Hi friends, 
I'm sure many of us who are aware of these terms have this question quite often. So here i'm trying to share some information that might help you to decide upon which one/two you should choose.
For those who know the term but doesn't know the exact meaning or functions of these port, i'm gonna define them as well.
1} Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 is an external serial interface used on computers and other digital devices to transfer data using a USB cable. The designation “2.0” refers to the standard or version of the USB interface.
USB is a plug-and-play interface. This means that the computer does not need to be powered off in order to plug in or unplug a USB 2.0 component. For example, an iPod or other MP3 player can be connected to a computer via a USB cable running to the USB 2.0 port. The computer will register the device as another storage area and show any files it contains.
View attachment 103528
If you want to read more about USB then refer to: What is USB 2.0?
2} External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment or eSATA is an external interface for SATA technologies. It competes with FireWire 400 and universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 to provide fast data transfer speeds for external storage devices.
View attachment 103529
While eSATA reaches transfer rates of at least triple those of USB 2.0 and FireWire 400, it does have one drawback. eSATA requires its own power connector, unlike the aforementioned interfaces. It is still an excellent choice for external disk storage, however. Unlike USB and FireWire interfaces, eSATA does not have to translate data between the interface and the computer. This enhances data transfer speeds, while saving computer processor resources and eliminating the need for an extra off-load chip.
3} Firewire ports are forms of a serial port that make use of FireWire technology to transfer data rapidly from one electronic device to another. The FireWire port has been in common use since 1995, when Apple, Inc. first began to include the port on a number of digital camcorders. Today, the FireWire port is used on a number of other devices.
View attachment 103530
As a multi-platform serial bus, the FireWire port has the ability to interact with a number of different devices. For example, a FireWire connection can provide an ideal way to connect a scanner to a computer system. Because the transfer rate of a FireWire port can reach up to 400 Mbps, the data transfer is relatively fast and also results in excellent quality.
Here are the latest addition to these port's family:
USB:
the latest addition to USB family is known as SuperSpeed USB.
In a nutshell, USB 3.0 promises the following:
FireWire:
In late 2007, the 1394 Trade Association announced Firewire 3200, called "S3200", that builds upon the existing Firewire 800 standard that was released in 2002. Utilizing the very same connectors and cabling that is required for Firewire 800, S3200 is basically a drop-in replacement once the internal system components are updated in devices.
How does USB 3.0 compare to competing interfaces (i.e. eSATA, FireWire 3200, ExpressCard 2.0)?
USB 3.0 will be 10 times as fast as USB 2.0 at a super fast speed of up to 5 Gbps (from 480 Mbps). Compared to the new FireWire 3200, which runs two thirds the speed of USB 3.0 (1.6 Gbps slower than USB 3.0). USB 3.0 will also use one third the power of USB 2.0; making it more "green" and cost less to run.
Firewire's main claim to fame is that it is a highly efficient peer-to-peer, full-duplex, non-polling data communications protocol with very low overhead. Firewire delivers much higher actual throughput than USB 2.0, and can achieve much closer to its theoretical 800Mbps data rate than USB. Where Firewire 800 can deliver sustained data transfers of around 90MB/s, USB 2.0 hovers more around 40MB/s.
To be honest, the jump from USB 2.0 to USB 3.0 is impressive. But it’s important to remember that if it’s more impressive than the jump from FireWire 800 to FireWire 3200, it’s only because USB had that much more ground to make up. Despite all the gains of the new USB, FireWire still maintains a technical edge in power management, hardware compatibility, and potentially even the actual transfer rate.
eSATA, or External SATA, was brought to market in 2004 as a consumer interface targetted directly at an external storage market crowded with USB 2.0 and Firewire solutions. eSATA supports a data rate of 3.2Gbps, which is more than enough for the fastest hard drives, which can transfer about 120MB/s, easily better than USB 2.0 and significantly better than Firewire 800.
This is an addition over USB3.0,eSATA,Firewire port:
ExpressCard 2.0 was released practically the same day as the USB 3.0 specification (November 2008) and promises to significantly enhance the ExpressCard standard for the increased speed requirements of today's mobile technologies. Closely tied to both the PCI Express and USB 3.0 specifications, ExpressCard 2.0 supports a variety of applications involving high throughput data transfer and streaming.
Maintaining backwards compatibility with the original ExpressCard specification, the hot-pluggable interface standard for I/O expansion in smaller form-factor systems will by definition co-exist with the world of USB 3.0 devices.
View attachment 103532
To read more about USB 3.0 & other ports you can check: SuperSpeed USB 3.0 FAQ
Hope this article helped you to clear some of your doubts & help you to choose between various ports that help you to transfer data at a faster & your desired rate.
I'm sure many of us who are aware of these terms have this question quite often. So here i'm trying to share some information that might help you to decide upon which one/two you should choose.
For those who know the term but doesn't know the exact meaning or functions of these port, i'm gonna define them as well.
1} Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 is an external serial interface used on computers and other digital devices to transfer data using a USB cable. The designation “2.0” refers to the standard or version of the USB interface.
USB is a plug-and-play interface. This means that the computer does not need to be powered off in order to plug in or unplug a USB 2.0 component. For example, an iPod or other MP3 player can be connected to a computer via a USB cable running to the USB 2.0 port. The computer will register the device as another storage area and show any files it contains.
View attachment 103528
If you want to read more about USB then refer to: What is USB 2.0?
