Follow Apple for the Thunderbolt4 interface

In the future, more manufacturers will use the same Thunderbolt4 interface from Apple.

Since Intel officially announced that Thunderbolt 3 (Thunderbolt 3) will integrate its controller in the CPU (so that no additional chips are needed on the motherboard to support this function after integration, the cost reduction is directly reflected in the reduction of product prices) and will After providing technical licenses to manufacturers for free, starting from Apple's MacBook Pro, many notebooks have begun to use Thunderbolt 3 interfaces in large numbers. When the era of Type-C physical interfaces is about to be unified (Type-C is unified in future, EU countries are single The mobile charging interface has reached a final agreement), Type-C is undergoing qualitative changes, not only in the market, but also in the design port of the product. Thunderbolt 4 equipped with the Tiger Lake mobile processor launched by Intel appeared on some laptops, and then Xiaomi , Lenovo has followed suit. Many laptops have launched the Thunderbolt 4 interface and are compatible with USB4. Thunderbolt 4 has quietly come to us.

Thunderbolt's compatibility with USB protocols can unify the Type-C interface; "Thunderbolt provides consumers with the leading connectivity standard across a variety of devices, helping to enhance the computing experience and enabling USB-C with simplicity, performance and reliability. Promise. The arrival of Thunderbolt 4 underscores how Intel is pushing the PC ecosystem toward a truly universal connectivity solution," said Jason Ziller, general manager of Intel's Client Connectivity Group. Intel wanted to create a dedicated data and video transfer protocol, and in 2009 launched Thunderbolt 1. Thunderbolt stands for high-speed protocol with transfer rates up to 10Gb/s. Then all the way to high-speed development, in 2013, Thunderbolt 2 can provide a speed of 20Gb/s; in 2015, Thunderbolt 3 can provide a speed of 40Gb/s. Over the years, Thunderbolt technology has been mainly adopted by high-end notebooks due to expensive technology licensing certification. So Intel made some changes to Thunderbolt 3, such as switching the interface from a Mini DisplayPort connector to a Type-C (USB-C) type connection, compatible with Type-C cables and devices, and relaxing the license for Thunderbolt technology. Although Thunderbolt has met people's needs for high-speed transmission since its "birth", it is obviously no match for USB in the Windows PC field, so Intel integrated Thunderbolt 3 into USB4.0.

Like USB3.1/3.2/4, USB4.0 uses the Type-C interface and is equipped with a high-speed cable, which is compatible with all previous USB versions and Thunderbolt 3 standards, which makes USB4.0 a variety of A method of connecting high-speed devices directly to each other without going through a hub.

Computers that support Thunderbolt 4 have at least one interface that supports charging, which means that Thunderbolt 4 notebooks can be charged through the Type-C interface without an independent charging port, which truly realizes data transmission and charging in one bite. Thunderbolt 4 adds a heavy touch to Type-C's move to the fast charging standard. This also shows a trend. In the future, data transmission, display, and charging interfaces can be replaced by Type-C interfaces, including DisplayPort, HDMI, and MHL. Various Thunderbolt protocols, USB protocols, and charging protocols can be compatible with Type-C. At present, the development of Type-C is becoming more and more mature, and the Type-C interface has become the mainstream on the market with the conclusion of the EU agreement, and most products support PD. From a consumer standpoint, consumers are looking for interfaces with signal integrity, fast transfer of data and current, ease of use, durability and water resistance. At the same time, this is also the development trend of Type-C. High-speed transmission has stricter requirements on the integrity of signals and power supply. This puts forward new requirements for cable companies and connector companies in the production process. In the future, more manufacturers will adopt Apple's same Thunderbolt interface is the general trend of the market.