From The Naked PC issue #5.04...

FireWire Meets USB 2.0

by Al Gordon
February 14, 2002

So here we are having gotten used to USB and starting to think about adopting FireWire when along comes USB 2.0. Now what?

How about having your cake and eating it, too?

Adaptec, the leader in SCSI technology, has unveiled an extensive lineup of both FireWire and USB 2.0 products, headlined by the DuoConnect combo PCI card for desktop computers ($116). The combo card provides three USB 2.0 ports and two for FireWire:
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/504/tr.cgi?al1

Adaptec also makes desktop cards that are solely USB 2.0 or FireWire. But unless you have two PCI slots to spare I strongly recommend the combo card because you are likely to need support for both technologies in the months ahead.

Since notebook cards are hot-swappable, there isn't the same need for a dual card. Nor is there enough real estate on a credit card-sized card to provide that many ports. Adaptec's solutions here include the three-port FireConnect for Notebooks ($90):
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/504/tr.cgi?al2

There's a two-port USB2connect for Notebooks:
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/504/tr.cgi?al3

For pictures and more links, please go to my supplemental page:
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/504/tr.cgi?al4

The reason both come into play is that the standards have been adopted by different market segments. FireWire support was built into Windows XP, and Microsoft is due to release an XP update for USB 2.0.

FireWire originally was Apple's trademark for what is officially known as "IEEE 1394," a designation so catchy that is no wonder FireWire became the generic term. It provides data transfers of up to 400 mbps (megabits per second) and is becoming the interface of choice for digital video and multimedia components such as digital video recorders and cameras.

USB 2.0 (also called "Hi-Speed USB 2.0") supports data transfers of up to 480 mbps, compared with 12 mbps on current USB version 1.1 devices. It is being adopted in the PC world for data storage related devices, such as external hard drives and tape drives. 2.0 is backwards compatible, so your older USB devices will still connect (although, of course, only at 1.1 speeds). Happily, attaching an older, slower peripheral to a USB 2.0 hub does not slow down the faster components. The two versions will co-exist and run at their own speeds.

Adaptec has taken advantage of this in designing some slick USB hubs (so you can attach more peripherals to your card) with up to seven ports.

Both FireWire and USB 2.0 allow for plug-and-play, hot-swappable device connections. Given that they can exceed the data transfer rates of older generation SCSI and are simpler to configure, FireWire and USB 2.0 are likely to eventually displace SCSI as the leading technology for high-bandwidth external peripherals.

As it happens, Adaptec recently has released new drivers and a firmware (the software embedded on the device) upgrade for its USBXchange adapter ($75):
http://www.TheNakedPC.com/t/504/tr.cgi?al5

A sleek cable with a USB connector on one end and SCSI connectors on the other, USBXchange will allow you to plug low-bandwidth legacy SCSI peripherals--scanners and Zip drives, for instance-- into a USB port. The target is the class of external SCSI devices made before Windows fully supported USB and, thus, SCSI was the best available option at the time.

In its original incarnation, USBXchange only supported USB 1.0. It now gives full 1.1 performance, which is more than adequate. My old SCSI Zip 250 is running like a charm. The adapter can give your legacy peripherals plug-and-play convenience, and help you save SCSI for devices that really need them.

You can reach Al Gordon at:
mailto:al@TheNakedPC.com

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