Ethernet, Firewire, USB 2, Wireless, FASTEST?

21stHermit

Senior member
Dec 16, 2003
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I currently have 3 - external enclosures (2 - HDs & DVD burner) connected to my laptop via USB 2.0. The speed is okay, but cluttered and noisy.

Because I'll soon switch from a satellite modem to wireless broadband, Thought I'd kill two birds . . by setting up a NAS. Therefore what will be the real world performance of 10/100 ethernet storage vs. my existing USB 2.0 HD array? A wireless router is also an option.

Toms Hardware just published this Bandwith Comparison, scroll down. The table didn't include 10/100.
 
Aug 23, 2000
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Firewire is going to be the fastest. If you want to go with a true NAS then ethernet is the way to go. You can plug a NAS device into the network and anyone with permissions can connect to it. If you go with an external drive like a firewire or usb connection, then the machine that it is attached to must be on too.
 

TMY

Member
Dec 8, 2004
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0
It really dpends on how will you use your NAS. My own experience toward NAS was not as good as I expected. Espeically when I tried to use 3 computers to access my NAS at the same time, it dramatically dropped down the speed. Not only b/c of the hardware, but also the software problem. My NAS was cheap, an ARM OS in it. I guess that's the reason.

If you would like to have a better proformance, FW800 (1394B) is the best.

Try http://www.CaliforniaDrives.com
or http://www.macsales.com