What is a SATA cable? Types, features, and comparison complete guide

Share your love

SATA cable

The SATA technology is a connector interface and it is useful primarily for computer bus connections in storage applications. This application is also useful as a cable to connect mass storage devices (such as hard drives, optical drives, and solid-state memory drives) to host bus adapters such as motherboards. When something moves incorrect, everything begins to get worse quickly. You need the best SATA cables to interconnect your hardware to keep all your information flowing.

The only purpose of these cables is to capture information and carry it to the destination. The hardware parts that require these components are hard drives, DVD units, CD players, and many more.

SATA Connector

There are two standard wafer-style SATA connectors, male and female, with three options: data only, power only, and data + power. The wafer type connectors are wide because the pins are arranged in a row, but they can fit into small devices such as SSDs. The SATA cable is ideal for internal connectors. It is also of high quality as compared to other competing brands. The internal connector is inside the computer case. The header is usually incorporated in the substrate or incorporated in the electronic device. The friction of the pin fixes the socket connector. So, the header pins are 0.025 inches wide and arranged at 0.10 inches intervals. Power connectors supply and distribute power to devices inside the computer, which requires superior quality. However, the connector usually uses the friction of the connector body. The SATA cable is the perfect solution for all these internal connectors.

SATA Power Connector

The SATA power connector has 15 pins and provides DC+3.3V, DC+5V, and DC+12V. SATA power cables are often paired with a 4-pin Morex LP4 connector that connects to the computer’s power supply. Moreover, undersized typical SATA power connectors have the 6-pin, +5 VDC “Slimline” connector first presented with SATA release 2.6, and the 9-pin, +3.3 VDC and +5 VDC micro connectors for 1.8″ (46 mm) hard drives.

What are the main benefits of SATA Cable?

Faster with UASP

Features the latest SATA III 6Gbps internal and USB 3.0 5Gbps external for fast data transfer up to 5Gbps. The SATA 3 USB adapter, with its high-speed transfer protocol UASP (USB Attached SCSI Protocol) and TRIM, allows you to take full advantage of SSD drives, enabling 70% faster performance than traditional HDD drives.

Easy Operation

Plug and play all devices without drivers. Supports hot-swap. You do not require to turn off your laptop to substitute the hard disk.

3.5″ hard disks require power.

Hot-swap

Hot swapping refers to the ability to insert or remove a device without powering down the computer. The SATA connectors and devices employ a two-step mating process to avoid arc discharges and power losses affecting other loads. The SATA power connector’s 4 and 12 ground pins are long enough to be in first contact when mating. Similarly, the SATA device’s power pins are longer than 3, 7, and 13 for the same reason. Hot-swap is a feature of the SATA controller.

Latching connector

SATA cables typically use latched connectors to ensure reliable connectivity and prevent accidental disconnection.

Angle connector

Because the space in the PC case is small, it is important to angle the connectors when choosing cables. If you install an HDD or SSD horizontally, the connector at the left angle sends the cable along the top of the drive. The connector at the right angle sends the cable down.

METHOD FOR MOUNTING SATA CABLE FOR HDD APPLICATION

Installing a SATA cable is not a complicated task, but it is important to complete the installation safely and accurately. The specific installation method depends on the intended use of the SATA cable.

In addition, it is noteworthy that if you need to replace the HDD, you can remove the SATA cable from the motherboard. With this method, after successfully installing the new HDD, only the SATA cable connector on the HDD body must be removed and replaced.

Different types of SATA Cable

SATA cables come in various types, including lengths, connector types, and products that vary by brand. The best SATA cable will ultimately depend on your setup and individual requirements, so it’s important to know what is available before you buy a SATA cable.

There are two types of SATA cable connectors: power and data. The simplest method to differentiate between the two classes is that the data is two smaller (usually seven pins), while the power demand is greater (usually 15 pins).

There are several other types of SATA cables. Here are the types of SATA.

Micro SATA: 

The micro SATA connector primarily uses 1.8″ (46mm) hard drives.

SATA bracket: 

The dual-port eSATA expansion bracket allows you to make your computer’s output compatible with SATA drives.

Low profile SATA: 

An ultra-thin SATA cable with a low profile connector that is useful for enhanced GPU cards

SATA Power :

A SATA interface power cable connects the power adapters, extension cables, and splitters for SATA and data cables.

SATA bridge:

 It is a SATA interface that acts as a bridge between devices. It can link ATA instruments to SATA motherboards or PCI cards.

SATA Express:

New specifications to support both SATA and PCI Express (PCIe) storage devices.

The SATA cable has replaced the PATA (parallel ATA) cable and is now the IDE standard for connecting storage devices in computer systems. SATA is much faster and more reliable than similar PATA devices.

What is Serial ATA (SATA cable) power supplies?

The Serial ATA (SATA) power connector is a bit larger than the SATA data connector with 15 pins. The main advantage of the SATA power connector that is different from a 4-pin power connector is the presence of a pin that provides 3.3V power.

Serial ATA (SATA)

Serial ATA (SATA) connectors are used as interfaces to connect host bus adapters to mass storage devices and optical drives. This connector was designed to replace older connectors such as 34-pin and 40-pin. This connection type is designed to allow much faster communication than was possible with the legacy connection style. This connection is sometimes referred to as the “L” of the SATA because of the shape of the connector.

SATA cable VS PATA cable

PATA stands for Parallel Advanced Technology Attachment and is a bus interface standard for connecting hard disks to a computer system. 

The first difference between the two cables is the data transfer rate. SATA cable has a faster data transfer speed than PATA, allowing applications, images and large files to load quickly. PATA supports multitasking during data transfer as it gets slower than SATA cable.

Final Thoughts: SATA cable

If you build or boost your pc, recover data from an elder hard disk, or join an exterior solid-state drive to your PC, you may require a SATA cable to finish the job. Moreover, a SATA cable combines the storage device to the computer’s motherboard (“mobo”) or a SATA regulator. Some motherboards come with two SATA lines, but not all.

Read also, How to invest in Metaverse?

Malik Asad
Malik Asad

Malik Asad is a professional content writer and has been writing content from 2019 on variety of topics like Blockchain, News, Technology gadgets, Cryptocurrency, and many more.

Articles: 175

One comment

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *