What is FireWire 400/IEEE 1394?
A serial bus used to connect external computer and consumer electronic devices to computers and consumer electronic consoles. IEEE (the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers) is the name of the engineering corps that developed this standard.
What does IEEE 1394 mean?
“1394” is an abbreviation of IEEE 1394, the name given to this high-performance serial bus. The 1394 refers to the 1,394th standard that the IEEE has produced.
What is the relationship between IEEE 1394, FireWire, iLink, and DV?
These four names all refer to the same interface:
What can the FireWire interface be used for?
FireWire is a great interface for consumer electronics such as optical disc recorders, external hard drives, and video devices due to its extremely large bandwidth. FireWire offers greater stability with video due to its support for asynchronous and isochronous data transfers. It is also a point-to-point interface, meaning that a FireWire device can transmit data to another FireWire device without having to go through a computer. This form of linking peripherals to a computer is commonly referred to as “daisy chaining”. To daisy chain FireWire peripherals, connect one device (Peripheral A) directly to the computer then connect another FireWire device (Peripheral B) to the first device (Peripheral A). FireWire 400 supports a daisy chain of up to 63 devices on the same bus, with 16 devices on one branch.
Does my computer have a FireWire port?
Macs and PCs can have FireWire or i-Link interfaces. If your computer does not include a FireWire interface, an expansion card can be purchased from your LaCie reseller or from the LaCie website Accessories.
Can I connect the LaCie Blu-ray XL to a FireWire 800 port?
Yes. It can be connected to a FireWire 800 port using the included FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 cable. Please note that transfer rates will not exceed FireWire 400.
For more information about FireWire, please visit our Technology Page.
What are the benefits of the USB interface?
There are multiple types of USB: SuperSpeed USB 3.0, Hi-Speed USB 2.0, and USB 1.1. Can I use any type of USB device with any USB interface?
Yes. Please note that adding slower USB types to faster USB interfaces does not enhance performance. For example, a USB 1.1 device will not go faster than 12Mb/s when attached to a USB 2.0 port.
For more information about USB, please visit our Technology Page.
If your computer supports both interfaces, LaCie recommends using FireWire. With support for asynchronous and isochronous data transfers and easy daisy chaining, FireWire can be a more efficient interface for peripherals such as the LaCie d2 Blu-ray XL.
Data transfers are the flow of data (i.e. files, folders, etc.) from storage to computer RAM or between storage devices. To avoid delays in data transfers or “hanging”, it is best to wait for a transfer to finish before launching other applications on the same FireWire or USB port. Another reason for a data hang could be FireWire or USB controllers that do not conform to OHCI (Open Host Controller Interface) standards.
If you experience a lag when transferring your data: