If you are planning on using Target Disk Mode to boot your Mac equipped with Thunderbolt ports you’ll need Apple’s special Thunderbolt cable in order for it to work. This is required even when connecting two Macs or a Mac to an external Thunderbolt equipped disk drive.
As if on cue, the first teardowns of Apple’s Thunderbolt cable have hit the Internet, and prepare to be surprised: that $49 retail price isn’t just the usual Apple tax, but a fair asking price for the advanced circuitry within!
The first non-Apple laptop supporting the new Thunderbolt standard has now officially been announced in the Sony Vaio Z, and it’s an impressive machine… for a Windows PC. Unfortunately, though, Sony’s implementation of Thunderbolt is hobbled by a hubristic decision to use a different connector than Apple, , along with a petulant refusal to adopt Apple’s Thunderbolt brand name.
The latest addition to Apple’s online store is a fancy new high-speed Thunderbolt cable designed to connect your Thunderbolt-equipped devices to the latest iMacs and MacBook Pros.
Apple has released Thunderbolt Firmware Update 1.0 for Macs that ship with the new Thunderbolt interface.
Although Apple still sells a white model, the piano black plastic MacBook is much missed. It might be Back to Black time for the MacBook line, though, as several anonymous sources are now reporting that the Thunderbolt and Sandy Bridge equipped MacBook Air could get a black anodized aluminum finish when it lands in July.
Apple’s Mac Pro and Mac mini family of desktop computers are still patiently awaiting their Sandy Bridge and Thunderbolt upgrades… but CNET’s Brian Tong has received word that a refresh for these machines isn’t too far away.
Wondering just where in the hell those Sandy Bridge MacBook Airs with Thunderbolt are? Sitting in a warehouse, just waiting for OS X Lion to go gold, according to the most recent report.
A refresh to the MacBook Air lineup appears to be imminent this week as retail sources worldwide report that supplies and shipments of Apple’s ultraportable notebook are beginning to diminish.
As we’re probably all aware by now, Apple’s Thunderbolt I/O debuted earlier this year with the new generation of MacBook Pros and threatened to make all other interfaces, like USB and FireWire, seem like stone-age relics — and at the same time, make obsolescent all current external HDDs. All, that is, except Seagate’s line of GoFlex drives.
Intel was quick to clarify reports yesterday that Apple had secretly filed for the Thunderbolt trademark in Jamaica a year before the chipmaker unveiled their next-gen technology, and in doing so, have put some fears to ease: Thunderbolt is not another FireWire.
That new MacBook Pro of yours, may be more Apple than originally thought. Although Intel was credited with the Thunderbolt trademark on early 2011 Apple laptops, it now appears that Apple may have beaten them to the bunch and snuck in their own trademark application a year ahead of time. Is this cricket?
Apple’s latest lineup of MacBook Airs are incredible, and since their launch they’ve been lavished with attention from just about everyone – from the tech world’s greatest reviewers to the hooded youths that gather around them in the Apple Store. But a recent refresh to the MacBook Pro family is beginning to steal their limelight – boasting features like Sandy Bridge processors and Thunderbolt ports – and the Airs want it back with their share of new components. They may only have to wait a little while longer, however, as one report suggests a refresh within the coming months.
Although Apple was the first company to debut Thunderbolt with the 2011 MacBook Pro refresh, Intel and Apple’s next-gen, one-port-to-rule-them-all is open to all takers. Already, though, one of Apple’s biggest competitors is rocking the Thunderboat, and threatening to fragment the Thunderbolt standard before it even has a chance to clear port.
Will Apple, as rumored, shift the MacBook line over to an ARM processor this year, starting with the MacBook Air? If you answered yes to that question, one analyst has some compelling reasons why you might just be huffing fumes.
Review: Early 2011 Apple iMac (27-inch screen, 3.1GHz quad-core Intel Core i5)
Apple updated its venerable iMac this week with new machines that are fast, sleek, and beautifully packaged.
Sporting Intel’s Sandy Bridge processors, powerful new graphics cards and Thunderbolt ports that can support two external monitors, the new iMac is the undisputed champion of all-in-one machines. Plus, it’s the only one out there that’s not butt ugly.
As well as being the most attractive desktop computer available, it offers just about everything modern computer users might need in a self-contained package, from a HD webcam to a gesture-sensitive trackpad.
