Intel 300 chipsets will feature usb 3.1 gen2 and wi

In November 2016, various sources close to some motherboard manufacturers noted that Intel planned to integrate Wi-Fi and USB 3.1 Gen2 connectivity into the upcoming Intel 300 (Cannon Lake) chipsets.

Now, a slide created by Intel itself reaffirms these reports, and shows that these processors will arrive in the second half of this year with support for this type of connectivity.

Intel 300 "Cannon Lake" with USB 3.1 Gen2 connectivity and Wi-Fi "Wave 2"

Below is a table with new information on Cannon Lake processors compared to Intel's 7th generation 200 “Kaby Lake” chipsets.

Image: Benchlife

As we can see on the slide, the only difference between the two chipsets for now is that the 300 Series will include USB 3.1 Gen2 technology , Gigabit Wi-Fi (802.11 AC) and Bluetooth connectivity. To clarify a little more, the group responsible for the USB standard redefined USB 3.0 when the second generation was terminated.

Simply put, USB 3.0 is currently the same as USB 3.1 Gen1 but with speeds of 5Gbps. Meanwhile, the new USB 3.1 Gen2, typically associated with Type C connections and Thunderbolt 3, has support for transfer speeds of up to 10 Gbps.

Aside from USB 3.1 Gen2, the new leak also notes that Intel will incorporate a component based on the Wi-Fi 802.11ac Wave2 standard, which in theory has support for speeds of up to 2.34Gbps thanks to MU-MIMO technology.

On the other hand, Intel could wait to incorporate the 802.11ad specification in the 400 Series chipsets, which will hit the market later this year or early next year.

The Intel 300 series of processors will feature the Z370, H370, H310, Q370, Q350 and B350 models, but just like in the case of the Skylake and Kaby Lake, the Cannon Lake processors will be based on a 10nm process, while Coffee Lakes will use Intel's 14nm process.

As for the launch date, it is believed that Intel will introduce the new Intel Cannon Lake and Coffee Lake platforms in the second half of the year, probably in the fourth quarter.