THUNDERBOLT CABLES

Thunderbolt cables

Thunderbolt is a connection technology for transferring both image and data signals in one and the same cable. Over time, the Thunderbolt standard has evolved from using connectors of the same type as Mini Displayport (Thunderbolt 1 and 2) to now having USB-C connectors (Thunderbolt 3 and newer).

The big advantage of Thunderbolt connections is that you can connect a Thunderbolt docking station/hub or monitor with just a single cable. For example at the fixed workstation for the laptop, where the fixed connections to peripheral devices (screen, keyboard, network, etc.) are connected to the dock. This is the same as with USB-C hubs and docking stations.

Thunderbolt 3

Cables for the Thunderbolt 3 protocol with USB-C connector, typically for connecting a monitor. Thunderbolt version 3 handles speeds up to 40 Gbps (5 GB/sec) and supports 4K 120 Hz or 5K at 60 Hz.

Thunderbolt 4

Cables for the Thunderbolt 4 protocol with USB-C connector, typically for connecting a monitor. Thunderbolt 4 handles speeds up to 40 Gbps (5 GB/sec) and supports two 4K displays or one 8K at 60 Hz.

Which connectors use Thunderbolt?

Thunderbolt 1 and 2 use Mini Displayport connectors, but note the general. Mini DP cables cannot be used for connecting Thunderbolt, as it requires special electronics in the connectors and cable certification.

Thunderbolt 3 and 4 connections, like USB4, use only USB-C connectors. The reason why only USB-C connectors can be used and not the other different versions of USB (USB-A and USB-B connectors) is that they cannot handle the amount of data required by the Thunderbolt 4 specification. Likewise, here it is required that the cables are certified for Thunderbolt in a given version before they can be used for the purpose.

Thunderbolt is the name of a high-speed cable technology, originally developed by Apple and Intel, as a competitor to USB 3.0 (now USB 3.2). During the development phase, the standard was names Light Peak, as it was originally intended for an optical cable type. Closer to launch, the name was changed to Thunderbolt and the cable type to ordinary data cables, as copper technology was eventually good enough to support the high speeds. Thunderbolt cables are designed to connect electronic devices to each other for high-speed data transfer, in the form of both an image signal such as Displayport video, and a PCI data signals in the same cable. This meaning that you can connect everything from external hard drives to monitors via Thunderbolt if they support it.

The Thunderbolt cable standard is designed to deliver a high bandwidth and extremely high speed from the start of 10 Gbps. per second, and has potential at 100 Gbps over time via optical cables, but e.g. at "just" 10 Gbit / sec. you can transfer data amount equal to a full-length Blu-ray movie in just 30 seconds. The technology used also allows for smaller plugs and longer cable runs than for example traditional USB cables. Thunderbolt connections are backwards compatible with the Displayport 1.2 standard.

• Apple was the first to start using Thunderbolt for their new Mac products, read more about Thunderbolt at Apple.
• Read more about the Thunderbolt standard on Wikipedia.