USB Types You Never Knew Existed

[@narubaru56]

I've actually used a USB Type-A to Type-A cable before, it was for programming a development board for a class. I remember my friends and I calling it "the cursed cable".

[@aarondewindt]

I''ve used one for this laptop cooling pad that for some reason used a type A connector for power input. So it came with a Type-A-A cable to power it from a laptop or USB power adapter. I lost the cable and now I have a laptop cooling pad I can't use unless I order one or build one myself.

[@benjimw]

@@aarondewindt Same here.

[@MrPunker0007]

I had an usb hub mousepad which used a normal usb A for the connection to the pc

[@darwisyaiman1865]

I have that cable to connect between pc and usb hub and i tried to connect them directly between device luckly they just reboot

[@quassin443]

Also HTC Vive's link box uses that

[@Robinxon]

That "Dangerous Cable" is often added to notebook cooling pads which has usb hub in them.

[@mtunayucer]

YES! I had one like 10 years ago lol

[@matyas94k]

That is a violation of the spec, the port on the device should be type B as a power receiving thing. But Iáve seen a disassembled one and the electrodes are directly wired, so when you plug it in, the free port directly turns into an extension of the one on your host laptop. The cooling pad itself does not do anything more with the data pins, it just draws power to turn the fans.

[@compzac]

As i also used to have a cheap Stanley rechargeable light thing that had a type A to Type A cable, it was mostly used because the USB port on the lamp could be used to charge USB devices and i guess the builder just decided it was easier to just create a male to male cable rather than put a different port for charging like pretty much everything else, though weirdly i never saw any type of warning telling you to only use this cable with the lamp, or something along those lines... so yea if i didnt know any better or just didnt have a need i could have just tried connecting my laptop to my desktop and watch the world implode, or blow out the controller, though i would also say, seems like since USB 2.0 most computer companies have implemented some sort of protection in place so that if you did try it the USB port would just shut down... though i should preface this by saying, i don't know that for sure its just in my experience most USB controllers on computers will have protection in place.

[@em0_tion]

2.5" HDD cases too.

[@TheExileFox]

External hard drives sometimes use it too, both 3.5" and 2.5"

[@jdady1064]

My TI-84 actually came with a mini-A to mini-B connector, and both my TI-84 and TI Nspire have the mini-AB port. Pretty cool

[@Blockcorporation1000]

the same for my TI-83 CE

[@superslimanoniem4712]

I feel like all calculators do this. I've taken to calling it the calculator connector. My casio FX35 uses it too.

[@Zemml]

Same on TI nspire CX CAS

[@warfalcon2137]

I was thinking the same thing. I’ve always wondered what connector my calculator uses. I didn’t realize they stopped using those ports

[@eliadbu]

My HP G2 prime uses the micro AB connector, I knew it's not normal micro B but I never gave too much thought about until now. this connectors will phase out eventually for USB C, they will remain as legacy connectors.

[@RoiEXLab]

IIRC The Mini-AB Port is used on those TI-84 Plus Graphical Calculators we used in school, always wondered why it looked this odd

[@ThioJoe]

Hm interesting

[@RoiEXLab]

@@ThioJoe It makes sense if you think about it. Those calculators can be connected to a PC to push some data or apps onto it, but it can also be connected to other calculators to move data around between them.

[@nickolaswilcox425]

and here i thought it was just another attempt for ti to sell you more custom junk, good to know, even if it does mean using my least common standard cable for it

[@superslimanoniem4712]

@@nickolaswilcox425 really hope they upgrade to usb-c at some point.

[@level-8]

The Micro-AB is on the DJI Mavic Air remote. It is used as an A port when the remote is connected to a phone and as a B port when charging

[@SummoningMatters]

Beat me to it. It’s also on the mini

[@PatalJunior]

As well on the Sony Xperia Go

[@eZwa306]

Came to say the same exact thing, but you beat me to it. LOL

[@jay-em]

Also on the DJI Mavic Pro controller to allow charging of controller and data/display output to phone. These connectors are prone to breaking at great expense. Should have been a USB C.

[@PatalJunior]

​@@jay-em Nowadays even the cheaper stuff gets *type c*, heck even 40$ headphones, and they can't get it on a 500$ + drone ?

