March 2014
Thunderbolt is a hardware interface that allows
for the connection of external peripherals to a
computer. The first version of thunderbolt was
developed by Intel which came into existence
in February 2011. It was commercially
introduced on Apple's 2011 MacBook Pro.
Transforming device interconnectivity,
Thunderbolt technology is a dual protocol I/O
innovation that dramatically increases transfer
performance with bi-directional 10 Gbps
speed, and offers daisy chaining to multiple
devices, providing flexibility and simplicity for
innovative, thin system designs like laptops and
Ultrabooks.
Comparison chart of
thunderbolt interface
with USB 2.0 and USB 3.0
Enhancing performance with innovative design, Thunderbolt technology combines PCI Express and
DisplayPort I/O protocols onto a single highly-efficient metaprotocol. Single cable transmission along with
traffic routing management (supporting daisy chains and hot-plugging devices) and intelligent hardware
controllers like PCIe* deliver off-the-shelf connectivity to nearly any technology imaginable. And DisplayPort
meets industry needs by supporting multiple HD displays and up to eight channels of HD audio.
As the building block to Thunderbolt technology, Thunderbolt controllers contain a high performance cross
bar Thunderbolt protocol switch, a PCI Express switch, and one or more Thunderb