“Future proof” is a buzzword commonly used to describe a product or service that won’t need modification as technology evolves. However, even the newest, most up to date electronic devices aren’t future proofed.

Think of your smartphone, for example. Planned obsolescence tells us that a new iPhone generation will be released every fall, with more features than the next. After a while, usually about two years, your smartphone probably won’t function as well as it used to, and you’ll have to purchase another one.

For hospitals, technology tends to be a huge barrier. A survey of 4,000 Chief Nursing Officers found that 14% of respondents believe a lack of tech support is their main problem, while seven percent reported that outdated hardware was.

In any field that is heavily reliant on technology, regular updating of systems and equipment is relatively normal and to be expected every few years.

There are exceptions, however. The cloud, for example, is considered future proof as of yet. As a non-tangible service, any updates or changes to the system would be unbeknownst to the users and all data is transferred seamlessly. Since the introduction of the cloud, there have been no groundbreaking changes that have transformed how it’s utilized or accessed.

But if an upgrade is necessary, there’s no avoiding it. Again, as technology continues to advance, we will need to accommodate.

When it comes to hardware, like cables, future proofing is hard to achieve, but it is not impossible. At least in the short-term, it’s possible to plan ahead for future updates.

For example. if you installed a home or business network back in 2010, you may have been swayed to opt for the new cat6 Ethernet cables in place of cat5e network cables.

Short runs of Cat6 cables can support a significantly faster network than cat5e cables, but they’re also backward compatible. You can still utilize your older network hardware with these newer cable versions without replacing everything.

Tech-savvy people love to talk about future proofing, but the reality is that no one really knows where technology will take us in a few years. We can only plan ahead so far, but it is certainly possible to prepare for the next few years ahead.

When HDMI cables first hit the market in 2002, they forever changed the way home consumers could transport digital audio and video signals between remote signals. The days of analog were officially over, and our new digital realm was firmly in place.

Since then, HDMI standards have gone through a series of upgrades and changes. Yet some things remain the same: 90% of HDMI connectors used in the HiFi world, for example, are still the 13.9mm Type A.

Yet today, HDMI cables are capable of transferring video signals anywhere from 480i to 4K resolution. While every individual manufacturer will determine the parameters for their HDMI components, the official HDMI specifications have progressed significantly with each new standard iteration.

In the beginning, there was the HDMI 1.0. This revolutionary single cable combined a two-channel audio signal with a digital video signal of standard and high-definition capabilities. Commonly, they were used to connect HDMI-equipped DVD players and television screens.

Then came the HDMI 1.1. This added additional audio features to the two-channel system, including surround signals for Dolby Digital, DTS, DVD-Audio, and up to 7.1 PCM channels.

The HDMI 1.2 arrived in 2005 and included support for one-bit audio processing and Direct-Stream Digital (DSD) for Super Audio CDs, both of which in turn helped make HDMI cables better suited for PC connections.

New technologies during this time, such as HD display, Deep Color, and higher resolutions and frame rates, demanded more bandwidth from HDMI cables. The 1.3 standards introduced speeds up to 340MHz/10.2Gbps to support these developing advancements.

HDMI 1.4 was released in 2009, the final iteration of the 1.0 generation. These standards were designed specifically with Blu-ray technology in mind, with the ability to pass two simultaneous 1080p signals on one connector.

When the HDMI 2.0 arrived in 2013, it brought with it a slew of changes and improvements. While the details of the forthcoming 2.1 are still under wraps, HDMI standards will be sure to advance and evolve for as long as technology allows.

Does this sound like a familiar situation?

You need to connect to a printer, camera, or cellphone, but you can’t find a USB cable. You frantically search through your cupboards, drawers and bags, untangling the wires as you go. Once you finally come across a USB cable, you try plug it in, only to realize that the connector just doesn’t fit.

We’ve all been there. The reality is that not all USB cables are created equal. While you might not have realized it, you probably found USB 2.0 printer cables with a Type B connector, when what you needed was a Mini-B connector or vice versa.

