 I happened to be picking up some bits and pieces from my local computer store this week and Steve, the owner, asked me if I had seen this (pictured left) before.
Just in from the Far East, it’s a combined 4-port USB2 and 4-port Firewire (IEEE1394) hub. Amazingly, it’s priced a smidgen under £32 + VAT. Note - this is a hub, only, which connects to existing parent IEEE1394 and USB1.1 or USB2.0 interfaces.
Firewire, also known as iLink, is a very fast data transfer protocol designed for multimedia use. It’s ideal for transferring audiovisual data as it maintains a steady transfer rate. Its speed of up to 400Mbits/second (50MB/sec) makes it excellent for copying digital photo archives. It’s now well supported in high end digital camcorders and an increasing number of notebook PCs, especially Sony Vaio and Apple products.
Practically all new PCs, scanners, printers and digital cameras have USB ports and these offer a theoretical maximum transfer rate of 12Mbits/second. USB2, however is 40 time faster at 480Mbits/second. USB2 has crept onto the market this summer with little fanfare as there are still few peripherals that can take advantage of its extra speed. However, USB2 ports are backwards compatible with USB Mark 1 devices.
There has been a long running debate over whether USB or Firewire will survive in the long term. With a product like the 1394/USB2 combo, you don’t need to worry any more. At just £32 +VAT, it also seems like a great bargain.
We saw this product at InT@Comp, in Hemel Hempstead. Their Web site is at www.intacomp.com
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