1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:05,040 Modern desktop PCs usually have back sides full of enough holes to give a tryptophobe 2 00:00:05,040 --> 00:00:09,760 an aneurysm, but those ports have all gone through a lot of different iterations over 3 00:00:09,760 --> 00:00:16,360 the years. Sure, we might rely on many staples like HDMI and USB now, but many more didn't make 4 00:00:16,360 --> 00:00:20,680 it. What about the ports that were just the absolute worst? 5 00:00:20,680 --> 00:00:26,120 What happened to those guys? You might think it's a bit cringe to start dunking on things like old display connectors 6 00:00:26,120 --> 00:00:30,120 or proprietary Apple ports, but in some cases they kind of deserve it. 7 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:36,280 For example, the high-density interconnect 45 or HDI 45 was released on March 14, 1994 8 00:00:36,280 --> 00:00:43,120 with the PowerMac 6100, 7100, and 8100 computers to use with the AudioVision 14 display and 9 00:00:43,120 --> 00:00:48,440 then never used again, meaning this connector enjoyed a fulfilling life as long as those 10 00:00:48,440 --> 00:00:55,400 PowerMac models were being produced, so for a whole two years. 11 00:00:55,400 --> 00:01:00,720 But during that time, the HDI 45 had the distinction of carrying the signal for your speakers, 12 00:01:00,720 --> 00:01:04,840 microphone, and video in stunning 480i on a single cable. 13 00:01:04,840 --> 00:01:09,560 If for some reason you didn't want to use this glorious connector, the AudioVision 14 00:01:09,560 --> 00:01:16,520 14 also had an S-Video import port on the side, which wasn't supported by Apple and 15 00:01:16,520 --> 00:01:19,800 went unused. Why did they include it in the first place? 16 00:01:19,800 --> 00:01:23,600 The answer is lost to the sands of time. 17 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:27,120 You know what hasn't been lost though? Molex. 18 00:01:27,120 --> 00:01:33,840 Why is the Molex power connector stuck around for so long? The answer is that it is cheap, and that's pretty much it. 19 00:01:33,840 --> 00:01:37,400 It certainly didn't survive because it was easy to use, as anyone who's ever tried to 20 00:01:37,400 --> 00:01:41,640 pull apart a male and female Molex connector can attest, because the bond of true love 21 00:01:41,640 --> 00:01:46,160 is unbreakable. One of those little, like, squeezy things that would push them apart. 22 00:01:46,160 --> 00:01:53,160 That was a high-end feature. Fun fact, the standard 4-pin connectors that we call Molex today are actually based on 23 00:01:53,160 --> 00:01:59,200 a design from AMP, which now goes by TE Connectivity, called the Maitan Lock, which was itself 24 00:01:59,200 --> 00:02:04,360 based on a pin-and-socket design originally produced by the Molex connector company. 25 00:02:04,360 --> 00:02:08,840 But the Maitan Lock design did little to address many of the original's problems. 26 00:02:08,840 --> 00:02:12,880 Back when they used to be standard power connectors for hard drives and disk drives, the pins of 27 00:02:12,880 --> 00:02:17,280 Molex connectors would often be pushed out of the back if they weren't perfectly aligned 28 00:02:17,280 --> 00:02:22,800 with the pin holes. The connector also had deceptive little handles on them that no human hands could really grip 29 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:26,640 onto nicely and tell power supply manufacturers made things a little bit easier with these 30 00:02:26,640 --> 00:02:34,360 little pinchy-tab things I talked about earlier. On top of all that, the connectors had a penchant for just breaking, if manufactured in a subpar 31 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:38,240 manner, which many, many were. Remember, these are cheap. 32 00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:43,680 While Molex became a vernacular term used to refer to any number of similar 4-pin connectors, 33 00:02:43,680 --> 00:02:47,040 Molex, the company, is alive and well. 34 00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:52,080 And the connectors that we all think of when we say, Molex, still infest most desktop PCs 35 00:02:52,080 --> 00:02:59,160 to this day. Thank you, Molex. Thankfully, the world is starting to heal from the infestation of another horrible port, 36 00:02:59,160 --> 00:03:02,160 MicroUSB. 37 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:07,120 Designed to take up less space than its predecessor, MiniUSB, MicroUSB was supposed to have an 38 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:12,680 estimated lifespan of 10,000 insertions. Oh, that was a funny joke. 39 00:03:12,680 --> 00:03:18,640 In reality, the tiny port, haha, we're going for size now, huh, too, was so weak that it 40 00:03:18,640 --> 00:03:23,360 would often end up mangled well before it could hit the big 10-0-0-0. 41 00:03:23,360 --> 00:03:28,400 If the near microscopic clips that kept it nestled into its destination device got improperly 42 00:03:28,400 --> 00:03:32,520 bent or shaved down over time as, you know, friction does, you'd have yourself a cable 43 00:03:32,520 --> 00:03:38,900 that might just fall out if you looked at it the wrong way. If the port on your device ended up mutilated, which inevitably it would because, again, 44 00:03:38,900 --> 00:03:43,300 friction, you'd be looking at either replacing it yourself with a very difficult soldering 45 00:03:43,300 --> 00:03:48,660 job or replacing the device entirely, as most people, unfortunately, would do. 46 00:03:48,660 --> 00:03:54,020 Thankfully, MicroUSB has been largely replaced by the much more user-friendly USB Type-C 47 00:03:54,020 --> 00:03:58,220 connector, which does have its own set of problems, but nobody's perfect. 48 00:03:58,220 --> 00:04:04,300 And that ain't even the half of it. As much as MicroUSB may have sucked, at least it was actually a standard. 49 00:04:04,300 --> 00:04:07,900 Something that can't be said about PCK's front panel connectors. 50 00:04:07,900 --> 00:04:12,660 For decades now, every PC builder has been forced to reckon with a jumbled mess of single 51 00:04:12,660 --> 00:04:18,460 or coupled wires with tiny bits of plastic on the end labeled in a miniscule font, which 52 00:04:18,460 --> 00:04:22,060 then had to be matched up with average spikes of metal on the motherboard, marked with even 53 00:04:22,060 --> 00:04:27,900 smaller letters. These cables for ants? 54 00:04:27,900 --> 00:04:32,180 Some motherboard manufacturers have taken pity on prospective builders and included little 55 00:04:32,180 --> 00:04:37,660 plastic guides to help out, but if you didn't buy a motherboard from one of the good ones, 56 00:04:37,660 --> 00:04:40,900 by the time the motherboard is in the case, you'd best have a flashlight and a magnifying 57 00:04:40,900 --> 00:04:45,660 glass handy to find where your wires are supposed to go, lest you find yourself with a non-functioning 58 00:04:45,660 --> 00:04:53,660 power button. Speaking of ports that aren't functioning anymore, our last, worst connector is the mysterious 59 00:04:53,660 --> 00:04:58,980 and short-lived Micro DVI. Carrying a video signal, but not audio? 60 00:04:58,980 --> 00:05:03,980 It was not much smaller than a standard USB or HDMI port, both of which it actually resembled 61 00:05:03,980 --> 00:05:08,060 depending on where it was used. So where was it used? 62 00:05:08,060 --> 00:05:11,300 Only on two laptops released in early 2008. 63 00:05:11,300 --> 00:05:15,780 The original MacBook Air, where the Micro DVI port could easily be mistaken as a USB type 64 00:05:15,780 --> 00:05:22,700 A port, and on the ASUS U2E subcompact notebook, which featured the port disguised as an HDMI 65 00:05:22,700 --> 00:05:26,220 port, what is going on here? 66 00:05:26,220 --> 00:05:30,540 Apparently, a port in two form factors was confusing for everyone else as well, because 67 00:05:30,540 --> 00:05:35,940 by the time summer arrived in 2008, the sun had already set on this abomination of a standard, 68 00:05:35,940 --> 00:05:44,060 and Micro DVI's house had been foreclosed for good. Are there any other PC ports, cables, or connectors you simply cannot stand? 69 00:05:44,060 --> 00:05:47,100 Let us know in the comments down below and maybe we'll roast them in a future video 70 00:05:47,100 --> 00:05:51,340 too. And if you thought this was going to be about game ports and still want to know more about 71 00:05:51,340 --> 00:05:56,100 that, then why not check out our video on why PC game ports still suck. 72 00:05:56,100 --> 00:05:59,740 Thanks for watching guys, like, dislike, check out some of our other videos, I already said 73 00:05:59,740 --> 00:06:03,500 comment, but comment with some video suggestions if you want to, and don't forget to subscribe 74 00:06:03,500 --> 00:06:04,000 and follow.