[@skullboy1407]

The "dangerous cables" can be found on some laptop cooler pads. Have fun ;)

[@hamizannaruto]

Can confirm as i have one of this fan (my friend just left it in my bag, and i forgot to return it) Well, i dont have its cable, so its useless for me.

[@PeervanTienen]

Correct. I've got one of those 😂

[@koushioni]

Thats exactly what i was going to comment, As i use one currently

[@WalterMan]

I used on of those and plugged it Into a usb-c otg cable. Don’t know if I broke anything 😬

[@assenls]

Yep, I am also using one atm and was about to comment about it :)

[@nicksyo]

My first external HDD was using a standard type A to type A, I always wondered what would happen if I connected it between two PlayStation 2s or PCs

[@sagichdirdochnicht4653]

I mean I know, those cables exist, so some morons propably used a type A connector on a Slave, but I still can't wrap my head around it. And an external HDD? Came this out from some russian Garage, who in their right mind would built it like that?! Because two things are very clear: A) This is absolutely not in the USB specification and B) You can absolutely expect people to try figure out, what happened if they connected two Hosts. Best Scenario? Nothing. Worse Szenario: One or both Connectors are dead permanently. Wore. Both USB controller boards are dead. Unlikely (fuses and stuff), but in the realm of possibilities: Both Hosts are gone.

[@mbaksa]

I've had a couple of 2.5" HDD enclosures with USB Type-A connectors. Even though Type-A to Type-A cable could be considered dangerous, having a Type-A connector on a 2.5" external drive is much better than having mini or micro USB, because it's more robust. They might have put Type-B connector on it, as it is often seen on 3.5" drives, but Type-B is too big for 2.5" external drives or HDD enclosures.

[@ameerlouly6628]

I had one of those "dangerous" type A to Type A cables, it was a small one that came with my cheap laptop fan lol, it was how the fan powers up apparently

[@WatermelonNinja299]

The mini AB connector is used on the TI nSpire series of calculators. It's so that when you use a link cable (one side A one side B) the calculators automatically know which is a host and which is a client for file transfers

[@junkice6930]

This also applies to the ti-84 series, when I bought my 84 plus CE, it actually came with a mini-a to mini-b cable, which sadly I have lost.

[@PartKorg]

The USB A to USB A cable is used on consumer devices, like my portable hard drive.

[@Wpar]

I got a laptop cooling pad that uses one aswell

[@garymetheringham4990]

I have several usb drives with A-A on

[@janpohl9426]

Exactly. I have external 2,5" HDD case with USB-A 3.0 connector, because in my opinion (and after some bad experiences from people around me), Micro USB-B 3.0 is kinda fragile connector.

[@JawnGG]

My Grandfather had so many weird USB wires. Which made it really annoying when I needed something for my Mp3 player

[@deadchannel5933]

*me who saw and used all the cables in this video:* I am 4 parallel universes ahead of you

[@onlyeyeno]

@happy doggo I strongly suspect that that is a "generational issue", by that I mean that "true nerds" that were "along for the ride" from when the USB was introduced quite likely have seen the absolute majority of them if not all. Best regards.

[@Trekeyus]

I recognized most of those as well in fact one of my old MP3 players used the mini b 4pin

[@loganthegamer102]

True LOL

[@davidfranzkoch9789]

For what unholy purpose did you find Micro Usb A useful? This connector should not exist and was probably designed by satan.

[@Adem92Foster]

@@davidfranzkoch9789 I've seen devices that adopted it very quickly and they're stuck on it Mostly music stuff

[@butisitlogical3096]

You forgot apples USB A connector with the little indentation inside (to allow only certain devices to be connected). Nothing a pair of pliers didn't fix back then :)

[@urwashedlul]

This isn’t even true lol . The apple usb is just a standard usb-A

[@butisitlogical3096]

@@urwashedlul it is, Google "Apple notched USB" I have a couple of them myself xD

[@Adem92Foster]

@@butisitlogical3096 Yeah, it was pretty annoying but tons of people were selling adapter for these

[@vylbird8014]

@@urwashedlul It is true, as I have personally encountered and been annoyed by them.

