USB 2.0 high speed, 2.0 & 1.1 ? (1 Viewer)

Can someone please explain the three rates of USB, I know the first was 1.1 then the faster 2.0 came along but is the 2.0 high speed also usable on earlier computers, it is a printer I am thinking about.
Brian

wont make too much difference with a printer as they all run faster than the old LPT1 port

USB 1.1 allowed a maximum transfer rate of 12Mbits/second. It is now obsolete, but both of its speeds (1.5Mbps & 12Mbps) are being adopted into USB 2.0, and they are now called Original USB officially. Though some manufacturers label their products Full-Speed USB. Note that this seems a bit deceptive as it's easy to mistake Full-Speed for Hi-Speed. You won't be fooled from now on as you now aware that Full Speed USB is only 12Mbits/second where Hi-Speed USB mode is capable of a much faster 480Mbits/second.

Just two standards, 1.1 and 2.0. All the other hi-speed, full-speed labelling is marketing hype. AFAIK, most devices, which should include all printers, are backward compatible. A new 2.0 printer should connect from any 1.1 port on an older PC and run happily at the lower speed. Some peripherals, like cameras and media players, may be frustratingly slow to transfer on the old 1.1 standard. With printing, the speed of data transfer from PC to printer is not the limitation, it's the speed of transfer of ink to paper that slows things down.

Graham

Gentlemen start your engines in readiness for USB 3.0!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USB#USB_3.0

Many thanks for the replies I think I should have included it was an all in one printer. copier,scanner, the copier can be used on it's own and I will probably not have much use for a scanner,although in trying to find my answer I did find out scanners can scan anything you can get the lid down onto.
I DID NOT KNOW THAT, WHAT A MUPPET !!!!
Brian