Yesterday I shared some of the many problems I had building my new computer in the Building A Computer Is Normally Easy But Not Always post. One very small detail I didn’t talk about was some new cables so I’ll cover them today. Yes, I’ll provide links to buy them on Amazon and I could get a penny or two if you buy with those links. No, I didn’t get free cables.

My first goal with the new computer was simply getting it to work and then installing Windows on the Samsung 970 EVO Plus 1TB SSD. As it installed in the NVMe slot, no cables are required. Getting that step completed was a huge relief. At that point I wanted to connect the various other SATA drives. This included an SSD drive, a mechanical hard drive and two optical drives. That meant I needed four cables and I realized I only had three. Somewhere one had gotten misplaced.

Before I went on a mad search for another, I realized the current cables were probably more than ten years old. While they may be fine, the cost of new cables was minimal and they would be brand new. So I ordered two three packs of cables. First, the Cable Matters 3-Pack Straight SATA III 6.0 Gbps SATA Cable 3-pack. It features straight connectors on both ends. Then I got the Cable Matters 3-Pack 90 Degree Right Angle SATA III 6.0 Gbps SATA Cable 3-pack. This set features one end at a 90-degree angle and is easier for the optical drive connections. I only needed two of each so now I have a new spare as well as the old cables as an emergency backup.

While these new cables played a very small part in the new computer, I know they allow the fastest possible data transfer and should serve me well for years to come.