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Mini firewire port vs. regular sized one

post #1 of 6
12/5/02 at 3:30am
Thread Starter 
I see in the specs for the 5660 that it has the mini Firewire port, while the 8886 contains the 6 pin Firewire port.

Is there much difference between the two? That is , is it more difficult to hook up devices (digitial video cameras, MP3 players, other Firewire peripherals) w/ the mini port vs. the regular 6 pinned one?

Still deciding vs. the Dell 8200 and both Sager models ..

Thanks!

Joe C.
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post #2 of 6
12/5/02 at 3:47am
Almost all laptops use the mini firewire port, which is also called 4 pin, because obviously it's smaller and because it is not self-powered. Firewire, which is 6 pin, provides power to whatever you plug into it. So if you plug something into a 6 pin firewire port, you don't have to plug it into an outlet whereas you would with the mini 4 pin. There are converters available, and most firewire things can be plugged into either one and powered separately when needed (if it's a 4 pin). Having the 6 pin on the 8886 alleviates some of the hassle, though, because there are some things that cannot be powered separately (like internet cameras) and thus they must be run on a 6 pin connection. Whichever you get, just make sure that the things you buy for it are compatable based on what I wrote. Hope that helps!
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post #3 of 6
12/5/02 at 5:21am
Like Beebster said, check and see if the firewire accessories you have need a 6 pin powered firewire port or not. All DV video cameras use a 4 pin connector on the camera end, so if you're connecting a video camera to a 6 pin firewire port, you'll need a 4-pin to 6-pin cable.

Most external Firewire HDs can run off of the power provided by a 6-pin firewire port, but if you only have a 4-pin port, the HD usually includes a power adapter that you can attach to the HD to power it.

~Kendalf
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post #4 of 6
12/5/02 at 7:00am
As mentioned before, the 4-pin port is unable to power the devices you connect to it; if you have devices that need to be powered by the Firewire connection i suggest you get a self-powered Firewire Hub
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post #5 of 6
12/5/02 at 7:54am
Thread Starter 
Wow..learn something new every day. Thanks guys.

I guess it's no huge deal between the two. Right now that shouldn't be the deciding factor between the 5660 and the 8886 laptops. Just thinking about what I'd be using it for, I'd most likely use the Fireware to input digital video and/or maybe a hard drive.

These laptops use USB 2.0, right? Anyone know what the Dell 8200 uses? I couldn't get detailed specs from their website -- just said it had USB and Firewire ports without adding exact specs of them.

Joe C.
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post #6 of 6
12/5/02 at 11:59am
Yep, both the 5660 and the 8886 are USB2. As far as I can tell, none of the Dell laptops have USB2 yet, but I could be wrong. Generally if they do, it will say USB2 instead of just USB because it's a big selling point. You should email them or check on their forums. SOmeone here who has a recent Dell can tell you if theirs is USB2 or not. Doubt it is though.
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