IBM introduced this mouse and keyboard connector in 1987 with its line
of PS/2 personal computers (in a failed attempt to recapture its
dominance of the PC market).
Since the ports were not designed to be hot-swappable, plugging a mouse
or keyboard into a powered-up PS/2 port carries the risk of damaging
your motherboard.
Today, most mice and keyboards connect via USB, so why are PS/2 ports
still so common? Because some security-conscious companies disable the
USB ports on their employees' computers so that the staff can’t smuggle
out sensitive data on a USB thumbdrive.
I say make those corporate fat cats buy a special motherboard and save the vast majority of us some cash.
3. PCIe x1 slots
We need multilane PCIe (Peripheral Component Interconnect Express) slots for video cards and other advanced peripherals.
Single-lane PCIe slots are about as useful as nipples on Batman's suit.
Go away!
4. FireWire (IEEE 1394)
Apple designed this high-speed serial bus, but you can find it—along with USB ports—on most PCs as well as Macs.
Despite being a high-performance technology, it never really caught on
in the PC industry, and the vast majority of external hard drives use
USB.
Excise it!
5. USB 2.0
USB 2.0 was the bee’s knees—at least until USB 3.0 came along. USB 3.0
delivers higher speeds and more electrical power to attached devices.
So who needs USB 2.0? Let’s get rid of it!
6. eSATA
SATA (Serial Advanced Technology Attachment) delivers the highest speed
with storage devices inside the computer, so why not use the same
standard outside the computer?
The problem with eSATA is that the cable doesn’t carry power to the
external device. Internal SATA relies on two cables: one for power and
one for data.
Since eSATA never caught on with consumers, and since now we have USB
3.0 and Thunderbolt (both of which are plenty fast and deliver power to
attached devices), it's time to play a dirge for eSATA.
7. eSATA/USB 2.0 combo port
To save room on the I/O panel, many motherboards feature ports that
combine eSATA and USB 2.0. Their function changes depending on which
cable the user plugs in.
We applaud the innovation, but thanks to USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt, we no longer need these combo ports!
8. Memory card reader
When was the last time you physically removed a memory card from your
camera and plugged it into a memory card reader on your computer? Most
people will respond, “Never!”
When I need to transfer photos from my camera to my computer, I connect the two devices with a USB cable.
If I were a more frequent photographer, I’d invest in a memory card with
an integrated Wi-Fi adapter and ditch the cable altogether.
Banish the memory card reader!
9. Optical drives
Okay, this one might make the Luddite community uncomfortable. How will
you ever rip DVD and Blu-ray movies, and your favorite CDs?
Who the heck rips anymore? Embrace the digital revolution! You can find
plenty of online sources for both high-def movies and music these days.
And the last time I bought a game on disc was 2009’s F.E.A.R.
Dump the disc drive!
10. VGA
Yeah, we know that corporate road warriors remain wedded to the precious VGA port. But why make the rest of us suffer for it?
Surely corporate America has made enough profit over the past five years
to be able to afford to upgrade its boardrooms with new projectors and
monitors.
Just say no to VGA!
11. DVI
Being digital is no longer enough—especially when you need a second type
of digital interface and cable (that is, dual-link) to support the
native resolution of a 30-inch display.
Give me DisplayPort (with multi-streaming, so that I can daisy-chain several monitors) or give me death!
12. Analog surround sound
Be honest: When was the last time you contemplated connecting an analog surround-sound speaker system to your PC?
The industry tried to make the process easier for us with wireless surround speakers, but even they gave up on the concept.
If you connect speakers to your PC at all, you’re most likely going to
choose a 2.1-channel system, so all you really need is a stereo output
(because the crossover for the sub will be in the speakers, not in the
PC). And if you really want surround sound, buy speakers with an optical
input.
Whack those unused audio ports!
13. The mouse?
Just kidding.
Touchscreens and touchpads are great and all, but I need a good rodent for playing games.
To paraphrase the late Charlton Heston, "You can pry my mouse from my cold, dead hand!"
You know most of these technologies are still around? They are there in case someone has old media that doesn't work with the newer connections. If I had an IDE drive and no PATA port, how would be able to get the data off that drive to a SATA one?
ReplyDeleteFor newer technologies that are backwards compatible (like USB 3.0), then I agree we should get rid of them, along with the PS/2, analog audio ports, and eSATA (only now I say eSATA because before USB 3.0, there was reason for it).
Finally, for video connections it's tricky. VGA is JUST NOW being accepted as a legacy connection and most manufacturer's are vowing to end the ability for VGA around 2015. Hell, even my new LG TV doesn't carry one in favor of DVI/HDMI. Now with digital video, DVI can be retired because HDMI is DVI + audio and is electronically cross-compatible.
Getting into even newer digital debate, HDMI's wiki states that Displayport is suppose to "compliment" HDMI. But it seems as HDMI is being found on video cards, then what's the use of Displayport other than daisy-chaining? HDMI 2.0 will deliver the bandwidth of what Displayport 1.2 provides, but it's ment for the Consumer electronics industry. Not the Computing Industry. HDMI is the digital answer to HDTV that has been in the computing industry since DVI. So either discontinue HDMI with PC's, or discontinue Displayport altogether... Hmm.
I forgot to say that the only reason HDMI is used in the computing industry is that people want to use bigger displays with their PC's and since Displayport is ment for monitors, HDMI is the only way to go. Not an easy problem to agree upon.
ReplyDeleter