What is FireWire? Types and comparison between 6 pin and 9 pin FireWire

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Firewire is developed by apple computer. It is an I/O interface which is known as IEEEE 1394.

Its another names are Sony i.Link and Yamha mLAN. However, its technical name is IEEE and we use the most commonly used Apple’s Firewire name.

Firewire have two primary versions named FireWire 400 and FireWire 800. FireWire 400 is also known as IEEE 1394a and FireWire 800 is known as 1394b.

FireWire is an IEEE 1394 standard for serial bus communications over short distances between devices.

It is most commonly used in video and audio production, as well as computer audio and video systems.

Types of FireWire

Here we will discuss only about 2 types of FireWire which are given bellow;

1. FireWire 400 (6 pin FireWire);

2. FireWire 800 (9 pin FireWire);

Comparison between 6 pin FireWire and 9 pin FireWire is given bellow.

Comparison between FireWire 400 and 800

Comparison between 6 pin and 9 pin FireWire is given bellow. These are also known as FireWire 400 and FireWire 800 respectively.

firewire 400, ieee 1394a, 6 pin firewire

6 pin FireWire

firewire 800, ieee 1394b, 9 pin firewire

9 pin FireWire

  • Firewire 400 uses 6 pin connectors where FireWire 800 uses 9 pin connectors.

  • FireWire 400 gives a data transfer rate of 400 Mbps where FireWire 800 gives 800 Mbps.

  • FireWire 400 is known as IEEE 1394a and FireWire 800 known as IEEE 1394b.

  • 6 pin connectors are rectangular with beveled corners where 9 pin connectors are rectangle with square corners.

  • IEEE 1394a introduced on Macintosh computers and both IEEE 1394a and 1394b support daisy charging.

FireWire provides a high-speed interface to connect such computer peripherals where it need faster data transfer rate.

Normally we use FireWire to connect external hard drive, video cameras or other audio device where a faster speed is needed.

FireWire is use to boot a computer in Macintosh computers. It works on target disk mode which allows the hard drive to show an external drive on another computer.

FireWire is faster than USB 2.0 because it provides speed up to 800 Mbps where USB 2.0 gives up to 480 Mbps.

Moreover, FireWire 400 also gives more speed to read and write data than USB 2.0. FireWire was the popular choice among audio and video professionals when it was not popular as USB.

FireWire (IEEE 1394) is a local serial bus. This Bus is inaugurated by FireWire and originally invented by Apple and Texas Instrument.

1394 is a six-wire cable where there have two pair Clock and Data line as well as one pair power line.

It gives more performance than serial SCSI standard and Ultra-wide SCSI. It is not expensive and easy to connect. 63 devices can connect with an IEEE.

We can easily connect Disk, CD-ROM, Optical Disk, DVD ( Digital Video Disk), Digital camera, Tape Drive and other high speed peripheral by 1394.

Use of FireWire

FireWire is a high-speed serial bus interface standard for connecting digital devices.

FireWire is used for connecting devices such as digital cameras, camcorders, and hard drives.

Check out the latest price of FireWire on Amazon from here.

Final thoughts

FireWire is an important interface for connecting devices in a computer.

It is used to transfer data between devices, including between your computer and digital cameras, camcorders, and audio gear.

It’s also used to connect hard drives and other storage devices.

However, I hope you have got a clear idea about firewire now.

But if you have any doubt still now, then don’t forget to throw your query in the comment section bellow.

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