Martin McCormick wrote: > After recently ordering and receiving a new 1 TB external > SSD drive, I realized I had no way to connect it. It has a small > rectangular slot about 8 MM or a quarter of an inch long. A Mac > lightning connector is almost exactly the same size but > fortunately doesn't plug in but that's the size of whatever fits. > Crucial says it is usb-A .
If I recall correctly, Martin doesn't see well, which explains a chunk of the confusion here. Martin: Crucial is probably describing the other end of the cable they supplied -- assuming they supplied a cable. It might be proprietary at one end and USB type A at the other. But what you are describing could also be USB type C at one end. > What is the correct nomenclature for the most common usb > connector that has been around for 25 or 30 years and fits the > vast majority of devices using usb? USB type A is rectangular and common on PC ends. USB type B is trapezoidal, almost square, and common on printers and other largish peripherals. USB type B-mini is trapezoidal, very small, and has distinct indentations on the top left and right sides. It was common for small peripherals like MP3 players. USB type B-micro is flatter than B-mini and does not have indentations. It is common for cell phones and small peripherals. USB type C is about the size of a lightning connector, rounded on both sides, and is designed to go in upside down or rightside up without causing problems. > I'll need a cable that fits the old standard usb port on > one end and the disk drive on the other. If you know the exact model number of the drive, I'll look it up for you. 80% chance it's USB C to USB A. > There's an old saying: "Standards are great. Everybody > should have one." Let's take the best of all the standards and make a new one! And then there were N+1 standards. -dsr-