[@samuvisser]

@@urwashedlul There is one in my office right now, with the annoying apple- normal usb converter

[@oyvindolafsen1989]

The type A - A cable you mentioned as dangerous, i have a couple of them laying around, those came along with my motherboard, since those was capable of having a secondary computer connected directly. It was a kinda neat feature since you could override all of the safety parameters there, so you could say that if was mostly used for those who was overclocking their commuters to the max

[@Leo-o7k]

it came with my laptop cooler

[@imaallex]

Ouuu, haven’t seen you on my feed for a while! Welcome back, haha!

[@jarlrise]

I have a couple of external USB3 hard drive enclosures which has an USB-A on them, and they came with a USB-A to USB-A cable.

[@elephystry]

Presumably the hard drives are incapable of producing any power of their own and that's why

[@em0_tion]

Good choice, *way* better than the flimsy 3.1 micro B. 👍

[@Leo-o7k]

i had some that came eith my laptop cooling system

[@level-8]

The A to A cabel is used in the HTC vive.

[@awesomefacepalm]

My first Android tablet had a type A port on it, so I actually have a A to A cable at home I used when I flashed custom roms to it. It was the ViewSonic Viewpad 10s

[@Leo-o7k]

a tablet with a type a port?

[@awesomefacepalm]

@@Leo-o7k a type a cable Definitely a type of a cable

[@crisp.6341]

The most different video type in tech world.

[@lsudo]

I can watch these type of video whole day, but i can't find them can anyone help me to find the correct key words which I can search on YT ?

[@GeneralNickles]

Not really. Tech quickie has a very similar video that doesn't go into quite as much detail as this one. They also have one on rare video connectors.

[@mattelder1971]

I actually have a couple of older cheap external hard drive enclosures that use the "dangerous" A to A cable. Why they used those instead of just having a B on the device is something I've often wondered about.

[@that_swiftie13]

Oh yeah! The tech king uploaded again i have a video idea: A what's on my iPhone

[@BritishBeachcomber]

You forgot the "mini-b" 12-pin, used on some Olympus cameras.

[@IBM_Museum]

Olympus always has to be different - but great cameras.

[@kraklakvakve]

You will always try plugging USB A connector 3 times. Once right way but it won't go in, then you flip it and try again, and finally you flip it back and plug it in.

[@wmheath]

If you want a really strange "standard" cable check out the pUSB. They are mainly used on PoS systems, but they come in 5, 12, 19, and 24 volts. They are locking and even color coded.

[@Kongslien_]

Correction; The "dangerous cable" with USB type A on both sides is used on a few keyboards. The Cooler Master Storm Quickfire XT (i have 2 of it and can verify it) comes with a braided USB type A.

[@zFaddix]

I have an USB hub which uses that same cable, I suppose the hub has some kind of internal circuit to prevent frying the PC

[@hotkeymuc]

Also, some PC mainboards allow for being JTAG debugged by connecting an A-to-A cable into the first USB 3.0 port, which turns that computer into a Device Under Test / connected device.

[@FlameRat_YehLon]

@@zFaddix No it doesn't. And I almost fry the USB port on my previous laptop because of that. I guess it's really rely on the protection on the PC for that aka "leave the problem for someone else"

[@zFaddix]

@@FlameRat_YehLon what did you connect to the hub for it to fry the pc tho?

[@FlameRat_YehLon]

@@zFaddix external power supply. It's a 7 port hub with external power but no power isolation, which means it can indeed send power to the USB port on the PC.

[@0jhonyrod0]

I recently bought an HP Prime calculator and it has a micro-AB port. It also came with a regular A to micro-B cable AND a micro-A to micro-B one. I think the latter is intended for transferring files between calculators

[@Ness_and_Sonic]

Dell included one of those dangerous A to A cables with a computer I bought over a decade ago, but it had a light on it. The purpose of the cable was to transfer files over USB using software on an included disc. Now you know the use of one of them.

[@intel386DX]

In your case this is not just a cable , there is a PCB inside .

[@Ness_and_Sonic]

@@intel386DX I figured there was more to it than what I could see on the outside.

