The USB Active Extension Cable is not a passive cable. It has a patent pending ASIC chip inside that buffers the ingoing and outgoing USB signals. Passive cables have the risk of data loss because they cannot pass the signals efficiently. The Active Extension Cable acts as a single port hub, which means that multiple cables can be cascaded (up to 5) to increase the distance between your computer and USB devices. The cable meets USB specifications and works with low-speed and high-speed devices