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USB-EIDE-FIREWIRE-whats the difference with cd-burners?

Josep

eyerun4phun
Just like the title says, theres like 3 different kinds that i know of, and there is an obvious price difference with them. So whats the difference between them with cd-burners? are they faster or what? I'm looking to update from my 8x cd-rw right now;)
 

Eagle

aka Alshain
Moderator
Actually, there is 4 types USB, EIDE, FIREWIRE, SCSI (maybe more, but I don't think so). These are the types of data transfer used. Most computers don't come with SCSI hardware. You would have to buy a SCSI card to control it, but it is slightly faster than IDE. Firewire is used mostly on MAC laptops, I think they can be used on PCs but I really don't know a lot about them. USB is the best if you want an external drive you can move from computer to computer, most newer computers today have USB ports on the back of your system already, it has the fastest data transfer rate, but I don't believe they make internal USB drives. The most typical kind is EIDE (IDE for short) which is most likely what your hard drive uses to communicate already and is already built into your motherboard if its a computer above a 386. This is the best choice for non-removable internal drives.

In short, go with USB for an external drive or IDE for an internal drive. SCSI and Firewire will require you buy extra controller cards to use them.
 

Eagle

aka Alshain
Moderator
AS for whether or not you want external or internal, its entirely up to you.

Internal
Disadvantages
-Moderate Installation Difficulty
-Takes a 5.25" drive bay
-Assuming its IDE, it uses a hard drive space (you usually have 4 and nobody has 4 hard drives so its really not a problem)
-Fairly permanent in one machine

Advantages
-Cheap
-Fixed in place (no write errors due to drive movement)

External
Disadvatages
-Expensive
-Must be careful to keep drive still while writing
-Hangs off the back of the computer like a gamepad, keyboard, printer, mouse, etc.

Advantages
-Assuming its USB, Easy Installation
-Requires no drive bay or IDE hard drive slot.
-Portable, just unplug it from the PC and plug it into your laptop or friends computer
 

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