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SATA Naming Guidelines

The following naming guidelines are provided to help the industry correctly identify SATA specifications, technologies, and products. A soon-to-be-ratified specification from the Serial ATA International Organization (SATA-IO) will double the current maximum data transfer speed for the popular Serial ATA storage interface from three to six gigabits per second (6Gb/s).

What to Call the Specification: Please call this new specification by its proper name: "Serial ATA International Organization: Serial ATA Revision 3.0". After using the full proper name for the first reference, it would be appropriate to refer to it thereafter more briefly as "SATA Revision 3.0" or "SATA 6Gb/s." It also would be appropriate to refer to the latest specification as being the "third generation of SATA technology. What to Call the Products: For marketing and product naming purposes, the technology itself is to be referred to as "SATA 6Gb/s." A product using this standard should be called the "SATA 6Gb/s [product name]." For an accurate description of SATA capabilities and the official guidelines to SATA product naming, please see the table below for more information.

*IMPORTANT: Do note use the terms "SATA III" or "SATA 3.0," which will cause confusion. For product naming purposes, do not use either "Third Generation" or "Gen3" in the product name. Use "SATA 6Gb/s" instead. Please note that the references embedded within the new specification to "Gen3" are technical specification naming conventions only and should not be used for marketing and product naming purposes.

Dispelling the Confusion

The term "Third Generation SATA technology" refers to the SATA 6Gb/s data transfer rate. Don't confuse "Gen 3" with a 3Gb/s Transfer rate. "Gen 2" was associated with 3Gb/s and often confused with the misnomer "SATA II." Do not use the terms "SATA II" or "SATA III," which are incorrect and have no meaning. In the past, the term "SATA II" sometimes was mistakenly used as a moniker for the SATA 3Gb/s data transfer rate, causeing great confusion with customers because, quite simply, it's a misnomer.

The first step toward a better understanding of SATA is to know that SATA II is not the brand name for the SATA 3Gb/s data transfer rate, but the name of the organization formed to author the SATA specifications. The group has since changed names, to the Serial ATA International Organization, or SATA-IO.

The 3Gb/s capability is just one of many defined by the former SATA II commitee, but because it is among the most prominant features, 3Gb/s has become synonymous with SATA II. Hence, the source of the confusion.

For an accurate description of Serial ATA Capabilities and the official guideline to SATA product naming, please see the details below.