Comparison chart for USB / Firewire / Thunderbird (2) port specs?

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Level 1

5 points

Comparison chart for USB / Firewire / Thunderbird (2) port specs?

I am looking for a single chart that shows the connector specs: port power, data transfer rates, distance. I have a mix of FW 400, 800, Thunderbird, USB 2, 3 (?)

I will be buying some peripherals (storage, connectors, new display) and I want to buy smart.

Anything you can refer me to? Wikipedia and site search was lacking.

MacBook Air, 13", mid-2011 (OS 10.7.5)

MacBook Pro, 13", mid-2010 (OS 10.8.5)

MacMini 5,1 mid-2011 with 20-inch Apple Cinema Display, A1081 (OS 10.8.5)

Thanks,

N

MacBook Air, Mac OS X (10.7.5)

Posted on Jan 2, 2015 12:27 PM

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Answer 1

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scitlec Author

Level 1

5 points

Jan 4, 2015 11:36 AM in response to scitlec

I found this white paper Driving 4K Workflows with Thunderbolt™ 2. It describes bandwidth standards / limits.

With a little sleuthing on public and Apple sites, I created the following table for rough comparison.

USB 2.0 = 12 Mbps
Firewire 400 = 400 Mbps
Hi-speed USB 2.0 = 480 Mbps
Firewire 800 = 800 Mbps (can support display)
eSATA = 3 Gbps
USB 3.0 = 5 Gbps
Thunderbolt = 10 Gbps (can support display, daisy chaining, introduced on 2011 Macs)
Thunderbolt 2 = 20 Gbps (can support display, daisy chaining, introduced on 2013 Macs)

Thanks for getting me moving in the right direction !

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Answer 2

mns579

Level 4

1,170 points

Jan 2, 2015 12:52 PM in response to scitlec

Perhaps this article will help you weigh options:

http://www.macworld.com/article/2039427/how-fast-is-usb-3-0-really-.html

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Answer 3

scitlec Author

Level 1

5 points

Jan 3, 2015 8:13 PM in response to mns579

Thanks this helps. I have USB3 external storage but know all my hardware has slower USB2 ports.

My workhorses are the MBPro and Mini both with FW800. The Mini has Thunderbolt - I'm going to leverage that port and look for a docking station/ adapter (maybe wait and watch to see what hits the market). http://learn.thunderbolttechnology.com

Thanks for the prompt reply! It got me rethinking about what I need and what I do/don't want to buy.

Is there any technical difference between Thunderbolt 1 and Thunderbolt 2? I don't understand the difference.

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