What's the point of eSATA?

[Octopuss]

I can't wrap my head around this. What's the point? The cable can be connected more times, is longer, more sturdy.... but what's the point when you still need to somehow get additional power cable?

 

[jboydgolfer]

I can't wrap my head around this. What's the point? The cable can be connected more times, is longer, more sturdy.... but what's the point when you still need to somehow get additional power cable?

Some Esata ports provide power over the data port sufficient enough to run the drive that's plugged in without an additional source

 

[Octopuss]

That would be something called eSATAp which I haven't heard about until today.

Also, I've noticed that when I connect a regular SATA power connector from the PSU to a disk and try to add eSATA to it, it won't fit, because there's not enough clearance. Just WTF is this? What's the purpose?

 

[jboydgolfer]

, it won't fit, because there's not enough clearance. Just WTF is this? What's the purpose?

i think u need one of these....

 

[PLAfiller]

It was Dead on Arrival as well as mSata....

 

[R-T-B]

It was Dead on Arrival as well as mSata....

No, that distinction is reserved for SATA Express.

 

[rtwjunkie]

eSATA is faster than USB 3.0 and more reliable, so until the most recent USB advances, I always preferred eSATA for external HDD.

And on older systems like my main one, I still use eSATA for my external storage.

 

[GreiverBlade]

eSATA is faster than USB 3.0 and more reliable, so until the most recent USB advances, I always preferred eSATA for external HDD.

And on older systems like my main one, I still use eSATA for my external storage.

finally! thanks @rtwjunkie

i used a ext enclosure that had eSATA and USB2.0 and i would use eSATA over USB anytime, albeit that the enclosure needed a ext powerbrick but it was a 3.5" type.

 

[jboydgolfer]

I agree with the @Octopuss, Esata is/Was a PITA in regards to power. Ive ordered a few cables over the years for use with Esata, and I dont think i Ever didnt have a problem with it either not providing enough power, or power at all....its an ambiguous tech, that at its best was useful to those who could implement it becasue they had the know how. its not like USB where any layman would interact with it. If you ask 10 standard people about what that Esata plug is on the back of theyre PC, the response you will likely get is.... "Oh its called "esata"?" or "oh thats what its used for"?

IMO, its the Data transfer equivalent to a Kensington lock.
something many in the PC field are aware of, but never really had to use.
or something many casual users looked at and wondered..."WTF is that?"

 

[rtwjunkie]

I agree with the @Octopuss, Esata is/Was a PITA in regards to power. Ive ordered a few cables over the years for use with Esata, and I dont think i Ever didnt have a problem with it either not providing enough power, or power at all....its an ambiguous tech, that at its best was useful to those who could implement it becasue they had the know how. its not like USB where any layman would interact with it. If you ask 10 standard people about what that Esata plug is on the back of theyre PC, the response you will likely get is.... "Oh its called "esata"?" or "oh thats what its used for"?

Yeah, you're right, most people don't know what it's for. Its major advantage is reliability though, followed closely by high speeds connection.

The protocol was always meant to be used to be a data connection to separately powered devices like external hard drives. Any attempts to run power thru there were dead on arrival.

For my next build, the protocol is so good I have an eSATA PCIexpress add in card I purchased so I can continue using it. Can't beat the reliability/speed combo for long term (as long as its separately powered).

 

[Beastie]

I used an eSATA external HDD caddy on my previous build, at the time it was much faster than USB.

Now we have USB 3.1 it is kind of outdated but was very useful at the time.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

eSATA isn't meant to plug HDDs/SSDs directly into computers. It's meant to plug SATA enclosures to computers.

eSATA has less overhead and is generally a better protocol for mass storage. I think on the only external protocol that has less overhead is Thunderbolt (I think they could theoretically make NVMe work over Thunderbolt).

eSATA, in terms of overhead, is better than all versions of USB.

I suspect SATA rev 4 will be authored soon to increase SATA and SAS bandwidth. If it does not, SATA maybe on the path to legacy.

IMO, its the Data transfer equivalent to a Kensington lock.

It's not uncommon for stores and other public places to use the Kensington lock to make it more difficult to steal the product. In a home/private business setting, they aren't used because theft isn't a major concern.

 

[Bill_Bright]

eSATA is exactly what it stands for - "external" serial ATA and I will take it over USB any day of the week. If you have an external drive and it supports eSATA, you are much more likely to NOT experience connectivity issues if you connect via eSATA. Power through the cable is just something extra, IMO.

It's meant to plug SATA enclosures to computers.

I use it for my docking station. Works great!

 

[cornemuse]

I have 2 comps with esata ports I regularly use, esata plugged into a (for int use) drive bay plus a 5-12 v psu (a brick) originally for a usb hdd box. Have the power supply on a switch, turn it on only when needed, , , works just fine, , ,

-c-

 

[natr0n]

I used an esata to sata adapter on my last motherboard and had a free/extra sata slot basically.

