The first SATA models appeared in 2003.

The SATA I (1.x revision) interface, known as SATA 1.5Gbps, is the first generation of SATA interface clocked at 1.5Gbps. The bandwidth that is supported by the interface can reach 150MB/s.

The SATA II interface (2.x revision), known as SATA 3Gb/s, is a second generation of interface clocked at 3.0 Gb/s. The bandwidth that is supported by the interface can reach 300MB/s.

The SATA III interface (3.x revision) that appeared in 2009, known as SATA 6Gb/s, is a third generation SATA interface clocked at 6.0Gb/s. The bandwidth that is supported by the interface can reach 600MB/s. This interface is retrocompatible with the SATA II 3 Gb/s interface.

The SATA II features offer retrocompatibility to operate on SATA I ports.
The SATA III features provide retrocompatibility to operate on SATA I and II ports.
However, the speed of the disk will be slower due to the speed limitations of the port.

The data is transmitted by 2 pairs of cables (one pair for transmission and one for reception), protected by 3 mass cables.
These seven conductors are grouped on a flat, inflexible tablecloth with 8mm connectors at each end. The length can be up to 1 meter.
The airflow, and therefore the cooling, is improved by this small width.

Native SATA hard drives require a power-electric connector that is part of the standard. The power connector is similar to the data connector, but wider.
It requires 15 pins to provide three power voltages if necessary : 3.3V - 5V and 12V.

It is an adaptation of the SATA protocol for laptops, but also for devices using SSDs.
The mini-SATA connector is smaller than the SATA but offers the same performance. The mini-SATA looks a lot like a mini PCI

PCI

This bus specification is initially due to Intel who started work to 90. Version 1.0 is released June 22, 92 and the 2.0 30 April 93. The first implementation date of 94 on motherboards for processor Intel 80486. From there, the bus PCI quickly replaces the other present bus as the bus ISA.
The revision 2.1, including specifications for the 66 MHz bus, released in 95. Since then, the evolution of the specifications

-Express card, it supports the SATA III standard at 6 Gbps.

External-SATA is an adaptation of the SATA protocol for connecting external devices. Its main features are :

- Emission voltage above SATA (500-600 mV instead of 400-600 mV)
- Reception voltage below SATA (240-600 mV instead of 325-600 mV)
- Identical protocol, so that you can use the same equipment
- Maximum cable length above SATA (2 m instead of 1 m)


Several manufacturers offer Combo sockets in which the eSATA port shares the USB

USB

The USB bus is also said to \Hot pluggable\, that is to say that you can connect and disconnect a USB with the PC on. The system installed on the PC (Windows, linux...) recognizes it immediately. The USB has a very interesting feature : it's the mode standby when not using the device. Also known as \Power conservation\ : Indeed the USB bus gets suspended after 3 ms if it is no longer used. During this mode, the co

2 or USB

USB

The USB bus is also said to \Hot pluggable\, that is to say that you can connect and disconnect a USB with the PC on. The system installed on the PC (Windows, linux...) recognizes it immediately. The USB has a very interesting feature : it's the mode standby when not using the device. Also known as \Power conservation\ : Indeed the USB bus gets suspended after 3 ms if it is no longer used. During this mode, the co

3 socket for space reasons. Since USB

USB

The USB bus is also said to \Hot pluggable\, that is to say that you can connect and disconnect a USB with the PC on. The system installed on the PC (Windows, linux...) recognizes it immediately. The USB has a very interesting feature : it's the mode standby when not using the device. Also known as \Power conservation\ : Indeed the USB bus gets suspended after 3 ms if it is no longer used. During this mode, the co

3.0, the eSATA port is competitive because USB

USB

The USB bus is also said to \Hot pluggable\, that is to say that you can connect and disconnect a USB with the PC on. The system installed on the PC (Windows, linux...) recognizes it immediately. The USB has a very interesting feature : it's the mode standby when not using the device. Also known as \Power conservation\ : Indeed the USB bus gets suspended after 3 ms if it is no longer used. During this mode, the co

offers comparable speeds and better ergonomics. eSATA can reach about 750 MB/s, and USB

USB

The USB bus is also said to \Hot pluggable\, that is to say that you can connect and disconnect a USB with the PC on. The system installed on the PC (Windows, linux...) recognizes it immediately. The USB has a very interesting feature : it's the mode standby when not using the device. Also known as \Power conservation\ : Indeed the USB bus gets suspended after 3 ms if it is no longer used. During this mode, the co

3,600 MB/s.

The micro-SATA interface is available for 1.8\ hard drives, and is mainly aimed at ultraportable PCs and tablets.

The micro-SATA connector looks like the standard SATA connector in smaller, the power connector is more compact (9 pins instead of 15), it does not offer the voltage of 12 V and is limited to the 3.3 V and 5 V, moreover it has a deception located between the pins 7 and 8.

The theoretical transfer rates are 230 Mbps in reading and 180 MB/s in writing.