required for their application to run extra width required for the electronic, Pita said. Examples of ExpressCard products, including the required 54 mm width of the smart card reader, CF card adapter, and even miniature hard drives.

Initially most of the functionality of notebook computers, ExpressCard technology will also be with the PC card slot, reflecting the use of the huge number of PC card, at present, Pita said. Older within the 54 mm PC cards will not fit in the ExpressCard slot. In the IBM ThinkPad T43 notebook and Toshiba Tecra S2's equipped with two slots and PCMCIA booth at the CeBIT exhibition.

PCMCIA is also running in to a more comprehensive ExpressCard technology transfer programs, hoping to avoid interoperability problems in some PC cards, Pitta said.

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