USB Extension Cable – USB-A Male to Female, 5Gbps, 1m 2m 3m

Description

A usb extension cable solves a problem that has nothing to do with technology: the port is in the wrong place. It is behind the tower, under the desk, on the far side of the television, or buried in the boot of the car. One plug goes into the port you have, the socket on the other end comes to where you actually are, and everything carries on working.

What a usb extension cable does, and what it does not

A usb extension cable is a straight-through run — USB-A plug at one end, USB-A socket at the other, with nothing in between. It does not split a port, does not add one, and does not amplify anything. It moves a socket, and that is the whole job.

Because there is no electronics in a usb extension cable, whatever you plug into it behaves exactly as it would in the port itself. A webcam stays a webcam, a printer stays a printer, and an external drive runs at the speed the port and the drive agree on.

Speed: 5Gbps, and how to tell at a glance

The USB 3.1 Gen 1 variations run at 5Gbps — around ten times USB 2.0, and enough that a portable SSD on the end of a three-metre usb 3.0 extension cable performs as though it were plugged straight in. There is also a 480Mbps option at USB 2.0 speeds, which is the right choice for a keyboard, a mouse, a dongle or a charging run where speed is irrelevant and a few dollars is not.

The blue tongue is how you tell them apart. A USB 3.x plug has a blue plastic insulator behind the contacts and five extra pins at the back of the connector. Hold the plug up: blue means 5Gbps, black or white means 480Mbps. The same is true of the port a usb 3.0 extension cable plugs into, which matters, because a usb extension cable cannot give you a speed the port does not have.

How long a usb extension cable can safely run

Lengths run 1m, 2m and 3m. Three metres is the sensible ceiling for a passive USB 3.x run and we do not pretend otherwise. Beyond that the signal needs an active repeater, which is a different product with a chip in it, and anyone selling you a five-metre passive usb 3.0 extension cable for a hard drive is selling you intermittent disconnections.

At USB 2.0 speeds the margins are more forgiving, which is the other reason the 480Mbps option exists. If the run is long and the device is slow, that is the usb extension lead to take.

What is inside a usb 3.0 extension cable

Every usb extension cable here has gold-plated contacts at both ends, a moulded strain relief where the cable leaves each connector, and a plain flexible PVC jacket that coils flat behind a desk rather than fighting back. The socket end has a square shoulder, which sounds trivial until you are plugging something in by feel under a desk and want something to brace against.

The strain-relief neck is the part that matters. On a usb extension lead that lives permanently behind furniture, the cable is pulled, trodden on and bent against the back of the socket for years, and that neck is the only thing standing between it and a broken core.

Why purchase this cable from Core Connect Aust?

This usb extension cable is stocked in Melbourne and ready to go — order before 10am and your usb extension lead ships the same day via Australia Post with insurance, backed by our 90-day warranty and a team who can confirm the length and speed you need before you order.

Stocked here, not shipped from overseas. Order your usb extension cable today and put the port where you need it.

Compatibility

Compatible with:

Any device with a USB-A plug

• Webcams, microphones and streaming gear that needs to sit away from the computer
• Printers, scanners and external hard drives
• Keyboards, mice, dongles and wireless receivers
• Games controllers, VR base stations and capture cards

Any host with a USB-A port

• Desktop towers, laptops, monitors with built-in hubs, docking stations
• Smart TVs, games consoles, car head units and dashcams
• USB-A wall chargers and power banks, for charging runs at 5V

All brand and model names are trademarks of their respective owners and are used here for compatibility reference only. Core Connect Aust is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any device manufacturer.