FireWire vs. USB
The key difference between FireWire and USB is that FireWire is intended for devices working with a lot more data -- things like camcorders, DVD players and digital audio equipment. FireWire and USB share a number of characteristics but differ in some important ways.
Here's a summary:
| Feature | USB
|
FireWire
|
||
| 1.1 | 2.0 | 400 | 800 | |
| Data transfer rate | 12 Mbps | 480 Mbps | 400 Mbps | 800 Mbps |
| Number of devices | 127 | 127 | 63 | 63 |
| Plug and play | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Hot-pluggable | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Isochronous devices | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bus power | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Bus termination required | No | No | No | No |
| Bus type | Serial | Serial | Serial | Serial |
| Cable type | Twisted pair (4 wires: 2 power, 1 twisted-pair set) | Twisted pair (4 wires: 2 power, 1 twisted-pair set) | Twisted pair (6 wires: 2 power, 2 twisted-pair sets) | Twisted pair (8 wires: 2 power, 2 twisted-pair sets, 2 ground) |
| Networkable | Yes - host-based | Yes - host-based | Yes - peer-to-peer | Yes - peer-to-peer |
| Network topology | Hub | Hub | Daisy chain | Daisy chain |
As you can see, the two are a lot alike. Implementing FireWire costs a little more than USB, which led to the adoption of USB as the standard for connecting most peripherals that do not require a high-speed bus.
Speed aside, the big difference between FireWire and USB 2.0 is that USB 2.0 is host-based, meaning that devices must connect to a computer in order to communicate. FireWire is peer-to-peer, meaning that two FireWire cameras can talk to each other without going through a computer.
Now let's get back to the implementation of FireWire. How do you connect?
