My DV camcorder connects to my MacBook via FireWire 400, and I use it pretty frequently. I’d like to get a new MacBook Pro for college, but I want to hang on to my camcorder too, and the new Pro models only have FireWire 800. Is that port backward compatible, so I can still plug my camcorder in?

FireWire 800 is backward compatible to FireWire 400, but the ports and connectors are different, so you need an adapter. Luckily they’re cheap and plentiful. Sonnet Technologies sells its FireWire 400 to 800 Adapter for $14.95 (www.sonnettech.com), which is very compact and lets you use the same cable you already use for your camcorder.

LaCie's FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 Flat Cable is bright orange (the yellow Flat Cable is for eSATA and the blue is USB).

If you need a new cable anyway, lots of companies offer cables with a FireWire 400 (or 6-pin) connector on one end and a FireWire 800 (9-pin) connector on the other. LaCie sells a FireWire 400 to FireWire 800 Flat Cable for $12.99 (www.lacie.com), and its flatness makes it easy to coil for storage and to label so it won’t get lost or pilfered. LaCie includes 24 adhesive labels with each cable, and Flat Cables for USB and eSATA devices are available too.