Next Generation Thunderbolt To Be Unveiled Soon

Intel is set to unveil the next generation Thunderbolt during a press event scheduled during the Computex trade show next month. The invitation to the press event released by the computing giant comes after the Thunderbolt was excluded from the 12-inch MacBook of Apple.

The technology facilitates the connection between computers and peripherals, such as screen displays and hard drives. It is capable of transferring data at speeds faster than USB technology. Thunderbolt ports are used in Macs as well as a number of Windows-powered PCs.

The next generation Thunderbolt, which is version 2.0, is capable of transferring data at a rate two times faster than the USB 3.1.

While the company did not reveal any other details about its latest Thunderbolt connector, it has been developing a new chipset featuring more integrated components. The products supported by the new connector may also be announced by the company during its launch on June 1.

Intel To Unveil Next Generation Thunderbolt - image credit: newsroom.intel.com

Intel has also been working on increasing the speed of data transfer for the Thunderbolt connector. It indicated that the use of silicon photonics technology may allow data transfer rates to reach 50Gbps. However, the company said the speed of the latest version of the Thunderbolt connector is suitable enough for most applications currently available in the market. It added that it will release faster connectors when it becomes necessary.

This requirement may come when 8K video is released into the market, which is supported by the Windows 10 OS of Microsoft. While 8K televisions yet to arrive in the market, a number of consumer electronics manufacturers have thrown their support for the development of SuperMHL, a new connector technology using USB cables.

The exclusion of Thunderbolt from the 12-inch MacBook and cost of Thunderbolt peripherals resulted to questions on the future of the technology. A good number of PC manufacturers have opted to avoid using the technology due to the high cost in bringing it to Windows-powered devices.

Aside from the next generation Thunderbolt, the Computex event of Intel also includes USB Type-C 3.1. Type-C offers better versatility compared to Thunderbolt since it allows the recharging of laptops aside from being used as a connector to numerous peripherals. The identical appearance of both ends facilitates its connection to different devices.

However, Intel insisted that the next generation Thunderbolt technology compliments USB. The standard setting organization, USB-IF, indicated that Thunderbolt protocol can be used on optical wires as well as USB 3.1 copper wires.

Posted by George Daniels on Tuesday May 19 2015, 9:52 AM EDT. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Technology. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0