I remember some late P3 cases (the ones with the sideways PSU over the mobo) that had front USB but I don't think it was common yet.

IMHO the best way to go is to use a bay for USB ports if you want front USB.
The ones in early cases were usually cheaped down (lacked EMI filtering, etc.) and couldn't do USB 1.x speed even when they said USB 2.0.
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Front USB was a feature that the OEMs started off with and only became common in generic cases quite a bit later.

Packard Bell introduced it in the shape of a single USB port on the side of the front bezel on their mid-1999 Win98SE range in the UK ("Symphony"), Compaq did something similar with their early P3 Presario line.

I don't recall seeing it on anything I built myself until late 2001, although at the time I was rather cash-strapped and bought some of the cheapest new cases out there, more high-end designsd might have had it before then.

Yep... I had a Gateway P3/733 tower based on an Intel D815EEA board that had front USB ports. That system must have been from 1999ish? Maybe 2000?

On the other hand, the ~2002 case I built my K6-2 system in doesn't have any provision for them. I've been trying to figure out how to add them without spoiling the look.

xjas wrote:

I've been trying to figure out how to add them without spoiling the look.

Just some thoughts.

If you can find a stacked pair (vs side by side) they can be retro fitted into the space where badge goes.
If you really want you could use some velcro and a badge for a cover when not in use.
or
Take one for rear ports and trim the bracket to a more appealing shape.
Install anywhere like a name-plate on a door with two screws.
You can paint it to whatever color works for you.
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all the chieftec cases we got in 2001 for the office did not have front usb, but the same cases we got shortly after for some more PCs did and some time after that they started switching to 120mm fan spots.

I do have a cooler master case from 1999 with front USB though.

I'd say WinXP's greatly improved USB support boosted USB's popularity for flash drives etc where easy access was desirable.
You could argue a Socket A was right on this border.

xjas wrote:

I've been trying to figure out how to add them without spoiling the look.

I remember having a front card reader/front replicator (SD/CF, USB, audio and FireWire), and it came without different plates to match your case color. Unless your case has a curvy front, it should be enough.

OK, so obviously the trend started in 1999 and was basically the default style by 2002. Nice to establish.

I guess using this for a KX133 or KT133 (or maybe even a KT333) build is something that would have been fairly common back then:

appiah4 wrote:

OK, so obviously the trend started in 1999 and was basically the default style by 2002. Nice to establish. […]
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OK, so obviously the trend started in 1999 and was basically the default style by 2002. Nice to establish.

I guess using this for a KX133 or KT133 (or maybe even a KT333) build is something that would have been fairly common back then:

Mmmhmm, Elan Vital.

Probably doesn't line up with retro appearance wants but I found these to be handy.
They were socket 478 era and the ads said okay for Win98.
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Push the button, the reader pops out and can be connected by USB to laptops or systems without SD card capability.
They advertised firewire as an option but I never saw one with it actually populated.
The traces for FW were on the PCB so if you wanted to add it bad enough....
I wasn't using CF back then but everything for it was there. (CF was on USB.)
I still have 1 or 2 beige and 1 of the rare black version new that I never used. (Thanks for reminding me!!)
Mine have a silver bezel on the reader pop-out which I didn't like the looks of but function was more important that pretty.
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You can DIY whatever you want in the 2 blanks to the right.
The covers pop-off to mount things behind or to dremel or you can glue them in.
I put a molex power connection in one for testing HDDs by USB adapter. A SATA port would work too.
A game port might even fit with mods to the frame behind the covers. Not sure about that.

https://www.cnet.com/products/soyo-bayone-ext … eed-usb-series/
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appiah4 wrote:

OK, so obviously the trend started in 1999 and was basically the default style by 2002. Nice to establish.

For the most part yes it started with OEMs. I would argue It happened a bit different than this and is more closely connected to USB thumb drives and laptops, and people wanting to use the flash drives on PCs without plugging them in the back. This is how and why front ports started. This happened quite a bit before USB 2 came out. its not a style its a consequence.

I have some literature that IBM was giving them away with their 770 series Laptops in package deals, IBM started doing this in 1999 before 2000 as the wiki article mentions.

By 2001 Flash Drive had surpass the capacity of Zip 100 drives, and they are mainly to credit for Front USB ports and the obsolescence of ZIP disks.

Front panel audio started with feed through lines at the back. I wouldn't be surprised if a case vendor tried the same idea with USB.

I don't know exactly when they started, but I do know that at least I noticed them first when we got our first IBM NetVista computers in the early 2000s. They had 2 USB ports in the front but due to how far back those ports were recessed, there wasn't much aside from a keyboard and mouse that you could plug into them. Flashdrives back then were too big physically to fit in those front USB ports.

front panels that feed through the back are still a thing even today ^^