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I understand that A-B plug used to be common but they could have switched to micro without issues.

My questions:

  • Why does Arduino use USB A-B plug, instead of A to micro USB plug?
  • What are the challenged Arduino would be facing if they switched to micro USB?

Note: By "Arduino" I'm referring to Arduino models that do not come with a micro USB port such as the most common Uno & Mega.

Phil
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Please note that this answer is based on speculation and some common sense rather than on insider information:

If you take look at the hardware index, you'll notice that significant parts of the layout (drill holes, pin spacing, and position and type of the USB jack) haven't changed between the Arduino Extreme and the current Arduino UNO R3), while other improvements have been made. For changes between the UNO R2 and R3, please see Arduino UNO FAQ at adafruit (link provided by jfpoilpret).

It is thus reasonable to me that keeping the USB jack was a deliberate design decision: Improve if possible, but keep the layout changes to a minimum and allow for maximum backwards compaptibility.

But again, this is just the guess of a user!

Klaus-Dieter Warzecha
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  • I am not sure, even including your comment, that it would consitute a serious answer to the question, it looks more like a lead to follow and check. – jfpoilpret Dec 25 '14 at 17:09
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    Then you should improve your answer by changing the question into something like "It is probably for backward compatibility between UNO revisions". You could even refer to https://learn.adafruit.com/arduino-tips-tricks-and-techniques/arduino-uno-faq#uno-r2-and-r3 which mentions backward comaptibility albeit it does not explicitly mention USB socket compatibility. Merry Christmas to you too! – jfpoilpret Dec 25 '14 at 17:28
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    That makes absolute sense @KlausWarzecha, thanks! And thank you as well jfpoilpret ! – Phil Dec 26 '14 at 11:50
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    Durability is also a factor. The big standard USB-B is a lot more durable than Micro-USB. Though in practice it probably doesn't make such a huge difference, you don't connect/disconnect your Arduino THAT often. But I guess its one of the components that could die first, if you don't built a bad circuit with your UNO, the connector could indeed die first after years and years of usage. – timonsku Dec 26 '14 at 15:38