DV Cable

A DV cable is most commonly known by the name FireWire but is also known as iLink or IEEE1394. What is it for? Well, in short, a DV cable enables the rapid transfer of information from a camcorder to a computer, a digital video cassette recorder or even another camcorder.

Apple Computer Inc. developed FireWire which, under the patent number IEEE1394, was then taken up by the electronics industry to become the standard device for transfer. Just for identification purposes, iLink is the name given by Sony to their version of the same cable.

It was in 1995 that FireWire became the industry standard since when it has been developed to achieve high speeds when it comes to transfer currently able to do so at 800Mbps. Of course further development is under way and it’s muted that the speed will reach over 3Gbps, which is really quite staggering.

The actual DV cable is likely to be equipped with a 4 pin plug at one end, for connecting to your camcorder, and a 6 pin plug at the other end to connect to your computer. Most modern computers are built with this facility and of course all camcorders have the required socket.

What Does It All Mean To The Layman?

Quite a lot actually. Many of us today have a camcorder and filming particular occasions and events, or recording the development of our children say, well, this can be something really special. The use of a FireWire cable not only makes it possible for us to then watch the recordings on our desktop or laptop, it simplifies the entire procedure. And It’s fast!

Maybe you’d like to share the delights of your family or special event with the rest of the world, now you can, simply by uploading a version of the video, now stored on your computer, and sending it to YouTube for example.

And of course, if you have a commercial website then the advantages of being able to do all this assumes great significance. Whilst the written word cannot be replaced, promoting your product or service through the medium of video is very definitely the way to go.

Such is the speed and convenience of FireWire transfer that you could very quickly produce and distribute large numbers of videos on an ongoing basis. Such activity should result in a desirable outcome, backlinks, visitors and sales.

The point is you can do all this even if you’re not tech savvy. So, for layman and geek alike, the early and continued development of this technology has proved to be immensely important. It has very definitely increased the pleasure and enjoyment factor no end, irrespective of your skills level behind the camera.

What’s In Store?

At the moment the best way to transfer video footage from camcorder to computer and vice versa is with a DV cable or by FireWire. However, the next step in the advancement computers and of faster transfer rates for video may be just around the corner. One has to wonder what it will be called. Perhaps they will name it, FireWire 2 or how about USB 3.0?

Let’ s hope it continues to be easy to understand and use!

A frustrating experience…

If you work with video chances are you own a DV cable. I remember the first time I used my camcorder. I was so excited to see the results of my first home movie. Of course viewing it on the tiny camera screen was not so much fun. After I found the tv connection cable I was able to enjoy watching it in a bigger screen. The only problem was, the video I had made was incredibly long and boring. What was I thinking using up so much tape? I soon realized that I had to do some editing.

The instruction manual said that I needed a DV Cable in order to edit my video. Apparently you connect your camcorder to your computer by way of a dv cable. You are then able to transfer all of your video to your computer. The only problem was I didn’t have a DV cable. You wound think that the manufacturer would supply you with one when you get the camera. I soon realized that the only solution to the problem was to go out and buy one. First though, I went online to get a little more information.

Apparently FireWire is another name for a dv cable. It was invented by Apple and presented to the computer industry as the new IEEE 1394 serial bus interface standard. To be honest, all that technical information was of no real use to me. I just wanted to be able to get my home video onto my computer so I could edit it and maybe upload it to YouTube. Fast forward to the next day when I returned from the store with my new DV cable. Finally I could be done with this, or so I thought. To my horror, I could not find where to plug it into my PC. I found USB ports, but no firewire input. After doing some research I found that some computers do not have this type of connection, so it was back to the electronics shop. What I was looking for now was a FireWire card that I could install in my computer.

I was able to find one for pretty cheap. Installing it was also not as hard as I thought it would be. After I put my computer back together I the loaded the appropriate device driver. Once I restarted the computer I was ready to put my Dv cable to good use. I connected the small end to my camcorder and next attached the larger end to my new card. The computer instantly recognized my camera and I was soon prompted to transfer my video. Wow what a relief, It took 2 days to put all the pieces together.

It’s hard to believe sometimes that it takes so much effort to do something that seems so simple like making a video. Yesterday I finished editing my movie and uploaded it to YouTube. That part of it was easy. It didn’t take long at all before they processed it. I was then able to send a link to my friends. Overall I’m pretty happy with the outcome. The next video I shoot will be a lot easier to work with because I now have a very fast DV cable as well as a FireWire card.

Do you really need a DV Cable?
I’ll try to answer that and also tell you where you can find one if needed. All computers come with USB ports, but not all of them have a dv cable connection. An IEEE1394 FireWire port is where you plug in your DV cable. A FireWire port is rectangular, but one of the short sides is rounded. It sort of looks like a tall skinny house with a pointy roof.

A DV Cable is mainly used for transferring video from your camera or camcorder to your PC or Mac. Another way to transfer video to you computer is via USB. However USB is much slower and some manufacturers don’t allow you the option of using one over the other.

Even if your camcorder came with a USB option, you still might be better off using a dv cable for working with your video. This is because video files can be enormous. Transferring your data to your computer using a USB cable could take forever. When I first bought a DV Cable for my computer, I was shocked at the price. It is possible however to find one online for much cheaper.

What if my computer doesn’t have FireWire?
If you don’t have a FireWire port on your computer you can always add one, then you can use a dv cable. If you have a desktop computer you will want to look for a FireWire card. They are fairly inexpensive- under $20.00 I believe. An add on card for a laptop may cost you a little more. If you are not familiar with working on computers, I suggest you take yours to a shop to have it installed for you.

If all you need is a DV cable, the best place to get one is probably Amazon. I’ve listed a few here that are specificaly for connecting your camcorder to your computer. It can beconfusing because there are many other types availible. Some are for conecting 2 computers together via dv cable. Some are not even used for camcorders at all. Just rememer that what you want is a DV Cable with 6 pins on one end and 4 pins on the other. Use the photo at the top of this website as a reference.