So how can you tell the difference and learn which cables connect to what? Here’s a quick guide to figuring out the difference between all of the cables you have in your arsenal.

First things first, there are two different type of connectors: male and female. This applies to all cables, as well as other connectors and fasteners. The male connector fits inside the device. For an iPhone charger, the end that plugs into your laptop or brick is the male connector. A female connector is often referred to as the port. It is where the male connector plugs in. That makes the USB ports on your laptop all female.

Next, what is a USB cord anyway?

It stands for Universal Serial Bus, which was developed in the 1990s as an industry standard. This defines the cables, connectors, and communication protocols that facilitate communications and power delivery between computers and/or electronic devices. As time has gone on, the USB standard has evolved to become more efficient and adoption among device manufacturers so wide spread as to make it ubiquitous.

More recent specifications.

USB 2.0: The USB 2.0 specification was released in 2000 and increased the amount of bandwidth from 12 Mbit/s to 480 Mbit/s (Megabits per second).

USB 3.0: In 2008, USB 3.0 was released. This new specification introduced more bandwidth for transferring data, an increase in power output to improve charging and powering of devices and more robust power management. USB 3.0 cables are compatible with USB 2.0 devices, but the performance of these connections is only as fast as it would be at 2.0 level.

Plugs, Connectors and Ports oh my!

USB A-Type: This is the standard rectangular female port found on computers and other devices.

USB B-Type: Most USB 2.0 printer cables, scanner cables and some external hard drive cables are B-type connectors. They are small and square.

USB C-Type: These are the newest USB connectors on the market. They have a symmetrical design that eliminates that age old orientation annoyance when plugging in a USB cable. You are most likely to see the C connector on the device side for now as most computers are sticking with Type-A ports. This excludes the latest Macbook Pro which sports Thunderbolt 3 ports, designed by Intel, which happen to support USB C. You will find plenty of USB A to USB C cables that work on both USB 2.0 and 3.0. Just be mindful that charging rates will ultimately be limited by the USB version.

Micro USB B-Type: Until the C connector becomes more utilized, this is likely the connector that people associate the most with USB. Micro USB B-Type is found on phones, tablets, external drive cages, some cameras, and many more devices. Due to its small dimensions and relatively cheap licensing, this connector/port is all over the place and unlikely to go away any time soon.

USB Mini-b (5-pin): If you’ve rummaged across a USB cable slightly too big to fit your cell phone, it may be a Mini-b 5 pin. This is found on digital cameras, GPS units, some DV cams, external drive enclosures and similar hardware. This connector is slowly being phased out in favor of the Micro USB B-Type.

USB Mini-b (4-pin): This connector made the rounds some time ago and probably didn’t need to exist. However, given that it did exist on quite a few cameras and smaller devices, we will reference it. Smaller even than the Mini-B 5 pin, the Mini-B 4 pin was also replaced by the newer Micro USB type B.

If you’re struggling to find a USB 2.0 printer cable, cell phone charger cable, GPS cable adapter, or anything else, buy a brand new one from CableWholesale today!

Managing the clutter in your home can be quite the task, especially seeing as how the average household in the U.S. contains over 300,000 items.

In the modern age, much of that clutter stems from electronic devices. Case in point, many American homes have more television sets than people — each of which is left on for an average eight hours and 14 minutes every day, or one-third of the time.

Do you remember the last time you misplaced the TV remote? Some people lose up to nine items every day, or 198,743 over the course of a lifetime. And those minutes we spend searching for misplaced items can add up. On average, we’ll spend 3,680 hours — 153 days, total — looking for the items we lose.

Organization is the trick to not losing things. If your TV is mounted up close to a wall or the back of an entertainment center, for instance, you might consider investing in some 90-degree or swivel couplers for your HDMI hookups. This also helps reduce stress on the neck of the cables, as they’re forced down by gravity, which will help them last longer.