eSATA Connectors

buffalocheese writes "Since the introduction of the Serial ATA 1.0a specification in 2002, many manufacturers have introduced PCI and CardBus cards with both internal and external SATA connections. At first these internal and external connectors were completely identical, but later, external connectors started to appear which were still fully compatible with the internal sockets but featured added extra screening for external use. With the introduction of the SATA II specification in mid 2004 a new external SATA connector was defined. These new external (eSATA) connectors are not compatible with the original internal SATA connection. Currently there are add-on cards and drive housings available which feature both types of SATA connection for external use. Gradually the older types will disappear and all new SATA cards will feature the eSATA connector for external drive connections."

Comments

Are they better, or just different?

[jandrese]

Frankly, I'm not a big fan of the current SATA connectors. They tend to fall off at the slightest provocation. I can't work in my case without having to check at the end that all of the SATA connectors are still in place (and at least one of them is usually loose or completely off). Because of this I've been reluctant to switch to SATA on external enclosures. If this new connector can prove itself resistant to falling off, it may in fact be a winner (I would even advocate unifying the connectors again under the new standard). I do like the fact that both the external and internal SATA connectors are currently the same, I just don't like the connector itself. It's rather nice to be able to take an old AT power supply (the kind where the power switch is hardwired to the supply) and plug in an off of the shelf SATA drive to the back of my case in a pinch. Plus, fewer connector types means fewer adapters I'll eventually have to own.

Re:Are they better, or just different?

[Bios_Hakr]

While I don't suffer from the connectivity problem, I have another gripe: SATA connectors stick straight out.

Sure, you can spend a bit more to get a good, angled cable. But the free ones included with hard drives and motherboards are always annoying.

Re:Are they better, or just different?

[jandrese]

I actually have the opposite gripe (but usually about the power connectors), the connector is usually flush with the drive but the power cables come out the top and bottom of it. If you have anything adjascent to your drive (another drive, 8800GTX, etc...) the cables have to be bent at a sharper angle than I prefer. I actually still prefer using the Molex connectors most of the time because they fit snugly, are easy to access (they're on the right hand side of the drive), and the cables stick straight out the back.

Re:Are they better, or just different?

[ChrisA90278]

"...I'm not a big fan of the current SATA connectors. They tend to fall off at the slightest provocation. I can't work in my case without having to check at the end that all of the SATA connectors are still in place..."

This is a poor case design. The best way to use a SATA drive is to have NO CABLE. The drives are designed to they can be pushed onto a socket that is soldered to a printed circuit board. All new design computers should be designed this way, with no cable. Drive push into the computer from the front like SCSI drives with SCA connectors

If the computer uses a cable (for power or data) then it is a retrofit, a hold over from the IDE era. Over time internal cables should just "go away". Now you see way the connector can't be totight or have a positive retention (latch.)