Patent ID: 8449335

Claim:
An electrical connector comprising: a connector housing having opposite mating and loading faces and a mating axis extending therebetween, the connector housing having interior walls that oppose each other with a contact cavity therebetween, the contact cavity being accessible through the mating face and through the loading face; a retention insert sized and shaped to be advanced through the loading face and positioned within the contact cavity, the retention insert having an outer engagement surface; and first and second rows of mating contacts separated by the retention insert, the contact cavity having a component-receiving region that exists between the first and second rows of mating contacts and is accessible through the mating face, the mating contacts of the first and second rows being oriented to extend lengthwise along the mating axis and being held between the engagement surface of the retention insert and respective interior walls, wherein the mating contacts of the first and second rows are configured to engage an electrical component when the electrical component is inserted into the component-receiving region; wherein the mating contacts of the first and second rows are directly engaged by the engagement surface of the retention insert and wherein the interior walls have contact channels that are configured to receive the mating contacts of the first and second rows, the connector housing engaging and holding the mating contacts of the first and second rows within the corresponding contact channels before the retention insert is positioned within the connector housing between the interior walls.