[@Kage_Fur]

I had one of this USB-A to USB-A cables because my old Digital Camara had a USB-A port. And I pluged both sides in computers at one time, nothing happened ^^

[@xenyon]

The micro a is on the dji controller for the mavic pro series

[@toddmoore9841]

Originally, there was a different USB type B mini connector. The first type B mini had a more trapezoidal shape, but was electrically identical. I don't recall exactly why they changed it, but they identified some kind of mechanical weakness. It was replaced with the current design, so that the current plugs will fit in the original Type B mini sockets.

[@BisherTello]

I remember making one of those "Dangerous cables", nothing happened though lol.

[@leow_se]

Many years ago, I had a portable hard drive enclosure that uses a full-size Type-A port, so-called 'dangerous cable', I tried to connect 2 computers together with that cable, and expecting that the C drive will magically show up in each other's 'My Computer', but nothing happened haha

[@jonathanschober1032]

The A-A dangerous cable is a little bit more common than you think. I remember probably 15 years ago having an external hard drive that had 2 Type A on one side broken out, and another type A on the other side. I assume it was to try and get more power from the ports to power the drive. It was a weird Frankenstein consumer product

[@davidemascia3432]

This channel is more about cables and connectors than anything else nowadays lol

[@akarshraja4189]

you really love that picture at 2:27 don't you

[@hnielsen759]

My Lenovo Thinkpad L13 yoga has the “type E” as a part of a docking connector on the left side of the laptop. The connector is used for the original PXE boot compatible RJ45 dongle. It would make sense as most RJ45 dongles connect via usb. BTW the docking connector is a standard usb-c and usb “type E” side by side combo jack, but the jacks can be used individually.

[@RobbbbC]

I do own an A to A usb transfer cable. It has in-line power management and software side support for pc to pc data transfer.

[@FlyboyHelosim]

Uh, USB data transfer cables have Type-A connectors on both ends as standard. Type-A to Type-A as a powered device connection is not 'dangerous', but was pretty standard before the insistence on making everything smaller. Also, I've got a Micro-AB port on my Dell Venue tablet. It's also probably worth mentioning the eSATA port/connector, as that is very similar in size and shape to USB-A and can quite commonly be found on older laptops as an eSATA/USB combo port because it is just so similar.

[@torinstorkey]

More obscure cable videos please.

[@JuneNafziger]

I had that dangerous cable for a USB hard drive. My best guess for why it was used is that the type A port is smaller vertically than a normal type B, but the small type B (mini and micro) connectors were too weak?

[@APackOfTrollers]

Heavenly Father I pray that you keep the person reading this alive, safe, healthy and financially blessed Amen💪

[@martinkuliza]

Financially Blessed ????? really ? i think it's safe to say that that prayer is not going to come true if you really cared for the people here YOU CAN FEEL FREE TO GIVE YOUR FINANCIAL BLESSING TO ANYONE IN THIS FORUM I'M SURE THEY'LL APPRECIATE IT a better prayer might be Heavenly father i pray that USB never comes up with a different USB Type and may USB C dominate forever so we can stop guessing which side is up or down

[@supermariochile10]

9:23 I have one of those, I actually use it to connect an external HDD case with my computer, so yeah they sell it for consumers lol

[@sandrotabidze]

Hmm

[@ThioJoe]

[@Kat21]

@@ThioJoe hmm

[@mehmetmetinbaki]

4:38 all Sony mobile devices (phones, tablets, laptops etc.) from between 2009 and 2016 have micro-A connectors. Connector is also competible with micro-B cables, acting as client device when micro-B cable is connected.

[@u.De25]

👍👍👍👍👍

[@ElCapitan1718]

I have a Zalman NC2000 notebook cooler. A Type-A to Type-A USB cable is used to connect the cooler to a laptop USB port or a USB wall charger. The cable was included with the notebook cooler. It is the only time that I have seen this cable configuration. I really enjoy your videos...accurate, informative, and relevant.

