What has the faster data transfer rates????

[[1ponders]]

A question for you Techi-gurus out there. Which has the faster data transfer rates, USB2, SATA or fire-wire?

[RB]

I think firewire Paul.

[[1ponders]]

You wouldn't happen to know the transfer rates (save me googling :P )

[snowyskiesau]

SATA is the fastest:

Firewire - 400 Mbit/sec
USB 2.0 - 480 Mbit/sec
SATA - 150 MByte/sec

[[1ponders]]

So if there are 8 Bits to the Byte then SATA will be....Ummmm......8 into 480 gives 60 MBytes, into 150 MBytes = 2.5 times faster over USB2. Right?

[snowyskiesau]

That's right.
[FWIW - SATA II is rated at 300 MByte/sec]

[[1ponders]]

There hope for me yet :D

[iceman]

The newer firewire spec is 800 Mbit/sec, twice as fast as USB2.

[[1ponders]]

I'm looking at the connection of the Lantec Nexstar 3 Mike. Just trying to convince myself I need to by a SATA adapter card for my Lappy :P :)

Any planetary cameras out yet using the new Firewire ;)

[iceman]

I think so, Paul. Check the DMK specs. Btw, the DMK has come down in price, it's only US$390 now (instead of US$490). Get it! You know you want to!

[[1ponders]]

:lol: I know I do, but imagine how much cheaper it will be if I wait for the start of next years apparition (or better one available :D ) if I can wait that long. ;) But then that is only the mono. How much extra for the filters etc :evil:


btw don't you think it's time to upgrade your sig. ToUcam....what ToUcam.....Ohhhh that ToUcam :lol:

[snowyskiesau]

Don't forget you'll be limited to a maximum cable length of 1 metre with SATA.

[RB]

Yes the "new" firewire is 800 Mbit/sec
It's prefered for video editing on home systems too I believe.
Found this link (http://www.cwol.com/firewire/firewire-vs-usb.htm)for a basic explination on why the original firewire has better sustained throughput over usb2.0.

[[1ponders]]

Thanks for that caveat Geoff. It's those little details that trip me at times ;)

In this situation though it's not going to be a prob as the data transfer will only be between my laptop/desktop and external 300gig HDD.

[[1ponders]]

Thanks for the link Andrew. I've got the firewire card adapter, now all I need is some firewire equipment :evil:

Now where were those DMK cameras Mike was talking about :D

[[1ponders]]

So if I wanted to get data from Point A to external Point B, what would be the fastest options, without mortgaging the house and completing a degree in IT to implement.

[g__day]

I still think if your getting into more advanced PCs and their storage attachments think seriously about two things:

1) a fast switched LAN (gigabyte switches or routers are cost effective today)
2) shared LAN storage ( a SAN) that is visible to all devices on a network

The beauty of this direction is its very scalable, easy to back up, easy to make fault tolerant (RAID disks on a SAN), by definition inherently sharable and simplicity to move large volumes of data around quickly.

Its more suitable if your in a fixed location - e.g. your property, not in a field. If you need mobility well a large external storage device is going to look very attractive.