iPod Tip #18
All the newer iPods, the iPod video, iPod nano, and iPod Shuffle now support only USB for connection to a computer. Apple has removed the Firewire capability from the entire iPod line up. Most of the iPods used to support both USB 2.0 and Firewire.

The iPods support USB 2.0 which is backward compatible with USB 1.0. The main difference between USB 1.0 and USB 2.0 is speed. USB 1.0 only supported speeds of about 11MB per second. The newer USB 2.0 supports speeds of over 400MB per second, similar to Firewire. When you connect a USB 2.0 device that is capable of high speed to a USB 1.0 port on a computer, the result is “loss of speed” as the device is throttled down to the 11MB USB 1.0 speed.

This maybe a problem for people using older computers for syncing their content to these new iPods as many older computers do not have USB 2.0 ports. USB 2.0 standard has not been around as long as Firewire and that one of the reasons Apple used Firewire on the iPod. Transferring a large iTunes Library to an iPod would be painfully slow using USB 1.0. Example my huge iTunes Library of music and video over 60 GB would transfer over Firewire or USB 2.0 in an hour or so. Over USB 2.0 it may take 24 hours!

Well what do you do if you have an older computer that only has USB 1.0? Well if you have a desktop or most laptops you are in luck. You can purchase PCI or PC slot USB 2.0 cards for your older machine. They are not that expensive, some as cheap as $25.

A PCI slot device is a card that gets installed inside your computer. You will have to open your machine to install the card but this is very easy. Drivers may need to be installed.

The card bus solution is for Windows laptops and older PowerBooks. It simply uses the PC slot on the side of your machine. You just slide it in. Drivers may need to be installed.

These cards are sold by many different manufacturers like Keyspan, Belkin,
Iogear, or Adaptec. What you need to make sure of is that the card you buy will have drivers that will work with your operating system.

Note: Older USB 1.0 hubs may also need to be replaced with USB 2.0 versions if you want the speed of USB 2.0, even if your computer has USB 2.0

Bad News for Some
Now here is the bad news. If you own an older iMac or eMac, older iBook, or any other computer that does not have an empty PCI slot or a card bus slot you are out of luck adding USB 2.0 to your machine. The older iMacs and iBooks had only USB 1.0 and Firewire. The Firewire was the port usually being used for high speed transfers. There are also some lower end Windows PCs that do not have any free PCI slots and never had Firewire.

I have not seen any Firewire to USB 2.0 converters. So it will be slow transfers for you or a new machine. Sorry. If you are only syncing a iPod Shuffle, an iPod nano or a smaller iTunes Library you may be OK with the slower transfer speeds as you are not syncing a lot of content. But filling a 60 GB iPod will be painful!

I wish Apple did not give up on Firewire for the iPod. But I understand that USB is more universal and Apple wants to simplify the product for support, size, and price. As about all new computers have USB 2.0 standard this problem will go away in time as people upgrade to newer hardware.

How can you tell if your computer has USB 2.0?
All current Macs have USB 2.0. iMacs and PowerBooks has had USB 2.0 since September 2003, eMacs added it in April 2004, and PowerMacs added it when they introduced the PowerMac G5.

Mac:
System Profiler will tell you just about every detail of your machine.
Click on the Apple Menu.
Click on About This Mac.
Click More Info…
Highlight USB on left and look for high-speed USB Bus. If you have USB 2.0 you will find the speed listed as “up to 480 Mb/sec (USB 1.0 is 12 Mb/sec)

Windows XP:
Start Menu -> Control Panel ->System -> Hardware tab -> Device Manager

or right + click on My Computer and Hardware tab -> Device Manager

Expand the Universal Serial Bus Controller section. There should be an “Enhanced” USB host controller present.

Windows XP was the first Microsoft OS to support USB 2.0. Windows 98 systems may use a different name, because Hi-Speed USB drivers in these operating systems are not provided directly from Microsoft (Windows ME, 2000 and XP get their drivers through Windows Update).

These drivers are provided by the manufacturer, and may carry the maker’s name (i.e. ADS, Belkin, IOGear, Siig, etc.). There should also be two standard version USB host controllers present as well. They are embedded in the USB chip which routes the differing USB speeds accordingly without user intervention.

Also check to see is any add-on cards are present.

    | Tags: mac tips, usb