[MacTUG] Apple's Thunderbolt potential increases with new adapters | MacFixIt

[Marlon A. Griffith]

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Recently, Sonnet technologies has taken advantage of this with its new Echo ExpressCard/34 adapter that does exactly this, and allows any Thunderbolt-equipped Mac to take advantage of practically any ExpressCard solution out there. Compatible ExpressCards include those that offer I/O options such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Ethernet, FireWire, USB 2, USB 3, eSATA, and more.

This adapter exemplifies the versatility of Thunderbolt, and also shows the potential it brings to Apple's systems both now as well as in the future. Currently Thunderbolt runs at 10Gbps speeds, but this is an artificial truncation of the technology's true speed of up to 100Gbps that should be implemented as connectivity options are refined in the upcoming years. This means that while currently some high-performance options like graphics cards may be limited in performance if piped through a Thunderbolt interface, sooner or later they may be a more feasible option. Currently PCI-express speeds top out at 128Gbps, which is not much faster than Thunderbolt's 100Gbps maximum capability.
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http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-13727_7-20099484-263/apples-thunderbolt-potential-increases-with-new-adapters/