First Thunderbolt Peripherals Arrive To Market

MojoKid writes "Promise Technology recently launched the first Thunderbolt-compatible devices; the company's Pegasus RAID R4 and R6 storage solutions can now be ordered from the Apple Store. There's a catch, however. In order to use either storage array, one must first purchase a cable directly from Apple. The company has priced the two-meter cable at $50. As it turns out, Thunderbolt uses what's called an active cable. Inside the cable there's a pair of Gunnum GN2033 transceivers. The GN2033 is a tiny, low power transceiver chip designed to be placed inside the connectors at either end of a Thunderbolt cable, enabling dual bidirectional 10Gb/s concurrent links over narrow-gauge copper wires. The cable's $50 price may be justified, but it's also a further reminder of why Thunderbolt may follow FireWire's path into obsolescence. Apple is the only company currently selling Thunderbolt cables."

Comments

Re:or maybe

[DurendalMac]

Not to mention Apple usually pricing peripherals highly. Third party vendors will step in like they always do and offer a cheaper alternative.

Oh, and Mojokid is a retard. I always have to laugh at the morons calling Firewire dead and obsolete. It's still alive and kicking in the pro A/V world, you idiots. Firewire audio decks are quite common. A lot of pro-grade cameras still connect via Firewire.

Re:or maybe

[countertrolling]

Not without some competition they won't. And Apple's patents will ensure there's very little competition

Common sense

[AliasMarlowe]

That's crazy talk. This is Slashdot. Where anything remotely related to Apple or Microsoft must be met with derision! There's no need to bring logic or common sense into the discussion!

Um, but logic and common sense both demand that we heap derision upon Apple and Microsoft (and Adobe and Oracle and Sony and RIAA/MPAA and patent trolls and any other manifestations of evil that crop up).