Technical Information
page 24
LaCie DVD Dual Drive
User’s Manual
5.4. USB 2.0 vs. FireWire
Trying to decide which interface to use, USB 2.0 or FireWire, can be a complicated decision. Your decision should be based
on the following:
Computer With USB 2.0 and FireWire Ports
Computer With USB 1.1 and FireWire Ports
Computer With Only USB1.1 Ports
Another alternative is to purchase a FireWire or USB 2.0 host adapter card that you would install into a PCI or PCMCIA slot
on your computer, thereby allowing your computer to take advantage of the performances that FireWire and USB 2.0 have to
offer.
If your computer is equipped with both USB 2.0 and FireWire ports, drive
performance will be relatively similar. The theoretical transfer rates are
480Mb/s for USB 2.0 and 400Mb/s for FireWire. Realistically, the two are
extremely close to each other in terms of performance and speed.
The main reason for choosing one over the other should be hinged on the
existing devices you are already using. For instance, if you are already using
both of your USB 2.0 ports on your computer, you would use the FireWire port
to connect your drive, and vice versa. Avoiding hubs (for USB topology) and
daisy-chains (for FireWire topology) will help improve performance because
your drive will be connected directly to your computer.
If your computer is equipped with a USB 1.1 port and a FireWire port, you will
get noticeably better performance by using the FireWire connection. Even
though your LaCie drive comes with a USB 2.0 cable and interface, by
connecting through the USB 1.1 port, the drive will be limited to USB 1.1
speeds and performance.
If your computer is only equipped with a USB 1.1 port, your decision is fairly
simple: connect via the USB cable provided with your drive. USB 2.0 is
backward compatible and can be used in USB 1.1 ports. Again, you will be
limited to USB 1.1 speeds and performance.
