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IDF brings more Thunderbolt peripherals, cheaper controllers next year

Intel is making the case for Thunderbolt adoption at its Intel Developers …

Seagate's new Thunderbolt drives at IDF.
Seagate's new Thunderbolt drives at IDF.

Intel is offering the first look at next-generation Thunderbolt controllers this week at its Intel Developers Forum in San Francisco. The new controllers, which will ship along with Ivy Bridge in the second quarter of next year, should hopefully entice more PC vendors and device makers to support the nascent high-speed standard. Meanwhile, several vendors have announced new Thunderbolt products, including some interesting dock/hub solutions.

The two current Thunderbolt controllers include the larger Light Ridge chip with four 10Gbps data channels and support for two DisplayPort connections, and the Eagle Ridge chip with two 10Gbps channels and a single DisplayPort connection. The later Eagle Ridge chip comes in a SFF package that is currently used in Apple's MacBook Air, while the larger Light Ridge is used in MacBook Pros, iMacs, and Mac minis.

Intel will also introduce two new Thunderbolt controllers next year, called Cactus Ridge. According to AnandTech, there will be four- and two-channel versions, and both will be available in a 12x12mm package that looks to be roughly about the same size as the SFF Eagle Ridge package used in the MacBook Air. Pricing is expected to be lower with the second-generation controller, which should encourage wider adoption among PC makers as well as storage, display, and peripheral vendors. One popular drive vendor that targets Macs told Ars that it was specifically waiting for second-gen hardware before supporting the new connection standard.

That doesn't mean that more peripheral vendors aren't already getting on board with new Thunderbolt devices. Several companies, including Sonnet, Seagate, Magma, Blackmagic, and Belkin were showcasing recently announced Thunderbolt-compatible products. While high-speed storage is still a popular use for Thunderbolt's 10Gbps bi-directional bandwidth—Seagate is working on both desktop and portable drive options—other interesting solutions are starting to see the light of day.

Port hubs, PCIe chassis, and docks, oh my!

Belkin has announced a new Thunderbolt port hub with three USB ports, a Thunderbolt port, a Firewire 800 port, and a Gigabit Ethernet port. These are essentially the same ports you get with Apple's Thunderbolt Cinema Display, minus the 27" LCD and $999 price.

Blackmagic Design's Intensity Extreme video editing box.
Blackmagic Design's Intensity Extreme video editing box.

For video pros that work outside the edit bay, Blackmagic announced a new, Thunderbolt port-powered video breakout box dubbed Intensity Extreme. Like its UltraStudio 3D, it connects to a Thunderbolt port and allows sucking in or spitting out 10-bit HDMI HD or analog SD video. Unlike the larger device, it is powered solely by a Thunderbolt port's 10W of available power. The Intensity is also limited to HDMI in/out as well as a number of analog connections via a Kraken-like breakout cable.

If you need to use PCIe cards but don't want the bulk or cost of a Mac Pro, Magma has announced a new 3 slot PCIe 2.0 expansion chassis that can connect to the Thunderbolt port of an iMac, Mac mini, MacBook Pro, or MacBook Air. The ExpressBox 3T can connect those Macs to PCIe cards for "video capture, media transcoding, audio processing, and fast data storage," among other things.

Magma ExpressBox 3T
Magma ExpressBox 3T

Finally, Sonnet has a new Echo Express ExpressCard/34 to Thunderbolt adapter it is launching this fall. ExpressCards use a version of the same PCI standard and offer adapters for Gigabit Ethernet, Firewire, Fibre Channel, eSATA, and other ports, as well as high-speed memory card readers, audio and video interfaces, and more. Apple recently dropped the ExpressCard slot from its 15" MacBook Pro, so the only machine it currently offers with a slot is the 17" MacBook Pro. Sonnet's device means all of Apple's Thunderbolt-equipped machines can use ExpressCard adapters.

We also spotted a couple other new Thunderbolt devices we didn't see highlighted at IDF. Sonnet plans to release a product that transforms a Mac mini into a 1U rack server. The RackMac mini Xserver includes a PCIe expansion slot, 75W power supply and fan, Thunderbolt and USB port repeaters, and a front-panel power button. Simply add a PCIe card, slide in a Thunderbolt-equipped Mac mini, and slide the whole thing into your server cabinet. Sonnet suggests a number of ways to configure a RackMac on its website, including metadata controller, RAID file server, or video capture hub.

mLogic mDock for Thunderbolt-equipped MacBook Pros.
mLogic mDock for Thunderbolt-equipped MacBook Pros.

mLogic is rolling out a trio of new Thunderbolt products, including a PCIe expansion chassis and a small Thunderbolt drive that attaches to an iMac or Cinema Display stand. What we find most interesting, however, is its mDock combination storage device and port hub for MacBook Pros. The device plugs in to the left side of a MacBook Pro, replicating all the ports, including MagSafe, USB, FireWire, audio, and mini Display Port on the back. Oddly, it does not have a Thunderbolt port for daisy-chaining. The mDock has either a 500GB or 1TB 2.5" drive for additional storage or Time Machine backups stuffed inside, and has iPad-friendly 10W USB ports on the front.

With new, potentially lower-cost controllers on the way, and vendors rolling out more innovative Thunderbolt products, it seems Thunderbolt may have a fighting chance at becoming a ubiquitous and useful connection standard.

Channel Ars Technica