SATA is a computer bus interface specification. It is an acronym for Serial Advanced Technology Attachment. eSATA is a computer bus interface specification. It stands for External Serial Advanced Technology Attachment.SATA and eSATA are that latter has a higher data transfer rate.
The SATA interface is a serial-attached SCSI interface. It is the successor to Parallel ATA (PATA). The SATA interface was designed to replace the older PATA interfaces, often limited to one or two devices per controller. SATA provides speed up to 6 Gbit/s.
The eSATA interface was created to provide a high-speed external connection for hard drives. It provides up to 3 Gbit/s, twice as fast as USB 2.0 and four times faster than FireWire 400.
SATA stands for Serial ATA, a computer bus interface that connects host bus adapters to mass storage devices. SATA has been in use since 2003. eSATA stands for External SATA, a type of computer bus interface that connects host bus adapters to external mass storage devices. eSATA has been in use since 2004.
SATA Vs. eSATA
SATA is the acronym for Serial ATA, or SATA, a computer bus interface and it connects storage devices for example as solid-state drives and hard disk drives to a motherboard. eSATA is an external version of Serial ATA. It is designed to connect computers and external storage devices such as hard disk drives. Unlike SATA, it does not have a native command set.
SATA is a serial interface that enables storage devices to a computer. It is an acronym for Serial ATA, which means it is a faster version of the ATA interface (parallel). eSATA is an external version of SATA with increased performance and bandwidth.
The main difference is that eSATA is an external drive and power supply. The SATA cable can be connected to a PC or laptop via an internal card reader, but with eSATA, you need to connect it externally with a power supply.
SATA interface standard is used in most modern PCs and laptops. It is also the most common interface for storage devices like hard drives, solid-state drives, and optical drives. eSATA can connect external storage devices like hard disks or SSDs to a computer through USB or FireWire cables. SATA has higher data transfer rates than eSATA. Still, eSATA provides more power to the device it is connected to, benefiting bus-powered devices that don’t require their power supply.
What is SATA?
SATA was developed in the late 1990s to improve SCSI, which was the previous standard for complex drive interfaces. SATA is an interfacing standard that allows computers to connect directly to storage devices such as hard drives and optical drives. SATA is much faster than SCSI and provides greater data throughput.
SATA connections are made through ribbon cables that wind around the outside of the drive. The cable rests against a metal plate that’s attached to the motherboard. Windows automatically detects and installs the necessary drivers when you connect an IDE (also known as PATA) or SATA hard drive to your computer.
One significant advantage of SATA is speed: SATA runs faster than SCSI, so your computer can access data from storage devices more quickly. SATA also supports greater capacity than SCSI drives: A 2TB drive on a SATA port can hold twice the information as a 1TB drive on a standard SCSI port.
One disadvantage is that it’s not as common as SCSI on older computers. Another potential downside is that some devices, such as external hard drives and SSDs, may require special drivers to work with a SATA port. Both Mac and PC platforms support SATA drives.
What is eSATA?
eSATA is a standard for external hard drives that uses the same buses as your computer’s internal hard drive. This means you can connect an eSATA hard drive to your computer and use it just like any other internal drive.
eSATA connections are made through a USB connection. The hard drive rests on a small square card plugs into your computer’s USB port. Windows automatically detects and installs the necessary drivers when you connect an eSATA hard drive to your computer.
One advantage of eSATA is that it’s swift: Because eSATA connections run at the same speeds as USB 3.0 ports, data transfers between an eSATA hard drive and your computer are almost instant. Another benefit is that eSATA drives are compatible with a wider variety of computers than traditional external hard drives.
One disadvantage is that you may need to buy a separate card for your hard drive. Another potential downside is that eSATA drives are not standard as traditional external hard drives. Both Mac and PC platforms support eSATA drives.
Difference Between SATA and eSATA
- SATA cables are usually thicker than eSATA cables.
- SATA can support more devices per port than eSATA.
- SATA controllers are usually more potent than eSATA controllers.
- SATA drives can be connected using a standard A/V cable, while eSATA drives require a special cable designed for the connection.
- SATA drives can be reformatted to work with eSATA ports, while eSATA drives cannot be reformatted to work with SATA ports.
- SATA drives can usually be formatted using a Windows-based utility, while eSATA drives require a unique utility designed for formatting.
- SATA is a connection between devices and the computer, while eSATA connects devices and an external hard drive or SSD.
- SATA and eSATA are external storage standards. SATA is used on internal hard drives and some laptops, while eSATA is more commonly used for external storage (although USB-C is replacing it).
Conclusion
SATA and eSATA are two different external storage standards with advantages and disadvantages. While SATA is more commonly used on internal hard drives and some laptops and is usually thicker than eSATA cables, it can support more devices per port and is used on internal hard drives and some laptops. eSATA connects devices and an external hard drive or SSD, which is becoming more popular as USB-C becomes the standard for connecting devices to computers.