Originally posted by: TechnoPro
Any predictions as to if/when they might start being phased out on a grander scale? Are they obsolete technolgies?
Obsolete?
Never.
(At least for the geek types.)
I have an older, cheaper, PDA, that uses a serial port to 'sync' with. I also own an external hardware modem, which is useful, and saves a slot. Not to mention, using a serial port for things like UPS signaling, etc.
Parallel ports are useful for stringing a printer and a scanner onto, but those could be transitioned to USB. (Or better yet, Firewire. If you've ever used an older SCSI-based printer or scanner, you know how fast and efficient those are. I pity those stuck using a USB1.1 scanner/printer. I could hand-sketch things faster than those operate.)
But the
one thing, that can never replace the parallel port - ultra-low-latency true parallel inputs (or outputs) to the PC. This is useful for building your own harness to use an arcade controller with the PC, or use to hack together nearly any sort of widget imaginable, that could make use of a 4/8/12-bit parallel bus. I built a PSX joystick interface too, but since the native PSX controller protocol is serial, those work just fine using a USB adaptor as well.
I can understand laptops leaving them out, the ports are physically somewhat large, and would be better suited to appear on the laptop's docking-unit, rather than on the laptop itself.
