How to Buy a New Firewire Cable for a Camcorder

FireWire allows you to download stuff from your camcorder to a computer for storage or editing. Visual files get pretty big, so the faster you can pump the pictures out, the better. FireWire cooks along at speeds up to 400Mbits per second. Perfect for the casual user or amateur movie maker. Here are some tips to buy a new FireWire cable for your camcorder.

Instructions

1. Check online or at local retailers for Firewire cables. Review the customer feedback and merchant feedback, and also compare prices and shipping times.

2. Make sure the cable pins line up. Camcorders usually require a 4-pin connector. Computers usually need a 6-pin connector. Get a proper cable that allows you to connect between the devices you want.

3. Keep the length short. A short cord loses as little of the signal as possible. Longer cords are available out there but you might need something to boost the signal strength along the way.

4. Look for quality shielding. RF interference and electronic noise play havoc with signal quality. Why spend a bunch of money on good equipment, and then get skimpy when it comes to the cables?

5. Choose gold plated connectors if possible. Gold doesn't corrode and is one of the best commonly available signal conductors out there.

6. Pick a cord that has low memory. Memory, in this context, is the tendency for a cable to coil and twist even if it is strung out for use.

7. Purchase the Firewire cable online or at your local retailer and save the packaging and receipts. This will make it easy if you have to return it for some reason.

Tips & Warnings

• Disconnect the FireWire from both the camcorder and whatever device you are hooking into before coiling it up. When you leave the cable connected at one end, you can twist the internal wiring of the cable as you wind it up which can eventually ruin the wires.

• FireWire is known by many names, iLink and mLAN for example. Look for the IEEE 1394 designation to make sure you're getting the right thing.

• You get what you pay for, just like everything else in life. A cheap cord might be just fine, and then it might be made of inferior materials. Buyer beware.

• Although FireWire is supposed to be hot swappable, you may wish to turn off your camcorder and computer when connecting and disconnecting just to be on the safe side.