So thats how I see esata now as free/extra port.

 

[cdawall]

Remember that when eSATA came out USB3.0 didn't exist, USB 2.0 is worthless for any large data transfer. USB3.0 can saturate most mechanical drives, hence why it is popular and you have seen eSATA kinda fall off. Overhead or not USB3.0 is plenty for any average user and is simple. Simple sells.

 

[Sasqui]

That would be something called eSATAp which I haven't heard about until today.

Also, I've noticed that when I connect a regular SATA power connector from the PSU to a disk and try to add eSATA to it, it won't fit, because there's not enough clearance. Just WTF is this? What's the purpose?

I think the OP's point is this: Why not just use a standard SATA connector externally? No new cables needed. It's definitely superior to USB in any case

So, the answer is the capability of providing power over eSATA? I've never seen or heard of any devices that do that, all ones I've had take external power... though the cable pic above with the SATA power adapters intrigues me

 

[francisw19]

Yea same as some of the others above, I used to have a few eSATA external drives for backup. The alternatives at the time were USB 2.0 and Firewire which were much slower.

But then USB 3.0 came along and that was pretty much the end of the line for eSATA. It was as fast for mechanical drives, less fussy in my experience, and used a standard USB-A connector.

 

[TRWOV]

I can't wrap my head around this. What's the point? The cable can be connected more times, is longer, more sturdy.... but what's the point when you still need to somehow get additional power cable?

It's used to connect to HDD docks. The dock should come with it's own power cable although there are also PCI brackets that allow you to route power ports to the back of your PC if so desired. My Orico HDD dock is connected thru eSATA to my PC.

eSATAp is basically a port that combines USB 2.0 and eSATA so it's only useful for 2.5" drives. I suppose there could be some out there with USB 3.0, though.

 

[rtwjunkie]

But then USB 3.0 came along and that was pretty much the end of the line for eSATA.

Why would you knowingly choose a slower speed, which USB 3.0 is? Both need external power for external drives. I will take an eSATA connection any day of the week.

 

[Sasqui]

eSATAp is basically a port that combines USB 2.0 and eSATA so it's only useful for 2.5" drives. I suppose there could be some out there with USB 3.0, though.

Huh... would that be something compatible with a standard eSATA connector on the back of a motherboard? If not, then I agree with the OP... eSATA should have just been a standard SATA connector. What's the point of doing otherwise?

 

[slozomby]

Why would you knowingly choose a slower speed, which USB 3.0 is? Both need external power for external drives. I will take an eSATA connection any day of the week.

far easier to find a usb3 external device than one that supports esata and usb3. everything i own has some form of usb connector. most don't have an esata connector.

yes esata is faster. but if I'm dedicating storage to a computer its generally internal or in a hotswap bay. where i like esata for is offsite backups as its significantly quicker to get the duplicate backup copied to.

 

[alucasa]

mSATA was handy in Haswell era. Some mobo came with mSATA which I used with mSATA SSD as an OS drive. It's exactly like SATA M.2.

Some older laptops used mSATA as well.

Now eSATA never saw any sort of popularity. It's like thunderbolt but had even lower popularity, I believe.

 

[Bill_Bright]

Overhead or not USB3.0 is plenty for any average user and is simple. Simple sells.

When it works!

But forums are deluged with posters complaining their systems no longer see their USB connected devices. USB (pick your version) is woefully inconsistent - at least with external storage devices (keyboards and mice tend to work fine).

USB 2.0 was supposed to fix connectivity issues with USB 1.x. It didn't. USB 3.0 was supposed to fix connectivity issues with USB 2.0. It didn't. Same with 3.1.

To be fair, it probably is not fair to blame the USB protocols. Rather, it is probably the fault of the makers of cheap USB devices/interfaces who fail to ensure their devices comply with those protocols. But still, end results for the users are the same - USB for external storage devices is flakey!

 

[cdawall]

When it works!

But forums are deluged with posters complaining their systems no longer see their USB connected devices. USB (pick your version) is woefully inconsistent - at least with external storage devices (keyboards and mice tend to work fine).

USB 2.0 was supposed to fix connectivity issues with USB 1.x. It didn't. USB 3.0 was supposed to fix connectivity issues with USB 2.0. It didn't. Same with 3.1.

To be fair, it probably is not fair to blame the USB protocols. Rather, it is probably the fault of the makers of cheap USB devices/interfaces who fail to ensure their devices comply with those protocols. But still, end results for the users are the same - USB for external storage devices is flakey!

It is really rare I see a USB storage device that isn't dead and wont connect. Yes the controllers die, but that has nothing to do with it being USB, it's an interface card, interface cards die.