(ZDNET) Since mid-2001, manufacturers have gradually been releasing devices that connect to PCs via USB 2.0 ports. But USB 2.0 is expected to get a significant boost once it is integrated into Intel chipsets by mid-year. In addition, an upcoming wave of products is expected to help establish USB 2.0 as the new dominant standard for connecting peripherals to PCs. The new version of USB, short for universal serial bus, allows consumers to transfer data from peripherals to PCs dramatically faster than the previous version of the standard, USB 1.1--and slightly faster than its main rival, FireWire.