PC Supporter

Source: PC Advisor Magazine [Aug 11]

This ultra-fast data-transfer technology will transfer information at up to 50Gbps.

Intel is working on a data-transfer service that will be five times faster than its Thunderbolt technology.

Thunderbolt was officially declared in February. Its dual-channel technology can transfer data between computers and daisy-chained peripherals at speeds of up to 10 gigabits per second (Gbps).

This allow an HD movie to be transferred in less than 30 seconds, and the synchronization of high-bandwidth audio and video between computers and other gadgets in real time.

Thunderbolt’s successor uses silicon photonics, which syndicates silicon components with optical networking, to carry data at up to 50Gbps over 100m, said Jeff Demain, strategy director of circuits and system research at Intel Labs.

Intel expects the technology to be ready for use in PCs, tablets, smartphones, TVs and other products by 2015. It will not only be faster than Thunderbolt but cheaper too, with existing systems being used in the silicon manufacturing process.

The technology would allow TVs and set-top boxes to carry much higher-definition video steams than is possible today. This will be important by 2015, since image resolution is likely to quadruple when successor to 1080p (full HD) arrive.

Demain said Thunderbolt will probably co-exist alongside its successor in some devices. “We see them as complementary. It’s the evolution of these connectors and protocols as they move forward,” he said, “Thunderbolt are more than a cable. It’s a router chip that aggregates DisplayPort and PCI Express.”

Before the technology comes to market, Intel plans to syndicate the transmitter and receiver components into a single chip, and shrink down the chips to fit inside smartphones and tablets.