USB 3 - Which option?

Question

Hello,

I have a Latitude 6520, and I need to upgrade to a USB 3 for use with a music keyboard. There is a serious lag right now, and a friend suggested that it was because of the USB 2.

I found a USB 3 port that connects to the optical drive where the DVD is, and also a PC Express card. Will either of these solve my issue, and if so, which is my better option?

I'm running Windoes 10 on a solid state drive.

Thanks.

jphughan · Answer

I'm not even sure how a USB 3.0 port that plugs into the optical drive bay would work.  That bay uses a SATA connector, and I've never heard of running USB 3.0 through SATA.  Do you have a link to that product you found?  As for the ExpressCard option, that might solve your issue, but unfortunately even after checking the datasheet and the Specifications section of the manual, there's no information about what version of the ExpressCard standard that system supports and therefore whether it would be able to allow a USB 3.0 interface to run at full speed rather than introducing a bottleneck.  That said, even if your system's ExpressCard interface WOULD introduce a bottleneck for USB 3.0, it would almost certainly be faster than USB 2.0 and it's basically your only option with that system anyway.  If your ExpressCard interface is limited, the only way to get a USB 3.0 interface without any bottlenecks would be to get a system that has USB 3.0 built-in.

JCVaz · Answer

Thanks for the reply. The USB 3 port that goes in the DVD drive is a Dell part. I don't remember where I first read about them, but I did find them on ebay.

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.com%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F282612101972

So if the PC Express is the best option and it's faster than USB 2, I'll go with one of those and hope it resolves the issue.

Thanks again.

jphughan · Answer

Interesting!  I'd never seen this product.  I thought the expansion bays could only have optical drives, batteries, hard drive caddies, or an empty filler.  But I guess Dell has a PCIe connector/interface in that bay to enable this USB 3.0 expansion product, not just power and SATA.  In that case, if I were you I would definitely go that route.  It's a cleaner installation than having an ExpressCard, and if it's an official Dell product, it seems more likely that it will run at full USB 3.0 speeds rather than (potentially) having a bottleneck over ExpressCard.  Thanks for the link!

rtebeau10 · Answer

2 port USB 3.0 M-Bay dock Dell P/N 0P5MKF. it's actually a usb 3.0 hub that has 2 ports. Plugs into the Media bay SATA port (replaces the CD/DVD rom drive). I recently purchased one for my E6520. I was getting 11-12MB Transfer speeds to my USB 3.0 Flash Drive during testing.

https://www.parts-people.com/index.php?action=item&id=13471

The other option is to use a docking station with USB 3.0 ports.

DELL E-Port Docking Station USB 3.0 PR03X 0PDXXF compatible with E6420 E6430 E6520 E6530

Latitude

USB 3 - Which option?

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