2} External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment or eSATA is an external interface for SATA technologies. It competes with FireWire 400 and universal serial bus (USB) 2.0 to provide fast data transfer speeds for external storage devices.
View attachment 103529
While eSATA reaches transfer rates of at least triple those of USB 2.0 and FireWire 400, it does have one drawback. eSATA requires its own power connector, unlike the aforementioned interfaces. It is still an excellent choice for external disk storage, however. Unlike USB and FireWire interfaces, eSATA does not have to translate data between the interface and the computer. This enhances data transfer speeds, while saving computer processor resources and eliminating the need for an extra off-load chip.
3} Firewire ports are forms of a serial port that make use of FireWire technology to transfer data rapidly from one electronic device to another. The FireWire port has been in common use since 1995, when Apple, Inc. first began to include the port on a number of digital camcorders. Today, the FireWire port is used on a number of other devices.
View attachment 103530
As a multi-platform serial bus, the FireWire port has the ability to interact with a number of different devices. For example, a FireWire connection can provide an ideal way to connect a scanner to a computer system. Because the transfer rate of a FireWire port can reach up to 400 Mbps, the data transfer is relatively fast and also results in excellent quality.
Here are the latest addition to these port's family:
USB:
the latest addition to USB family is known as SuperSpeed USB.
In a nutshell, USB 3.0 promises the following:
- Higher transfer rates (up to 4.8 Gbps)
- Increased maximum bus power and increased device current draw to better accommodate power-hungry devices
- New power management features
- Full-duplex data transfers and support for new transfer types
- New connectors and cables for higher speed data transfer...although they are backwards compatible with USB 2.0 devices and computers (more on this later.
FireWire:
In late 2007, the 1394 Trade Association announced Firewire 3200, called "S3200", that builds upon the existing Firewire 800 standard that was released in 2002. Utilizing the very same connectors and cabling that is required for Firewire 800, S3200 is basically a drop-in replacement once the internal system components are updated in devices.
How does USB 3.0 compare to competing interfaces (i.e. eSATA, FireWire 3200, ExpressCard 2.0)?
USB 3.0 will be 10 times as fast as USB 2.0 at a super fast speed of up to 5 Gbps (from 480 Mbps). Compared to the new FireWire 3200, which runs two thirds the speed of USB 3.0 (1.6 Gbps slower than USB 3.0). USB 3.0 will also use one third the power of USB 2.0; making it more "green" and cost less to run.
Firewire's main claim to fame is that it is a highly efficient peer-to-peer, full-duplex, non-polling data communications protocol with very low overhead. Firewire delivers much higher actual throughput than USB 2.0, and can achieve much closer to its theoretical 800Mbps data rate than USB. Where Firewire 800 can deliver sustained data transfers of around 90MB/s, USB 2.0 hovers more around 40MB/s.
To be honest, the jump from USB 2.0 to USB 3.0 is impressive. But it’s important to remember that if it’s more impressive than the jump from FireWire 800 to FireWire 3200, it’s only because USB had that much more ground to make up. Despite all the gains of the new USB, FireWire still maintains a technical edge in power management, hardware compatibility, and potentially even the actual transfer rate.
eSATA, or External SATA, was brought to market in 2004 as a consumer interface targetted directly at an external storage market crowded with USB 2.0 and Firewire solutions. eSATA supports a data rate of 3.2Gbps, which is more than enough for the fastest hard drives, which can transfer about 120MB/s, easily better than USB 2.0 and significantly better than Firewire 800.
This is an addition over USB3.0,eSATA,Firewire port:
ExpressCard 2.0 was released practically the same day as the USB 3.0 specification (November 2008) and promises to significantly enhance the ExpressCard standard for the increased speed requirements of today's mobile technologies. Closely tied to both the PCI Express and USB 3.0 specifications, ExpressCard 2.0 supports a variety of applications involving high throughput data transfer and streaming.
Maintaining backwards compatibility with the original ExpressCard specification, the hot-pluggable interface standard for I/O expansion in smaller form-factor systems will by definition co-exist with the world of USB 3.0 devices.
View attachment 103532
To read more about USB 3.0 & other ports you can check: SuperSpeed USB 3.0 FAQ
Hope this article helped you to clear some of your doubts & help you to choose between various ports that help you to transfer data at a faster & your desired rate.
Last edited:
My Computer
At a glance
windows 7 Ultimate x86AMD Athlon x2 QL60 1900Mhz 1 MB L2 cache2GB DDR2nVidia GeForce 9100M G
- Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
- Acer Aspire 4530
- OS
- windows 7 Ultimate x86
- CPU
- AMD Athlon x2 QL60 1900Mhz 1 MB L2 cache
- Motherboard
- Acer Grasmoor
- Memory
- 2GB DDR2
- Graphics Card(s)
- nVidia GeForce 9100M G
- Sound Card
- Onboard
- Monitor(s) Displays
- 14.1"
- Screen Resolution
- 1280*800
- Hard Drives
- 160 GB
- PSU
- Onboard
- Case
- Onboard
- Cooling
- Onboard
- Keyboard
- Standard laptop keyboard
- Mouse
- Touchpad & external iball usb mouse
- Internet Speed
- its slower then SNAIL
..but i didn't felt offended/bad about what DirtyElf said when we create/come up with a new tutorials/articles it might not appeal or easy for every1 to understand...so DirtyElf is right in his position & i would be happy to help him to understand the article again in more simpler words....
