| Year created | 2003 |
|---|---|
| Supersedes | PC Card |
| Number of devices | 1 per slot |
| Capacity | 480 Mbit/s (USB mode) and 2.5 Gbit/s (PCI Express mode) |
| Style | Serial |
| Hotplugging interface | Yes |
| External interface | Yes |
ExpressCard is an interface to allow peripheral devices to be connected to a computer, usually a laptop computer. Formerly called NEWCARD,[1] the ExpressCard standard specifies the design of slots built into the computer and of cards which can be inserted into ExpressCard slots. The cards contain electronic circuitry and connectors to which external devices can be connected. The ExpressCard standard replaces the PC Card (also known as PCMCIA) standards.
Hardware that may be plugged into a computer via an ExpressCard includes connect cards, FireWire 800 (1394B), USB 2.0, USB 3.0 , Ethernet (even Gigabit Ethernet), Serial ATA external stick drives, solid-state drives, external enclosures for desktop size PCI Express graphics cards, wireless network interface cards (NIC), TV tuner cards, Common Access Card (CAC) readers, and soundcards and many others devices using chips which connects to computer using with USB or PCIe.
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Originally developed by the Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA), the ExpressCard standard is maintained by the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF). The host device supports PCI Express, USB 2.0, and SuperSpeed USB[2] (ExpressCard 2.0 only) connectivity through the ExpressCard slot; cards can be designed to use any of these modes. The cards are hot-pluggable. The ExpressCard standard is an open standard by ITU-T definition, and can be obtained from the USB-IF website free of charge[3].
USB-IF administers the ExpressCard Compliance Program, under which companies earn the right to obtain a license to use the ExpressCard logo on their compliant products[4].
The ExpressCard standard specifies two form factors, ExpressCard/34 (34 mm wide) and ExpressCard/54 (54 mm wide, in an L-shape)—the connector is the same on both (34 mm wide). Standard cards are 75 mm long (10.6 mm shorter than CardBus) and 5 mm thick, but may be thicker on sections that extend outside the standard form for Antennas, sockets, etc.
The 34 mm slot accepts only 34 mm cards. The 54 mm slot accepts both 34 mm and 54 mm cards. A diagonal guide in the rear of the 54 mm slot guides 34 mm cards to the connector. Adapters are available for connecting an ExpressCard/34 card to a CardBus (but not 16-bit PC Card) slot.
The older PC Cards came in 16-bit and the later 32-bit CardBus designs. The major benefit of the ExpressCard over the PC card is more bandwidth, due to the ExpressCard's direct connection to the system bus over a PCI Express ×1 lane and USB 2.0, while CardBus cards only interface with PCI. The ExpressCard has a maximum throughput of 2.5 Gbit/s through PCI Express and 480 Mbit/s through USB 2.0 dedicated for each slot, while all CardBus devices connected to a computer share a total 1.06 Gbit/s bandwidth.
The ExpressCard standard specifies voltages of either 1.5 V or 3.3 V; CardBus slots can use 3.3 V or 5.0 V. The ExpressCard FAQ claims lower cost, better scalability, and better integration with motherboard chipset technology than Cardbus. PCMCIA devices can be connected to an ExpressCard slot via an adapter.
When the PC Card was introduced, the only other way to connect peripherals to a laptop computer was via obsolescent RS232 and parallel ports of limited performance, so it was widely adopted for many peripherals. More recently, virtually all laptop equipment has 480 Mbit/s Hi-Speed USB 2.0 ports, and most types of peripheral which formerly used a PC Card connection are available for USB, making the ExpressCard less necessary than the PC Card was in its day. Some laptop computers do not have an ExpressCard slot.
An ExpressCard slot had been commonly included on high-end laptops made since 2006:
Because of the lack of backward compatibility, some laptop manufacturers have chosen to release models incorporating both CardBus (PCMCIA, PC Card) and ExpressCard slots. These include certain models of Acer Aspire, Acer Extensa, Toshiba Satellite, Dell Latitude and Precision, MSI S42x and Lenovo ThinkPad Z60m, R52, T60, R61 and T61.
A large number of ExpressCard devices were presented at the CeBit trade show in Germany in March 2005.[9] In November 2006, Belkin announced that it is launching the first ExpressCard docking station, which uses the PCIe part of an ExpressCard connection to enable 1600x1200 video and the USB part to provide USB, audio and network ports.[10][11] This points to the ability for ExpressCard to allow more capable non-OEM docking stations for laptop computers.
In 2007, Sony introduced its Vaio TZ model, which incorporates ExpressCards. Also the Sony Vaio FZ and Vaio Z series have the ExpressCard/34 Slot integrated in them. Sony also uses the ExpressCard/34 form factor for the flash memory modules in its XDCAM EX/SxS based camcorders, making the copying of video data between these cameras and ExpressCard-equipped laptops easier. For this reason, Sony also offers a USB-based SxS reader for desktop computers.
The new Toshiba Satellite P and X 200/205 series of laptops and desktop replacements have an ExpressCard/34 slot since April 2007.
The ExpressCard 2.0 standard was delivered March 4, 2009 at CeBIT in Hannover. It is expected to have a raw bandwidth of 5 Gbit/s (transfer speed 500 MB/s or 0.5 GB/s),[12] which is ten times USB 2.0 (0.48 Gbit/s or 60 MB/s),[13] and includes USB 3.0 (5.0 Gbit/s or 625 MB/s or 0.625 GB/s).[14] It complies with PCI-Express 2.0 and SuperSpeed USB, which is part of the USB 3.0 specification. It is backwards compatible with current ExpressCard modules and ExpressCard 2.0 modules will work in current slots. ExpressCard 2.0 products are expected to be in the market in late 2010.[15]
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