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The Thunderbolt connector has been a life changer since it became popular. USB4 made Thunderbolt essential to the specification, since Intel donated the Thunderbolt 3 standard to USB-IF. However, Intel has continued to develop it and has now teased the next generation of the standard.
Intel showed a preview of the “next generation of Thunderbolt”, which doesn’t have a name yet: it could launch as Thunderbolt 5, as a minor subversion of Thunderbolt 4, or go with another name entirely. The company says that the future specification will be three times more capable than Thunderbolt 4 currently.
As for the specifications, the new Thunderbolt will be able to transfer up to 80 Gbps in both directions. It will also support DisplayPort 2.1, faster PCI Express performance, and will come with a special mode that will allow you to transfer 120Gbps up and 40Gbps down. It will also be compatible with existing Thunderbolt 4 cables.
All of that is present in the latest USB4 version 2.0 spec, which was already known to be twice as fast as Thunderbolt 4, so really the new Thunderbolt just sticks to those specs instead of being something of its own, like it was before.
Intel knows this, but it also knows that USB can be confusing – you they can get a device that is equipped with a USB port capable of doing all the things the new Thunderbolt is capable of, but they are optional specifications, so you’ll need to do some research to find out if your device is equipped with the specific USB specification you want. Lightning, though? Very clear. Just buy a new device equipped with the latest version of Thunderbolt and you’re good to go. In that sense, Thunderbolt now serves as a certification of sorts to ensure you get the best out of your USB port.
Intel will provide the proper branding for this new generation of Thunderbolt and availability information next year.
Source: The Edge
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