[@wafflebell]

I think first

[@ThioJoe]

very fast

[@mikebizz1263]

Yuppers..👌

[@wafflebell]

@@ThioJoe HOOOOLY COW YOU REPLIED

[@megacharlizardz]

The "mini-b" 8-pin is still found on some Nikon cameras today. It has USB as well as composite video out for cameras to connect to computers or TVs

[@fghsgh]

Texas Instruments graphing calculators with a USB port and a monochrome screen have a mini-AB port. The linking cable they use (to communicate between two calculators) is a mini-A to mini-B cable. People have also reverse-engineered the hardware and been able to get flash drives, keyboards, mouses, and whatnot running on it. Also, both my old phone and my mom's had a micro-AB (Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini Pro & Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman). Also an old tablet we used to have (Medion Lifetab 9512) that ran Android 4.0.4.

[@Saxshoe]

My TI-89-Titanium from Freshman year of college has a USB mini A/B receptacle in it! I used it for transferring programs to and from other calculators & my PC. You could also use it with Vernier data collection devices. The calculator also came with a 5" micro A/micro B cable for client/server transfers. Though the port is depreciated, you can still buy TI-89s new from various retailers.

[@jr01theweeb]

Many A to A cables are used for extended periphials, we have many to connect a computer to a smart TV so the touch screen TV can be used as a Mouse.

[@worvtube]

Actually those cables that have type A on both sides (the dangerous ones) are kind of common (at least in my country) and are used by those boxes that converts internal 2.5" hard drive/ssd to external. This is probably because those type A connectors are more robust than any other type, and the standard B is too tall to fit.

[@maxwelzig]

Usb A to A cables (9:40) are often used to flash firmware to devices, especially routers (Huawei). They are also user for GPU mining between the motherboard and the GPU

[@TheStickFigure1000]

The mini ab port and mini a is not actually deprecated. It is used by 1 company which is Texas Instruments. They put their mini AB port on all models of the TI 84 plus, silver edition, ce, silver edition c. The mini a is used for transferring calculator data from one to another.

[@xnetpc]

Less so lately, but a few years ago, there were all sorts of proprietary connectors for charging and data ports. A lot of them would have 10, 20, 30 or more pins on one end, and a standard USB A connector on the other end. It seems like manufacturers did that for no other reason than to be able to charge $30.00 for a cable that cost $0.30 to manufacture. I’ve had pretty good success removing the proprietary ports on quite a few devices and replacing with micro USB ports. Not needing to keep track of or worry about replacing a broken proprietary cable makes life a lot easier now that I can just connect to them using micro USB cable to charge or transfer data.

[@PridhewP]

I've used an extenal HDD, with a standard Type A connector, where the included cable had one standard typeA for the HDD and two, yes two standard type A connectors on the host end (it was like the second type A extends out from the first one like the letter "h"). The extra type A was supposedly not for data transfer but for additional power. Like if the HDD throttles as the host is unable to power the device, connect the extra connector to another usb port to draw more power.

[@mileskosik472]

The ti nspire cx has the mini a/b plug and cable, it was unidirectional and allowed for data transfer.

[@chriskalkman3815]

I have the Mini USB cable that came with my TI-84 Plus Calculator, and I recently saw the Micro USB variant in a thrift store.

[@andrasa6759]

Type A-A cables are often used on external HDD-s.

[@michalkrezolek920]

I also seen A-A cable used on a new model F keyboard reviewed by LGR

[@smiley94]

The usbA to usbA cable is used sometimes for old usb hubs with detachable cables, i have a couple

[@feieralarm]

The "Type E" connector is officially part of the USB standard, however, the USB Implementers Forum only refers to it by "USB 3.1 front-panel internal 20 pin connector" and further specifies its keying (A or B). When you google "USB3p1_Front_Panel_CabCon_Implment_Doc_Rev1p1", you'll find a PDF of the documentation by the USB-IF. And those cables with USB A on either end are really common with cheap external hard drive cases and USB hubs that are all over sites like Amazon. There is a HDD case by Sabrent, for example, that has over 35.000 reviews on Amazon.

[@yorimirus]

The dangerous cable USB Type A to USB Type A is often used on cooling pads for laptops. You use these to connect to an USB port on the laptop to provide power. Not sure why it is that way but every cooling pad I found used this connector.

[@oiytd5wugho]

These cables were kinda sorta common in the early days of USB, when, say, a camera manufacturer would say "let's just use this one" or "let's make our own" and standards weren't that big a thing yet. Also, I know A to A are used as just cheap 4-line cables for non-standard data transfer

[@anthonynorton666]

Maybe the type A connector to A connector (9:15) is type of "null modem cable" and there is no power line, it's just for communication between computers.

