FireWire cable is super-fast, super-flexible cable that runs on the FireWire standard (also known as IEEE 1394) and is most often used on Macintosh computers. Although FireWire and FireWire cables lack the market share of their rival USB, they have become the standard for streaming digital video and other high bandwidth applications
When buying FireWire cables, consider the following:
1. The relationship between FireWire and Apple.
2. FireWire cable connectors and FireWire adapters.
3. FireWire PCI cards for adding a FireWire port to a PC.
4. FireWire cables and digital video media.
5. FireWire cables in industrial applications.
Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done
FireWire cables and Apple
Apple championed the development of the FireWire (or IEEE 1394) standard for much the same reasons the USB standard was developed: to simplify cables, increase data transfer speeds and allow for hotswapping devices. FireWire had the added advantages of greater speed plus peer-to-peer connectivity (you can connect a scanner to a printer without a computer) but it was significantly more expensive to implement than USB. Today Macintosh computers and some PCs have FireWire ports as well as USB ports.
I recommend: If you want to add a FireWire port to your PC computer,
BuyExtras.com has a wide selection of FireWire PCI cards.
Apple supplies AV FireWire cable for color iPods to provide composite video and audio output for viewing photo slideshows with music on a TV. If you have an older iPod that does not have a click wheel, you have to connect with either FireWire cable or, if you don’t have a FireWire port, the iPod dock connector to FireWire cables and USB 2.0 cables available at the
Apple Store.
Cable Wholesale offers a lifetime warranty on its FireWire cables.
QVS offers translucent LED FireWire cables with several different color lights to indicate that the FireWire port is working and to help locate cables in the dark.
FireWire cable connectors and FireWire adapters
The original FireWire 400 standard had a 6-pin connector. A less powerful 4-pin version was made for laptop use (although Apple's laptops use the 6-pin version). In 2003, Apple introduced the much faster FireWire 800 with 9-pins connectors. While the 800 standard is backward compatible with the 400 standard, the connectors are different and require FireWire adapters to work together.
I recommend: M2cables offers 9-pin to 6-pin FireWire cables in three lengths to connect legacy devices with the new 800 FireWire ports.
TigerDirect.com sources from many cable manufacturers to offer a wide range of FireWire cables and FireWire adapters.
CablesonDemand.com offers 6-pin to 4-pin FireWire adapters.
PriceGrabber.com offers a retractable FireWire cable.
FireWire cables in industrial applications
Some manufacturers specialize in FireWire cables that exceed the IEEE standard for use in industrial applications.
I recommend: Northwire makes industrial-grade FireWire cables as well as custom FireWire cables for specific applications.
Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide
- Use FireWire adapters to connect your FireWire 400 devices with computers or peripherals that use the new, faster FireWire 800 standard.
- Keep FireWire cables, FireWire adapters and USB hubs on hand for complete device connectivity.
- Use FireWire repeaters and extenders to increase the distance between devices.
- Use FireWire ports and FireWire cables to transfer camcorder data to the computer.
- Use a FireWire hub to add more FireWire ports to your computer.
- FireWire devices and peripherals can be connected together directly without a host computer (peer-to-peer computing).
The official source of FireWire Cables is the Firewire Cables page at Business.com
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