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Hall Technologies’ chief executive officer Ken Eagle recently sat down with AV Technology’s Cindy Davis to discuss the latest developments in USB 3.2, including its enormous potential in both corporate and educational environments, as well as the role it plays in Hall’s exciting new Discovery 3 Series extenders. He also touched on the recent drama surrounding tariffs, with some words of reassurance for Hall Technologies customers.
Watch the full video interview below.
But first, Eagle made sure to clear up any lingering confusion around different kinds of USB technology. With regard to the amount of bandwidth you’re going to get out of a product, he said, “We go all the way back to USB 1.0, 2.0, 2.2, and then 3.1 and 3.2. In general, with the technology, if you're buying the newest version—let's call it 3.2—then you're going to be backwards compatible.” He continued, “Couple that with connector types ranging from USB-A to USB-B to USB-C. Now you've got connector types and different versions of USB firmware, and sometimes they're compatible—sometimes they're not.”
Hall’s best-selling Discovery family of USB extenders has been a favorite among corporate and higher education clients for years—offering the affordability and reliability organizations need to keep connected. Building upon that success, Eagle said the feature-rich Discovery 3 Series promises improved flexibility, with the option to mix and match transmitter and receiver types.
“Discovery 3 adds USB 3.X support, and that gives you higher bandwidth, charging, more compatibility with products—but we've also expanded the family to be more than just a wall plate and a receiver that's locked you into a configuration,” Eagle said. “We've set up the transmitter and receiver to be a wall plate or a box version. That means you can have a traditional wall-plate-to-box solution; or a box-to-box, box-to-wall-plate, or wall-plate-to-wall-plate solution if your application requires that.”
The flexibility of Hall’s USB 3.2 lineup goes beyond form factor, with greater bandwidth capacity allowing users to make device upgrades without the risk of their presentations or online conferencing hitting a bandwidth bottleneck. Conversely, the backwards compatibility of USB 3.2 also means that existing peripheral devices can operate to their full potential.
“Connecting to somebody who's remote dialed in or connected online via Teams or Zoom or other kind of session—if you're doing that, you're then connecting to USB peripheral devices in the room such as cameras, microphones, and even systems outside of the room,” Eagle said. “So, the USB 3.2—3.X—becomes really important. Hall is now incorporating that technology into our new line of products in 2025, and you'll see more at InfoComm coming up, as well for the rest of the year.”
And finally, when it comes to tariffs, Eagle understands the uncertainty end users may feel around making big AV upgrades right now, but he also wants customers to rest assured that Hall Technologies is not in the business of making “a knee jerk reaction on pricing.”
“Where we are for Q2, there will be no change to our prices,” Eagle said, “You can go ahead and move forward with Hall products—spec them in as you would. As we get close to the end of Q2, if significant policy changes are made, we'll reevaluate. I'm sure anybody would. But given the great amount of stock already in the U.S. to cover those products, and the exemptions that the administration put in place, we're not making any changes to pricing. We want our customers to know that.”
About Hall Technologies
As the world becomes increasingly interconnected, the right technology can prove essential to staying in touch with the world around us. For 41 years, Hall Technologies has been a leader and innovator in the design and manufacturing of signal and connectivity solutions with a longstanding reputation for providing top-quality, highly reliable end-to-end solutions.
From video distribution and switchers/scalers to completely integrated audio, video, and communication systems, we aim to strengthen the human connection, whether that be in medical spaces, corporate meeting spaces, classrooms, or more. Hall Technologies offers best-in-class communications through signal management and extension solutions.
