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USB vs Firewire ext harddrive - Page 2

post #21 of 32
5/10/04 at 1:42pm
well i have two external Drives i have 2.5 toshiba 60 GB 5.4k with a nexstar excloser. which works reallly good no need for a power cord. i have a 3.5 wester digita 120 gb 8 mb buffer 7.2k with unknown excloser and they seem to work just fine with no problem. my suggestiong to you is not to get the FW just one reason most computer dont have FW. this is my first hardware i have (my laptop) with a FW port.so i would suggest u get a USB 2.0 is true what the guys said some post back there isnt really any difference in the real world reggarding speed. Also something u have to think about if u are playing on takin gur drive ever where u go think abouot getting a 2.5. I have one is a great i have over 5400 songs at 128 and about 5 movies in the drive i use my other drive leave at home i c it like a big cdw back up lol
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post #22 of 32
5/10/04 at 8:55pm
Another benefit of FW is that you can daisy chain them. At least that is true for the external enclosures.
4 external enclosures on ONE FW port = sweet and simple
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post #23 of 32
5/10/04 at 9:27pm
USB can only do point to point unless you add a hub. Firewire can daisy chain (and you can even use it as a network between two PCs if you want - and that would be a 400 MBit network, 4x the bandwidth of 100 Base T ethernet).

Jaybee, if you haven't ordered already, be aware you may not have to choose. Lacie and a number of other vendors make drives that support BOTH standards (I have two Lacie and 1 Maxtor drive like this). In other words, the drives have a USB 2 port and 2 firewire ports. It costs a little more to get this type of drive, but if you have multiple PCs, some with firewire and some without, IMO it's worth it.

Edit: you can't use both interfaces at the same time, though, so in a given session it's either USB or 1394, depending on which one you plug in.
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post #24 of 32
5/10/04 at 9:42pm

stu
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post #25 of 32
5/10/04 at 11:31pm
Hey guys, what do you guys think of this one .. http://www.extremeoverclocking.com/r...closure_1.html Since the one I'm thinking about getting is USB2 only, can I get a cord to connect to Firewire? But anyway what you guys think of this drive?
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post #26 of 32
5/11/04 at 12:03am
mocolt: that look like a nice enclosure, but I am cheap so I opt for Plumx brand from dealsonic. I got two of these:
http://www.dealsonic.com/plpmcousb20f.html

They work very well. However I am not sure if a mixing of firewire and usb is usable. I tried to daisy chain my 2 enclosures and then connect via usb to my laptop and one one drive is recognized Maybe it is because of the chipset on the enclosure? Just thought you might want to know
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post #27 of 32
5/11/04 at 12:06am
btw if you want fast get one of those enclosures that support firewire 1394B. It is advertised to be 2x faster then the 1394As
But of course you will need a motherboard that support the new standard
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post #28 of 32
5/11/04 at 4:28am
cool thanks.. I think I may get the Plumx since it is cheaper and it has great review. The only thing I need to know is, what kind of extension cable for the firewire comes with? 6 pin to 4pin? or 6 pin to 6 pin. So my i8600 has a 4 pin, I was thinking then I should just spent $5 from that website to order the additional cable. What you think? Should I? ^^


ps any coupon or other place to get the Plumx? I'm trying to find the best value/cheapest one for the money. hehe
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post #29 of 32
5/11/04 at 8:32am
Well the Plumax said in its specs that it comes with a 6- to 6-pin cable, so you'll have to get yourself a 6- to 4-pin, may as well order it from the same site if you can and save on two shipping charges
stu
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post #30 of 32
5/11/04 at 8:50am
Quote:
Originally Posted by DELL-sakor1
But 99% of laptops made in the last year or so will sport at least one 4-pin firewire port so its not usually a hassle
stu
Except for IBM, who seems to be moving away from them. The X40 and T4x don't have them...

It's pretty annoying, since the T series specs otherwise make for a good light mobile DV video editor. Not to mention it's great for external drives. I know you can always add a PC Card adapter, but with the prices IBM charges...I can't understand they would force people to carry around an extra piece of hardware. I'm sure it would cost less than $5 to add a firewire port.
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post #31 of 32
5/12/04 at 9:38pm
One of the reasons I don't look at IBM - I have 3 1394 drives, so not having a port means no dice. It is an odd decision on their part.
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post #32 of 32
5/12/04 at 10:03pm
It is odd because IBM is usually the one with all tose extra little features first (or at least up there).
stu
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