Intel’s 2014 Thunderbolt Controller Detailed

Intel is planning a lot to keep their Thunderbolt technology competitive against USB in 2014. VR-Zone has obtained documents that show that Intel is planning to bring features that are found in USB and Ethernet to the Thunderbolt platform. These new features include the ability to charge devices and transfer files between computers using a straight connection.

BDW-TBT-LP2

There is not that much new with this controller then what Intel is currently offering. It can handle a 20 Gb/s Thunderbolt link by using two 10 Gb/s channels, supports DisplayPort 1.2 from the systems graphics device and connects to the rest of the system by way of PCI-Express 2.0 x2. The big change is the TDP of the chip, which is only 1.5W and 1mW respectively. The slides show that Thunderbolt will be able to deliver up to 53W over a standard tethered cable via a PCs regular Thunderbolt port. That is enough power to run a hard drive dock with six 3.5-inch hard drives or a small (<24-inch) flat screen monitor.

TBT-P2P

The other big feature is the ability for users to set up peer-to-peer 20 Gb/s connections between two PCs. While this is no Ethernet replacement, you can see it being useful in some cases like content creation. Expect Intel to make some Thunderbolt announcements in January at CES 2014.

Source: VR-Zone | News Archive

About Author