Intel VP: We believe that Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 are complimentary

“Intel went on the record [Wednesday] saying that its silicon will support USB 3.0 in 2012 and urged developers to target both USB and its new ‘Thunderbolt’ technology,” Brooke Crothers reports for CNET. “‘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,’ said Kirk Skaugen, a vice president at the Intel Architecture Group, speaking at Intel’s developer conference in Beijing.”

Skaugen was careful to point out that developers of peripheral devices like printers, scanners, and cameras should target both USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt–the latter a new connection technology that combines high-speed data transfer and high-definition video on a single cable and runs at a peak speed of 10 gigabits per second. Apple uses Thunderbolt connectors on its MacBook Pro laptops,” “‘We encourage all of you working on peripherals around the PC to engage on both USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt,’ Skaugen said.”

Read more in the full article here.

[Thanks to MacDailyNews Reader “Fred Mertz” for the heads up.]

15 Comments

  1. Wrong use of “complimentary” in the headline. It should be “complementary.” As it’s written now, it means Thunderbolt and USB 3.0 are free of charge.

    1. Yes. A perfect example why correct spelling and grammar should not only be concerns of us grammar gurus and nitpickers. The purpose of language is to communicate effectively- let’s get it right. And consistent!

      (My mother was an English teacher; my niece reads and writes mostly on Facebook. I haven’t understood her since “goo goo- ga ga.” The grammar, not the song.)

    1. There will be 1-to-1 cables. Vendors will also release I/O hubs that connect to your computer via Thunderbolt. These hubs will come in a variety of flavors, some likely including multiple protocols such as Firewire400/800 and USB 2.0/3.0.

      Does Thunderbolt spell the end for eSATA? I have external HDDs with an eSATA port, but I have never used it.

  2. Had Apple not demanded such a high royalty on the original FireWire… That standard would be at FireWire 3200 before Thunderbold ever came out…

    Thunderbold has of course surpassed Firewire (and what would have been FireWire 3200)… But we waited forever for FireWire 800 to replace 400… USB 2 should be all that is needed for dumb peripherals…

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