Thinkpads Forum

I'm sorry to have to ask such a basic question, but I want to download video from my Canon camcorder to my X60. The Canon instruction book said to use a DV cable, and I understand that to be the same as a firewire/1394 cable. Elsewhere on this site I've read that the X60 has a 4-pin firewire port. So I think I can buy a cable once I figure out how many pins are on the camera's port -- that doesn't seem too hard for even a neophyte like me.

But I keep reading that people are not just buying cables for downloading, but also CARDS. Adaptec, expresscards, PCMCIA cards, etc. I really need some remedial help -- will I need a card in order to download the video through the firewire port? What does the card do? Does anyone know what sort of card is best to use with an X60?

All help greatly appreciated.

MaryT

The x-series has a 4-pin firewire port (right-hand corner, in front of the 2 USB ports)

You would only need a card if your notebook did NOT have a firewire port. You do not need a card.

Simply obtain the appropriate cable that fits your camera on one end and your notebook on the other (4-pin on the computer side).

The official Canon cable ($44.95):
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1 ... 4_pin.html

Generic Brand cable ($12.95)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1 ... 4_pin.html

There are even cheaper generics on ebay and various other web sites.

Thanks so much. That makes it easy.

Mary

I like monoprice for generic cables:

10 feet, $3.97
http://www.monoprice.com/products/produ ... 1&format=2

Great! Thanks.

M.