I’ve been testing a 27-inch model with a 3.1Ghz Core i5 chip (the biggest, fastest stock model currently available at the Apple Store), and it may sound silly, but it’s almost too much machine for my needs. The screen is so big, I have to sit back lest I get motion sickness. And the i5 chip has power to spare for someone like me, who doesn’t do high-end video or graphics work.
Still, I’ll take it. If the chip is too powerful now, it sure won’t be in a couple of years.
Apple’s new family of iMac all-in-ones released earlier this week boast an Intel BD82Z68 platform controller hub that isn’t scheduled for release until May 11th. The Z68 chip, designed for Sandy Bridge 1155, was first discovered by TonyMacx86 and later confirmed in an iFixit teardown.
The Z68 allows for solid-state drive data caching when a system is equipped with a combination of storage drives. So users could install a small, relatively cheap SSD along with their traditional hard disk drive and have the SSD serve as a cache – dramatically increasing access speeds to their files and applications. The new iMacs can be ordered with both an SSD and a traditional hard disk drive installed, and the Z68 can allow users to see this combination as just one drive on their Mac.
Here’s the new 2011 Thunderbolt iMac playing HD movies on three screens simultaneously — without a hiccup.
It’s a 27-inch model with an Intel Core i5 chip and AMD’s Radeon HD 6970 graphics card (1GB of GDDR5 memory).
The two 21-inch Dell monitors either side are connected via the iMac’s pair of Thunderbolt/Mini DisplayPort jacks on the back (with a pair of pricey $30 Mini-DisplayPort-to-DVI adapters).
The main 27-inch display’s resolution is 2,560-by-1,440; while the external monitors are at 1,920 by 1,080 (true 1080p HD).
Pretty impressive.
Look what just arrived at CultofMac towers here in San Francisco. Yes, it’s one of Apple’s awesome new Core i5 iMacs.
It’s a $1,999 27-inch i5 model (It’s stock — no build-to-order options. Couldn’t wait a month).
As you can see, it can handily power another 27-inch iMac as an external monitor. (It’s hooked to a 2010 iMac, reviewed here last year). This is going to replace an aging Mac Pro I use for work. It just radiates awesomeness.
I’ll get started on the review as soon as deal with a major plumbing emergency here at home.
Apple’s online store is back up following some downtime this morning and just as we all expected, it now features a nice new family of iMacs.
These new all-in-ones boast Intel’s next-generation quad-core i5 and i7 processors, the company’s high-speed Thunderbolt technology, 3x faster graphics, and a FaceTime HD camera.
There are four new iMacs to choose from starting at $1,199 – two 21.5-inch models and two 27-inch models – all four come with 4GB of RAM and a FaceTime HD camera capable of shooting video in 720p.
Here are your options:
Apple is working on a new dock connector for its devices that will boast high-speed connections including USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt, according to a new patent published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office on Tuesday. Entitled “Reduced Size Multi-Pin Male Plug Connector,” the patent reveals a smaller 30-pin dock connector that will also feature a dual-lane DisplayPort.
Fscklog has just posted a photo of what they believe are the specs to the new 13-inch MacBook Pro, which should be due out any day now.
Here are the specs, translated from German
• 2.3Ghz Sandy Bridge Dual-Core Intel Core i5 Processor with a 3MB L3 Cache
• 4GB of DDR3 RAM clocked at 1333MHz
• A 320GB hard drive
• a 13.3-inch diagonal LED backlit display with a 1280×800 pixel resolution.
• Intel HD Graphics 3000 with 384MB of DDR3 RAM.
• An integrated FaceTime-HD camera
• An 8x Superdrive
• Two USB 2 ports, an SD card reader, FireWire 800, a MiniDisplay Port, Ethernet and, most interestingly, Thunderbolt port (this is very possibly the Apple-branded implementation of Light Peak we’ve been hearing about).
Overall? It seems the 13-inch model is not the radical re-imagining we’ve been hearing about for the last few days. It’s not made of Liquid Metal, there’s no SSD and the new MBP has an identical chassis design to the old model. Short of the new Thunderbolt port and the leap to Sandy Bridge, these aren’t markedly different than the last generation of 13-inch MBPs. That said, the 13-incher is the entry-level MBP model. Perhaps Apple has something more radical afoot for the 15- and 17-inch models.
After the jump, a look at the new MacBook Pro’s marketing materials and a close-up view of the Thunderbolt port.
