Intel already has a powerful ally for its Thunderbolt stall with Apple, but so far the support for the new high-speed interface is relatively thin. Thunderbolt promises speeds up to 10 gigabit per second and can carry loads of signals, but to get better move on the product assortment Intel is starting to ship development kits to partners.
Intel announced that is has actively starting to support the eco system around Thunderbolt by simply sending out development kits to the companies that are interested in the technology. When announcing Thunderbolt Intel made it very clear that it will also support Superspeed USB 3.0, with its maximal capacity of 6 gigabit per second.
“Intel is going to support USB 3.0 in the 2012 client platform. We’re going to support Thunderbolt capability. We believe they’re complementary.” He added, “We encourage all of you working on peripherals around the PC to engage on both USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt.” – Kirk Skaugen, VP of Intel Architecture Group at Intel Developer Conference in Beijing
Even if AMD is first to have a USB 3.0 chipset, Intel has confirmed that the technology will be found with the next mid-range platform Maho Bay, slated for H1 of 2012. Maho Bay will consist of the new Intel 7 series chipsets and 22nm Ivy Bridge processors.
Thunderbolt port on Apple MacBook Pro
Intel decided to detail the product areas it considers best suited for USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt, where it mentioned printers scanners and cameras. Even if it wasn’t mentioned external storage is one of the most important areas for high-speed interfaces.
Thunderbolt was developed under the name Light Peak and is intended to use optical signals for data transfers. The first Thunderbolt products are using copper wiring though, so that it can also draw power, which isn’t possible with optical wires.
