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eSATA: pretty much dead now?

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80251

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Dec 12, 2020
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I've noticed motherboards and cases don't include eSATA connectors anymore, so is eSATA pretty much dead now thanks to USB 3.0 and USB3.1?
 
Thunder bolt anyone?
 
Basically. I mean you can still get brackets for it but not much point.

Steevo said:
Thunder bolt anyone?
Click to expand...
Different market in terms of price/performance, but yes.
 
R-T-B said:
Basically. I mean you can still get brackets for it but not much point.


Different market in terms of price/performance, but yes.
Click to expand...
How about FireWire.

I member building a small server the the owner demanded Firewire as it was the future, mind you it helped that Intel has just kicked AMD in the nuts but the only reason was backup performance to enclosed HDD and the amount of performance difference at the time was almost nil given the HDD performance and the fact that it still ran through a USB 2 adapter inside the enclosure.

I digress and sorry for the thread hijack, open source is always better
 
Steevo said:
How about FireWire.

I member building a small server the the owner demanded Firewire as it was the future, mind you it helped that Intel has just kicked AMD in the nuts but the only reason was backup performance to enclosed HDD and the amount of performance difference at the time was almost nil given the HDD performance and the fact that it still ran through a USB 2 adapter inside the enclosure.

I digress and sorry for the thread hijack, open source is always better
Click to expand...

I thought firewire lived by the mac and died by the mac, and once sufficiently forgotten replaced with thunderbolt.
 
Totally dead.
totally spies dab GIF


Steevo said:
How about FireWire.

I member building a small server the the owner demanded Firewire as it was the future, mind you it helped that Intel has just kicked AMD in the nuts but the only reason was backup performance to enclosed HDD and the amount of performance difference at the time was almost nil given the HDD performance and the fact that it still ran through a USB 2 adapter inside the enclosure.

I digress and sorry for the thread hijack, open source is always better
Click to expand...
I had a case that came with a front firewire port AND a back bracket with 2 extra ports, but I was never able to use any of them because the mobos didn't had headers for it.

Never had or seen a device using firewire, to me it was like a weird USB port that had no use.
 
Way back when I had a firewire port in a Craptive Labs Soundblaster Audigy(?) I think. It was faster than USB 2.0 and I used to have an external enclosure that supported firewire but eSATA was better still.
 
Been dead for years. Nobody I know used it
 
eSATA is dead. USB have overtaken it in performance and beaten it to death with convenience.

Firewire kind of evolved into Thunderbolt.
 
Calenhad said:
Firewire kind of evolved into Thunderbolt.
Click to expand...
Yep dot on the door there. Just like bluray took over DVD where CD took over floppy etc I could go on lol

Update: heck there are Sata to USB Adapters with and without a pwr Adapter (ones 3.5 HDDs) I use for laptop based 2.5
 
Last edited by a moderator:
My eSATA enclosure for my backup HDD was purchased before USB 3.0 was commonplace and LGA775 was still a viable socket and unlike USB 2.0 it was actually useful for external HDD's. All my post LGA-775 motherboards had eSATA, except my z390, but my old Thermaltake Armor Revo has one eSATA port.
 
Hi,
Yep dead as a door nail as the old saying goes.
 
Steevo said:
Thunder bolt anyone?
Click to expand...
I use Thunderbolt 3 for my displays. It's not bad. Cables are expensive, hardware is expensive, and finding PC motherboards that support two TB3 ports is a little rough, at least the last time I checked. TB3 works real nice if you're using a Mac or Linux with a modern kernel. I can't speak to Windows though.

All in all eSATA and TB3 aren't really comparable as TB3 is far more flexible and ubiquitous compared to eSATA.
 
still using Firewire, my favorite.
 
I thought firewire died out years ago, up to and including the later faster iterations.
 
80251 said:
My eSATA enclosure for my backup HDD was purchased before USB 3.0 was commonplace and LGA775 was still a viable socket and unlike USB 2.0 it was actually useful for external HDD's. All my post LGA-775 motherboards had eSATA, except my z390, but my old Thermaltake Armor Revo has one eSATA port.
Click to expand...
eSATA never gained any real traction, and was essentially abandoned as soon as USB 3.x gained traction. It's easy enough to keep your eSATA accessories in use though: get a simple eSATA to USB 3.0 adapter. I've got an ancient eSATA HDD dock that still works perfectly and is kept in service through an adapter like that. It seems like even those are harder to find than back when I bought mine though, so if you've got useful eSATA devices that you'd like to keep in service I'd recommend getting your hands on an adapter ASAP.

