WishX Posted July 31, 2002 Share Posted July 31, 2002 PluggedIn: New iPod Highlights Old Dilemma for PCs Tue Jul 30, 5:53 PM ET By Ben Berkowitz http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid..._pluggedin_dc_4 LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Apple Computer Inc. will release a version of its wildly popular iPod digital music player next month aimed at the unwashed masses who rely on Microsoft Corp.'s Windows computers, ending months of anticipation from hopeful enthusiasts. But it brings with it a classic dilemma for the penny-pinching audiophile: Most PC users eager to make the switch will need to get a special add-in card for their computer to link to the new Windows-based iPod MP3 player, boosting the cost of an already pricey system. It's the same issue that faces computer users whenever they buy devices that they want to work with their computer -- just because they work now, will they still work in the future, or they will have to be replaced when something newer and better comes along? Adding this peripheral connector, commonly called FireWire, is a relatively simple matter of installing an add-in card to the PC. But such cards cost about $50, on top of the $299 to $499 a consumer can expect to spend buying a new iPod player. And while FireWire offers the lightning-fast data transfer speeds necessary for swapping big music data files, the newest version of the Universal Serial Bus, or USB, standard, now a feature of virtually every PC made, will offer connections every bit as fast. Moreover, the new USB connectors work seamlessly with old USB devices that are standard on most computer electronics sold in the last three years, meaning the high-speed port is "backwards-compatible" with older and slower products. Where else but the computer industry can a debate over what amounts to simple plugs and cords generate so much passion? And what's an audio junkie to do? As baseball oracle Yogi Berra famously advised, when you come to a fork in the road, take it. That's just what the computer industry expects many high-end users to do -- essentially guaranteeing a future in which both standards share the market, and often even, space on the same machine. Both the FireWire standard (technically known as IEEE 1394) and the new USB 2.0 connector offer data transfer rates in excess of 400 million bits per second, far faster than current USB and other peripheral standards. By way of comparison, a basic uncompressed CD can hold about 650 megabytes of data, and a standard DVD can hold anywhere from 4.7 gigabytes to 17 gigabytes. In other words, just under two seconds to transfer an entire CD and less than half a minute for a full DVD. Of course, real-world conditions are generally not perfect, and actual transfer rates often end up being slower than that theoretical maximum. But both technologies still work well enough to have become widely used for external devices like hard drives, video cameras and MP3 music players. "Nobody really wants to set these two specs against each other," said Dick Davies, spokesman for the 1394 Trade Association, the industry group that represents the standard (and recently licensed the "FireWire" name from Apple). DOWNLOADING IN PERFECT HARMONY FireWire, the older of the two standards, has gained something of a foothold in recent years in computers made by Apple Computer Inc. and Sony Corp. (which calls its modified version of the standard "i.Link.") USB 2.0 didn't start to catch on until earlier this year, when Intel Corp. released chips supporting the standard and Microsoft Corp. released the supporting software for it within the Windows operating system. Intel expects 80 percent of desktop PCs running its chips will have USB 2.0 by year's-end, while the FireWire trade group expects to keep pace. Assuming costs are kept in control, PC manufacturers are as likely as not to have both FireWire and USB 2.0 in their machines, Davies said. "Coexistence is very, very clearly in the consumer's interest," Davies said. For their part, proponents of the USB standard are largely on the same page. "I think they'll co-exist, they are now, they have been," said Jason Ziller, chairman of the USB Implementer's Forum and a technology manager at Intel. It is not uncommon to see both technologies side-by-side on video cameras and external hard drives, among other platforms, though most of those devices, for now, use the older, slower USB 1.1 standards. In cameras in particular, however, FireWire has become dominant; video editing has been the primary reason FireWire has found its way into PCs at all. "Once you start trying to move video, in particular ... USB won't cut it," Davies said. While the USB camp disagrees with that assessment, they agree that both standards, at least in the short-term, is the wave of the PC future. In the end it may be a matter of cost, as buying a new PC with both technologies can be an expensive proposition. Gateway Inc. , one of the first PC manufacturers to support USB 2.0, sells new PCs with both starting at $1,299. On the other hand, the company also sells an expansion card for PCs for $86 that adds both USB 2.0 and FireWire to the computer in one package. Audiophiles rejoice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joseph Zollo Posted July 31, 2002 Share Posted July 31, 2002 USB2.0 owns! A 5 port card would cost about 25$, while a firewire card with 3 ports could cost up to 50$. WishX, you're on a roll! ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sailgreg Posted July 31, 2002 Share Posted July 31, 2002 Originally posted by JZolloXP USB2.0 owns! A 5 port card would cost about 25$, while a firewire card with 3 ports could cost up to 50$. WishX, you're on a roll! ;) Yeah :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivak Posted July 31, 2002 Share Posted July 31, 2002 Originally posted by JZolloXP a firewire card with 3 ports could cost up to 50$. Check again... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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