Fremont, CA (March 24, 2010) – Today’s devices like Digital Cameras, HD Camcorders, Multi-Gigabyte Media Players, Digital Video Recorders, and external Storage Devices along with the rapid rise in consumer needs for portable High-Definition media content place an ever increasing demand on data transfers. USB 2.0 has been the interface standard for years between peripheral devices and host platforms but is no longer fast enough for the growing demands of these bandwidth hungry devices and future hardware. ASUS recognizes these new connectivity demands and is the first to design and launch an entire lineup of products that incorporate USB 3.0.

Designed specifically to handle tomorrow’s hardware and applications that demand the highest possible throughput between a variety of peripheral devices and host platforms, USB 3.0 (SuperSpeed USB) heralds a new age of faster connectivity to benefit consumers. Not only does USB 3.0 provide 10 times the speed of USB 2.0, but it improves upon USB 2.0 by offering improved power management, isochronous transfers, and additional power for devices that means quicker device charging or the elimination of power supplies for devices that can now be charged via the USB 3.0 port.

First with USB 3.0
ASUS is the first to include USB 3.0 on a motherboard and continues to quickly expand USB 3.0 offerings across its entire lineup of world-acclaimed motherboards. To ensure backward compatibility and protect previous investments, ASUS developed a standalone PCI Express x4 solution offering USB 3.0 and SATA 6G operation on previously-released motherboard models.

One of the unique efforts ASUS has put into building a roster of USB 3.0-ready motherboard products is a unique PCI Express x4 PLX bridge chip, designed from the ground up to enable USB 3.0 performance levels without compromise. Other motherboard companies can require the user to make a choice between true USB 3.0 operation or sacrificing overall system performance including disabling features such as multi-GPU operation.

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The P6X58D Premium motherboard by ASUS is also the first to be officially certified by the USB Implementation Forum (USB-IF) as achieving the standard’s newly-formulated SuperSpeed USB compliance requirements.

USB 3.0 is Everywhere
ASUS now offers USB 3.0 on a wide range of products beyond just motherboards. This includes current notebook offerings featuring the award winning N series along with recently announced updates to the Eee PC range of netbooks, all-in-one PCs and digital media players.

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Speaking about the innovative move of introducing USB 3.0 in as many product lines as possible, ASUS CEO Jerry Shen said: “We are the first in the world to introduce USB 3.0 through our notebooks, namely the multimedia N Series. We’re also the first to win USB-IF certification, achieved on our P6X58D premium motherboard. We believe that USB 3.0 has a pivotal role to play in delivering the ultimate experience to a new generation of multimedia-savvy users. With USB 3.0, everyone can enjoy fast data backup and ultra-speedy file sharing.”