While Thunderbolt 4 will not provide any increase over the optimum 40 Gb/s available on Thunderbolt 3, there are some significant enhancements such as universal cables approximately 2 meters long without needing to turn to active cable televisions that leave out assistance for slower USB requirements as on Thunderbolt 3, the ability to support docks and other accessories with as much as 4 Thunderbolt 4 ports (one upstream, 3 downstream), and more.
Intel today shared some brand-new information on the upcoming launch of Thunderbolt 4, which is set launching later on this year.
Thunderbolt 4 certification requirements consist of:
Thunderbolt 4 will be coming initially to Intels upcoming Tiger Lake processors for notebooks, with separate 8000-series controller chips coming later this year.
Apple, obviously, has simply revealed that it will be transitioning away from Intel processors to its own Apple Silicon chips across its Mac lineup over the next couple of years, and it remains to be seen how Apple will deal with Thunderbolt assistance going forward. The A12Z-based Mac mini units Apple is distributing to developers to assist them prepare their apps for the transition do not include any Thunderbolt 3 ports.
Video: Support for two 4K display screens or one 8K display.
Information: PCIe at 32 Gbps for storage accelerate to 3,000 MBps.
Support for docks with up to four Thunderbolt 4 ports.
PC charging on at least one computer port.
Wake your computer system from sleep by touching the keyboard or mouse when linked to a Thunderbolt dock.
Required Intel VT-d-based direct memory access (DMA) security that assists prevent physical DMA attacks.
Thunderbolt 4 cables and ports are totally backwards and cross-compatible with USB4, Thunderbolt 3, and other USB standards, and it continues to utilize the USB-C physical connector style.
Double the minimum video and information requirements of Thunderbolt 3.
