Intel To Release Thunderbolt Development Kits This Quarter, Thunderbolt I/O Expected To Thrive

That fancy Thunderbolt I/O port that’s gracing your new 2011 MacBook Pro (and probably upcoming iMacs) is about to get much more useful. Intel has just announced it will be releasing development kits for its Thunderbolt I/O Technology, enabling a wide range of manufacturers to make devices that will work with it.

Thunderbolt I/O is a brand new bi-directional 10Gbps data transfer interface that allows for super high speeds at high accuracy, as well as the ability to daisy chain a number of devices through just one output.

With Intel’s recent announcement, I expect that Thunderbolt technology will not only succeed – it will thrive. We have reported on Matrox announcing devices with this technology, as well as Canon expressing interest, and Lacie (and other data hardware manufacturers) is known to be working on a ThunderBolt device as well. With such a great technology, and all these big players backing it up, something awesome is bound to result.

Check out the below video of Thunderbolt in action:

Let us know your thoughts, expectations, and predictions regarding Thunderbolt and the new devices that will start shipping in the coming months – sound off in the comments!

{AppleInsider, Engadget]

J. Glenn Künzler

Glenn is Managing Editor at MacTrast, and has been using a Mac since he bought his first MacBook Pro in 2006. He lives in a small town in Utah, enjoys bacon more than you can possibly imagine, and is severely addicted to pie.