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New SATA cables - Latch on!

by Steve Kerrison on 1 September 2005, 00:00

Tags: Akasa

Quick Link: HEXUS.net/qabqi

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AKASAOne of the complaints users had about SATA when it first launched, was the connectors. Yes, the new cable design was great for airflow and plugging the connectors in was a doddle. However, they did feel a little insecure, fragile, and left you wondering whether you'd plugged them in properly.

With a new generation of SATA products surfacing, a solution to this has been devised. New SATA sockets and connectors feature a latching system. Plug in the cable and a metallic latch clicks into place, securing the cable. To remove the cable, you press the latch against the connector and pull it out. It's simple, having used them when I reviewed XFX's Revo 64 I can say they're definitely better than the previous effort.

Better still is that these cables are backwards compatible. AKASA, manufacturer of all things glowing, has introduced a new line up of SATA cables featuring the new latching system. They sent us some pics featuring the ASUS A8N SLI Deluxe motherboard, which has both the new and old types of socket, so that you can see their cables in action.

A8N SLI SATA

Left: old style SATA. Right: New style SATA.

New SATA

Click in the cable... it won't be going anywhere.

Old SATA

The not so secure old style connection. A new style cable will still fit, but it won't click into place.

For more information on SATA, both original and the new enhancements, check out our HEXUS.guide to SATA vs. PATA.



HEXUS Forums :: 21 Comments

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What a simple idea but a great one nonetheless. I'm still using IDE but that is just so much neater and secure.
I dunno, my SATA cables (I think they are second gen ones. The ones DFI ships) stay on just fine, in fact, they old on too well sometimes.
I've made my SATA RAID array critical by knocking out (well not completely, but enough to break the connection) a connector. I think they're handy.
Good idea - i've knocked them out once in a while. Incidentally does the SATA cable itself supply power because i could of sworn my array was still running with one drive's molex out..
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