[@BobHutton]

I'm surprised you didn't mention Apple's Lightning connector. It would have to be the most common non-standard USB connector. (Also, I have a Micro-A connector on the controller for my Mavic Air drone - it took me a while to figure out what it was).

[@vixmax2432]

6:28 DJI uses Micro-AB port on some controllers. I think I saw one of those on some bluetooth speakers, but I don't recall the name

[@ZerickKilgore]

I've seen the A-A cable on some commercial Chinese devices on Amazon.

[@pinkishh6154]

I have a few things that use a double Type A cable. Mostly speakers but I also have this weird battery pack that charges with the same USB A port that's used to plug other things into it...I don't know if there's actually a practical use for it except maybe cost cuts...and I'm not even sure about that

[@alexandruianu8432]

There's also a 4-pin "Mini-B" known as a Fuji 4-pin. It was used by Fuji and Panasonic (the LS120 camera used it).

[@kleavenae]

Back in the days there were type A to type A cables that supposed to connect two computers. It internally works by having 2 usb to serial adapters connected together, it has a small box in the middle. My father has one somewhere

[@Josiwi]

Nintendo has a proprietary mini usb cable, dedicated only for the Nintendo DS Lite

[@therealjammit]

I remember the danger cable "a to a" being used when USB 0.9 came out (the original released specification). It was supposed to be for DOS/Win3.11/Win NT. The original intention was for main boards to lose all slots (no ISA, PCI, IDE, serial, parallel, etc). If you wanted a new hard drive, you'd plug one end of the danger cable into the main board and the other end into the hard drive. If you wanted to plug in a monitor, you'd plug a danger cable into the main board and the other end would be a slot panel or screwed into a knock out plug and the monitor would have USB. The monitor was supposed to have the video card integrated inside the monitor. As you can imagine these things were never built. I have an old laptop that has a USB version 0.9 available to the outside like a regular USB port now. I can get it to work under DOS and Win95 with a lot of work with the DUSE driver in config.sys. Windows 98 second edition needs no DOS driver. The port can only seem to recognize a mouse or keyboard. Nothing else seems to work.

[@capichowtang]

I love the sponsor! Great Job!

[@LED-cx6wj]

9:56 I have a thermaltake Laptop cooler fan that actually has 2 USB-A Ports on it and an A to A cable so you can plug it in either of the 2 Ports and an additional USB Device. Also, about 15 Years ago we had a Set-Top-Box with HDD, that had an USB A port on the back so you could either plug in a USB Drive and copy the recordings on it or you could use a special USB- A to A cable to transfer them directly onto a PC.

[@CrazyNickOO7]

My parents had few of the type A to type A cables when I was younger. Never thought it dangerous or rare. We had a couple video cameras that used them to connect to our PC. They were cheap cameras for sure but just had a female type A port used to transfer videos to PC

[@sparkyprojects]

I had a type A to type A, but mine had a lump in the middle, it was intended for transferring data, a crossover cable I don't think there would be a problem as bothe sides are 5v, and sure, potentially if one computer was turned off when you plugged it in, it may try to power it

[@jpsalis]

USB OTG is the best. It completely destroys the A B distinction they originally intended, and I absolutely love that it exists.

[@SuperPupperDoggo]

10:15 newer TI calculators actually include micro b to micro b as a link cable

[@SherrylCursed]

I have a capture card that uses a Type-A to Type-A cable to connect to the computer. Don't really know why, but it was pretty cheap and easy to buy a longer cable for it off of Amazon

[@landonbrown5295]

For the mini-AB, look at TI graphing calculators

[@GifyTheOld]

4:40 What still surprise me is that on my old Sony Ericsson Xperia Mini ST-15i Android phone is Micro-A (or AB probably), and original cable was the micro A plug but always act same as through B. And BTW the Micro A is used on DJI controllers, at least on my from Mavic Mini.

[@steven_porter]

I use A to A cables for some portable hard drives, surgically a Sabrent enclosure for 2.5" SSDs with a type A port and an A to A cable in the box. Works great!

[@RelakS__]

9:45 I have some 2.5" HDD enclosure, which using Type-A - Type-A cable. It can be found in any IT store, I think. Also, on some cameras, or dash cams (Viofo), there are 10 pin mini B connectors (Viofo: rear camera cable).

[@will_it_work]

Sony's MDR-1ADAC headphones use a Micro-A port and Micro-A cables to attach to a variety of proprietary audio devices. Sony added a round pin next to the male Micro-A connector for stability and orientation.

[@sybergoosejr]

first thing to come to mind with the mini AB port and A -> B cable is the ti84+ silver/black with the usb port on top. used for a faster link cable.

[@Chickenbreadlp]

Those Type-A to Type-A cables are actually used by HTC in many of their Vive products. The Original Vive and Vive Pro use such a cable to connect the Link Box with the PC. The Vive Wireless Adapter also uses such a cable, to connect to the Original Vive and for connecting to the Power Bank. Thanks to HTC I have a couple of those cables laying around, but never used them for anything other their intended purpose.

[@GoodGamer3000]

I have a "dangerous" USB A to A cable. It came with a SATA/IDE to USB adapter for hard drives. Weird that they didn't just use Micro-B 3.0 or C, but I'd guess Micro B is too flimsy and Type-C is too expensive.

[@WooShell]

The A-to-A cable is used on a few printers, where you can use the port to either connect to a PC or plug a stick with pictures in. Apparently this solution is cheaper than a second USB-B port..

[@Kumurajiva]

Thiojoe can get make a clip of usb s into a KZbin rabbit hole and I fall into it and watch the whole thing, and love it. 😍🤣

[@munkifrog328]

i was today years old when i found out the cable i had been looking (for years) for was actually a mini b 8 pin. many many thanks!!! :) :)

[@deBaer]

The 8bitdo N30 arcade controller is a device and has a USB-A port, so you need a A-to-A-cable for it. Also, I've seen portable harddisks with type A connectors.

[@Lofote]

07:20: B8 is still used even by the entry line of Sony CyberShot cameras, plus Nikon, and some others. Even ths Sigma mount adapters (MC-11, etc.) do have this. It does not only contain USB ports but also analog video and sound, for old televisions.

[@theenigma8494]

The USB type A to type A is used in loads of the cheap laptop cooling pads, at least all the ones i have seen with USB "passthrough" come with them as the only way to power them

[@simonrobbins8357]

A couple you missed, Olympus cameras also had a proprietary mini 12 pin connector which they only stopped using a few years ago. Another one which I have only seen once when I ordered a charging cable to using the car for my phone. It has what looks like a standard USBA connector put on closer inspection instead of half of it being filled with plastic meaning it can only be plugged in one way. It just has a thin connector in the middle of the plug and it will plug into a standard USB a female socket in either orientation. Quite useful as it is a 90° plug, I could die four people plugged in to the left right.

[@TheExileFox]

Usb type-E is specced higher than the USB 3.0 header and the type-E connector is little bit smaller. Regarding the A-to-A cable; this is sometimes used for hard-drive enclosures.

[@BrandonIngli]

Wyze Cameras use an A-to-A with the USB A port on the back sometimes. If you install their webcam firmware for the v2 or pan cameras, you can use it to get the camera data for use as a webcam.

[@nootics]

My TI Nspire CX CAS calculator has this connector. For example, when you put this calculator in exam mode, you can only get out of that mode using the windows software or by using a mini a to mini b cable with a calculator in normal mode

[@sistermaide]

A couple of my cameras, have unusual connectors, so this is really interesting topic to me. I have either lost, misplaced, or possibly gave away a cord to the computer recycling, that I now find that I need, and don't even know what to say to order one.

[@Nabeelco]

With USB 3(.1 I think?) A to A connectors were made to be acceptable because all USB 3.1 devices have "On the Go" support, as I recall.

[@Bashfulgiant]

USB A to A connectors were actively promoted by Windows from Vista onwards as "Easy Transfer Cables"- to transfer and migrate Windows between PC's. Of course, there was circuitry in the middle to stop each port frying the other, so less of a traditional cable, but still am interesting sidenote.