Kordz Explores AV Applications and Performance Advantages of USB-C Connectivity in Newest Article in its Popular ‘Demystified’ Series

Kordz is diving deep into the world of USB-C with its latest article in the popular “Demystified” series, breaking down why this versatile connector is becoming a game-changer for AV professionals. While HDMI remains dominant, USB-C is quickly gaining ground thanks to its ability to handle power, data, and video through a single cable—making installations cleaner, more efficient, and easier to manage. However, challenges like cable length limitations and inconsistent product standards have made adoption tricky. Kordz’ new article, USB-C Demystified: Understanding the Fundamentals, simplifies the topic, explaining how USB-C evolved and why it’s transforming corporate AV setups.

Recognizing the pain points integrators face, Kordz has also launched professional-grade USB-C cables designed to solve these issues, offering both passive and active optical solutions up to 10 meters in length. Managing Director James Chen emphasizes that USB-C’s universal, reversible design and high data transfer capabilities are driving its adoption, reducing clutter, and improving usability. By breaking down the technology and delivering reliable solutions, Kordz is helping IT and AV professionals stay ahead in the fast-evolving connectivity landscape.

While HDMI continues to dominate connectivity in traditional AV systems, USB-C technology is rapidly emerging as a transformative new alternative. A significant improvement over earlier USB standards, USB-C now offers professional AV integrators a user-friendly and versatile platform for a wide array of applications. Its ability to seamlessly connect fragmented products while handling power and bandwidth-intensive data and video through a single cable presents new opportunities for integrators to create cleaner, more efficient and user-friendly installations. The rising prevalence of USB-C-enabled devices, combined with the technology’s performance and installation advantages, is driving its adoption in corporate environments where laptops, tablets, monitors and AV equipment are all commonly deployed.

However, the new technology hasn’t emerged without a few teething issues. The complexity of the USB connection makes it difficult for manufacturers to create certified full-featured USB3.x or USB4 cables more than two metres long, which is important for commercial installations. To date, many have tried to get around the problem by offering non-certified and non-full-featured products at longer lengths. Furthermore, some have designed a larger connector than the specification allows, making installations difficult when using recessed USB-C ports. As a result, it has been immensely difficult for integrators to identify the correct cables for the specific needs of their project.

In its new article, ‘USB-C Demystified: Understanding the Fundamentals’, the connectivity experts at Kordz provide a comprehensive exploration of USB-C technology, tracing its genesis from the introduction of USB’s original technology in 1996. Over the years, USB connectors have evolved to become more robust and user-friendly, culminating in the versatile USB-C standard increasingly dominant in corporate environments today. The article discusses the limitations of early USB solutions, key drivers for the adoption of USB-C, and the performance advantages that now make it a game-changer for AV installations.

“The impact of USB-C on the AV industry is hard to ignore,” says James Chen, Managing Director of Kordz. “Its compact, symmetrical design allows devices to become smaller while eliminating directional insertion issues and improving usability. With support for higher data and video transfer rates, increased power delivery capabilities and backward compatibility with older USB versions, USB-C simplifies device design and reduces clutter, cost and environmental impact. Its introduction marks a pivotal shift toward universal connectivity, reducing reliance on proprietary solutions and encouraging interoperability across devices and platforms.”

In the informative article Kordz goes on to highlight the key benefits of USB-C for AV professionals, offering a thorough, yet straightforward, explanation of the features that position USB-C as a cornerstone of next-generation AV solutions:

• Reversible and Robust Design: USB-C connectors can be inserted in any direction, which is particularly beneficial when device ports are difficult to access.
• Simplified Cabling: A single standardised cable type for transmitting power, data and video saves both installation time and space. Additionally, backward compatibility with older USB and HDMI protocols via adapters enhances its versatility.
• High Data Transfer Rates: Supporting data rates up to 80Gbps with the newly announced USB4 v2, USB-C handles demanding tasks such as transferring raw video footage and streaming uncompressed 4K or 8K video.

Kordz recently entered the USB-C market with its own passive and active optical professional-grade USB-C cables at lengths up to 3m and 10m, respectively. Adds Chen, “Our goal has been to resolve many of the hassles integrators have struggled with to date through better design and engineering, and now offer a USB-C connectivity solution that’s easy to fit and forget.”

By demystifying USB-C’s potential and delivering the solutions that bring it to fruition, Kordz continues to empower AV professionals with the knowledge necessary to navigate the rapidly evolving connectivity landscape and deliver superior system performance.