To clear a few things up, when I said upload my data at "DSL speeds", I was referring to my upload speed with my internet service provider. It would take around 80 days to UPLOAD 300 gigabytes of data at DSL's upload speed of 384 kilobits/second (.047 megabytes/second).

Backing up your data on an external hard drive should take a fraction of the time. I'm not sure if I'd trust that article about USB 3.0 vs. eSATA. Comparing a USB 3.0 hardware card against an eSATA port on a motherboard isn't exactly fair. We don't if this eSATA was using the motherboard's SATA controller or some JMicron eSATA port. (There's a difference even on the motherboard). Those 3 gigabit/sec (SATA2 limit) and 5 gigabit/sec (USB 3.0 Limit) are meaningless since those speeds are never actually reached. Another thing he didn't take into account is SATA3 (6 gigabit/sec limit), which is used on 90% SSDs nowadays. IMO, the differences are negligble. Most hard drives average around 90-110 megabytes/second which is less than 1 gigabit (125 Megabytes/second). Each has its benefits, but transfer rate is equal on both sides. Even a CAT6 Gigabit Ethernet cable could max out these drives.

Fun Stuff:
1 byte = 8 bits
1 Gigabit = .125 Gigabyte = 125 Megabytes
SATA 2 (aka SATA 3.0 GBPS) = 3 Gigabits/Second = 375 Megabytes/Second
SATA 3 (aka SATA 6.0 GBPS) = 6 Gigabits/Second = 750 Megabytes/second
USB 3.0 = 5 Gigabits/Second = 625 Megabytes/second
USB 2.0 = 480 Megabits/second = 60 Megabytes/Second
CAT 6/5e Gigabit Ethernet = 1 Gigabits/ Second = 125 Megabytes/second

With the exception of USB 2.0, all of the interfaces have more than enough bandwith to support the transfer speed of a hard drive.

Real World HDD Speeds = 100 Megabytes/second
Real World USB 2.0 Speeds = 25-35 Megabytes/second

Sandeep Luthra | LTMedical.net
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