Confused Over eSata

[meblumen]

I'm planning on purchasing a new laptop for my audio rig. In addition to the internal HD to run the OS and programs, I need an external HD to write the audio data being recorded. Most of the options I'm considering have both firewire ports and express card slots. My question is this, is Firewire 400 or 800 going to an external HD faster than an esata express card going to an external HD or vice versa?

[Force Flow]

eSATA is by far the fastest transfer method, however, definitely not the most common interface from a portability/compatibility standpoint. Firewire 800 is the next best choice in terms of speed and compatability. And lastly, Firewire 400 is about the same speed as USB 2.0, and is pretty much the de-facto standard of devices that require firewire (drives, cameras, etc)

Here's a chart of speeds:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA#eSATA_in_comparison_to_other_external_buses

The ones you're asking about (firewire 400, firewire 800, and eSATA are listed)

[meblumen]

I checked newegg, unless I'm mistaken, it doesn't look like its that hard to find an eSata ExpressCard and a compatable hard drive..am I missing something? BTW, thanks for info and the link.

[glc]

We have had this asked before, and I believe the member chose to go with an eSATA Express Card. I don't think we have heard back yet on how it worked out.

I'd recommend an Apricorn eSATA housing and a drive of your choice if you decide to go this way.