The 1394 Trade Association recently announced a new
specification, known as S3200, that will quadruple the speed of FireWire to 3.2Gbps. While slower than USB 3.0, which is expected to top
out at 4.8Gbps, this new specification builds upon the IEEE 1394b standard and uses the same cables and connectors already deployed for
FireWire 800 products.
The new electrical specification, known as S3200, builds upon the IEEE 1394b standard, preserving
all the advantages of FireWire while offering a major and unprecedented boost in performance. The new speed uses the cables and
connectors already deployed for FireWire 800 products, making the transition forward easy and convenient for 1394 product vendors and
their customers. Because the 1394 arbitration, data, and service protocols were not modified for S3200, silicon and software vendors can
deploy the faster speed FireWire quickly and with confidence that it will deliver its full potential performance. The S3200 specification
is expected to be ratified by early February.
FireWire 800 products deployed since 2003 have proven that IEEE 1394b delivers
outstanding performance. Operating without polling, without idle times, and without continuous software management, FireWire 800
efficiently delivers more than 97 percent of its bit rate as payload -- not overhead. FireWire 800 hard drives today can easily move over
90 megabytes per second. S3200 preserves 100 percent of the 1394b design efficiency and will deliver extremely high payload speeds
reaching nearly 400 megabytes per second. Other interface technologies struggle to deliver half their advertised bit rate to the user,
even under optimal conditions.
While there is no word on when S3200 devices will hit the market, the 1394 Trade
Association expects to ratify the specification in February. If you'd like to read more, the entire press release can be found here.
