The maximum clock frequency for the SN74HC595 is 25 MHz, but it can vary depending on the operating voltage and temperature.
To ensure that the output pins are in a known state during power-up, you can use the output enable (OE) pin to disable the outputs during power-up, and then enable them once the device is fully powered up.
The MR (Master Reset) pin is used to asynchronously reset the shift register, clearing all output bits to a logic low state.
Yes, the SN74HC595 can be used as a level shifter, but it's not recommended as it's not designed for that purpose. The device is primarily intended for serial-to-parallel data conversion.
The latency of the shift register is typically around 10-20 ns, depending on the clock frequency. To handle this latency, you can use a clock enable signal to synchronize the data transfer, or use a FIFO buffer to absorb the latency.