Thunderbolt demystified

Thunderbolt is an interface for connecting devices with. While the most obvious example might be a hard drive, the technology does allow for more variety. For instance, the spec requires HDMI video pass-through, meaning a display with a Thunderbolt port can receive video.

What's more, because the technology allows for daisy-chaining of up to seven devices, you can create interesting configurations without needing a handful of additional ports.

The primary goal, it seems, is to position Thunderbolt as a replacement for the aging USB and FireWire channels. However, manufacturers are slow to adopt the technology for a handful of reasons, with cost likely being the primary motivator.

Learn more about Thunderbolt here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thunderbolt_(interface)

On the show, here are two Thunderbolt devices we've looked at or mentioned:

Pegasus R6 RAID Storage with Thunderbolt
$1,499
labratsonline.com/pegasusr6

LaCie Little Big Disk featuring Thunderbolt
$TBD
labratsonline.com/littlebigdisk

Finally, Sean and Andy briefly talked about optical transfer technology, which you can read more about at labratsonline.com/lightpipe.