# IPod Help? Firewire to USB port suggestions needed **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 4, 2003, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328 "2003-11-04T13:21:03Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a87d85/32.png) [@Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Is_This_All_There_Is)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/1 "2003-11-04T13:21:03Z")
My brother went out and bought a new Ipod last week and kindly sent me his old one. Since most Mac products use a Firewire port, I am at a loss on how to hook it up to my Sony laptop. Do they make an adapter for Firewire to USB port? If so, does anyone know where to get one? If not, I seem to have a $200 walkman on my hands. Thankfully my brother, like me, is a music freak and had already saved 750 songs on the Ipod before sending it to me. Any suggestions on how to hook this up to my laptop will be greatly appreciated. Thanks, ITATI ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/2 "2003-11-04T13:25:11Z")
Are you sure your Sony laptop doesn’t already have a firewire port (I think Sony call it I-link, or something, for reasons best known to themselves). ---
**Author:** ![Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a87d85/32.png) [@Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Is_This_All_There_Is)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/3 "2003-11-04T13:33:04Z")
I was looking for that last night and found that my laptop does not have a Firewire port, instead it has three USB ports. Thanks for the suggestioon though. ITATI ---
**Author:** ![LordVor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/90ced4/32.png) [@LordVor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LordVor)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/4 "2003-11-04T15:25:08Z")
You need something like [this](http://www.firewiremax.com/fir13pcmcica.html) to add firewire support to your laptop. There is no USB-Firewire conversion. And I imagine that Sony calls IEEE 1394 “iLink” for many of the same reasons that Apple calls IEEE 1394 “FireWire”. -lv ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/5 "2003-11-04T15:42:01Z")
**ITATI** , are you aware that there are two types of IEEE 1394 (FireWire/iLink) connectors, 4-pin and 6-pin? As you can see [here](http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/ieee1394_cables.html), the 4-pin is quite a bit smaller. If your laptop has a 4-pin IEEE 1394 connector, you just need to buy an adapter. Should be cheap. If not, you need a PC card IEEE 1394 interface as **LordVor** said. Unfortunately the 4-pin connector cannot supply power to the iPod. If you use a 4-to-6 pin adapter, the iPod needs to run off the built-in battery while you transfer songs from your laptop. It shouldn’t be a big problem though. ---
**Author:** ![edwino](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/35a633/32.png) [@edwino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edwino)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/6 "2003-11-04T15:47:12Z")
If you have a third generation iPod with a Dock adaptor, you can get a USB 2.0 hookup. I am unclear about first- and second-generation ones and USB. If you don’t have FireWire/1394 on your laptop, the best option is a FireWire PCMCIA card. They are around $50-$70 and easily available. [http://cnet.search.com/search?timeout=3&q=1394+pcmcia](http://cnet.search.com/search?timeout=3&q=1394+pcmcia) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/7 "2003-11-04T15:50:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Is This All There Is? \* > \*\*I was looking for that last night and found that my laptop does not have a Firewire port, instead it has three USB ports. Thanks for the suggestioon though. > > ITATI \*\* What model is your laptop? ---
**Author:** ![Mojo\_the\_Monkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eada6e/32.png) [@Mojo\_the\_Monkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mojo_the_Monkey)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/8 "2003-11-04T15:54:53Z")
Which iPod did your brother send you? If your brother gave you one of the current “docking” iPods (with the four round buttons up near the LCD screen), you can buy a USB2 cable from Apple that will connect your iPod to your laptop. If your brother gave you one of the older iPods (with the four buttons arranged around the scrollwheel), you’ll need to get a Firewire PC card adapter for your laptop. Make sure you download iTunes from [Apple.com](http://Apple.com) when you get the connection straightened out. ---
**Author:** ![Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a87d85/32.png) [@Is\_This\_All\_There\_Is](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Is_This_All_There_Is)\ **Post date:** [November 4, 2003, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ipod-help-firewire-to-usb-port-suggestions-needed/211328/9 "2003-11-04T17:18:50Z")
Thanks for all of the tech help! My brother sent me the first generation Ipod, so no docking station is available. It looks like the four pin adapter is going to work and I will soon be in portable digital music heaven! Thanks for all of the dopers who were able to help me solve my problem…or at least one of them! ITATI