80251 said:
I thought firewire died out years ago, up to and including the later faster iterations.
Click to expand...
It did, the last Mac to have a FW port was ... pre-2012 MBP? I guess pre-trashcan Mac Pros might have kept it around for longer.
 
Valantar said:
eSATA never gained any real traction, and was essentially abandoned as soon as USB 3.x gained traction. It's easy enough to keep your eSATA accessories in use though: get a simple eSATA to USB 3.0 adapter. I've got an ancient eSATA HDD dock that still works perfectly and is kept in service through an adapter like that. It seems like even those are harder to find than back when I bought mine though, so if you've got useful eSATA devices that you'd like to keep in service I'd recommend getting your hands on an adapter ASAP.


It did, the last Mac to have a FW port was ... pre-2012 MBP? I guess pre-trashcan Mac Pros might have kept it around for longer.
Click to expand...
I tried using eSATA back early in my career when I was a sysadmin. It kind of worked, and when I say that I mean it worked well when it did. It was okay at the time, but given the advancements with USB tech, it really just kind of fizzled out. There were a lot of weird issues with hotplug support compared to other protocols, at least in Linux at the time. All in all, it didn't feel like the juice was worth the squeeze. A good USB 3.0 controller was good enough and was common enough. Personally, my tower has eSATA ports. I've never used them in the decade of owning the machine. USB 3.0 or 3.1 on the other hand, I use almost every day.
 
Aquinus said:
I tried using eSATA back early in my career when I was a sysadmin. It kind of worked, and when I say that I mean it worked well when it did. It was okay at the time, but given the advancements with USB tech, it really just kind of fizzled out. There were a lot of weird issues with hotplug support compared to other protocols, at least in Linux at the time. All in all, it didn't feel like the juice was worth the squeeze. A good USB 3.0 controller was good enough and was common enough. Personally, my tower has eSATA ports. I've never used them in the decade of owning the machine. USB 3.0 or 3.1 on the other hand, I use almost every day.
Click to expand...
Yeah, back when I got that dock (and an external 3.5" HDD and a 2.5" enclosure IIRC) I thought it was really cool and had a ton of potential - though IIRC that was before USB 3.0. Once I realized just how horrible eSATA cables were, and how unusable that 2.5" enclosure was due to needing a separate USB power cable, I quickly changed my mind. The 3.5" drive was eventually shucked and moved into my HTPC, the 2.5" enclosure was replaced, but the dock was kept in a drawer in case I needed it, and I'm glad I found those cheap adapters so that I can still use it, even if I'm still forced to deal with eSATA cabling when doing so.
 
Calenhad said:
eSATA is dead. USB have overtaken it in performance and beaten it to death with convenience.
Click to expand...
Cool fact:
eSATA ports accept USB devices too
 
The red spirit said:
Cool fact:
eSATA ports accept USB devices too
Click to expand...
How would that work? ESATA has a unique connector, how could you fit a USB cable of any type into it?

ESATA cables can be problematic, I had one cable that gave me nothing but connection troubles. I also don't like the shape of the cables.

As long as I keep my present case and motherboards continue to have SATA ports I won't have to ditch my powered eSATA external enclosure.
 
80251 said:
How would that work? ESATA has a unique connector, how could you fit a USB cable of any type into it?
Click to expand...
It just fits. I accidentally plugged in USB stick into eSATA once and it worked perfectly fine.
 
Wasn't it dead on arrival? I mean, I've never even seen an eSATA drive, though I remember having those ports on few motherboards I had over a decade ago.

The red spirit said:
It just fits. I accidentally plugged in USB stick into eSATA once and it worked perfectly fine.
Click to expand...
I remember having combo USB/eSATA ports too
 
Lenne said:
Wasn't it dead on arrival? I mean, I've never even seen an eSATA drive, though I remember having those ports on few motherboards I had over a decade ago.


I remember having combo USB/eSATA ports too
Click to expand...
my old HP laptop has esata that works on usb too
 
I have a drive with it myself, never had any issues from it.
Always seemed to do fine but not using that connector anymore since newer boards don't have such a port on them that I've ever seen.
 
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