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Apple Installs Thunderbolt In The New ARM Macs Even After Departing Intel

AR headset

With the withdrawal from the Intel warehouse to Apple’s own ARM-based processors, there was a rumor that the Thunderbolt connection would disappear from iMacs and MacBooks. Now the manufacturer gives the all-clear and promises to continue supporting the port.

Over the next few years, Apple will increasingly turn its back on its previous technology partner Intel and equip its Macs with its own ARM processors. This step could have fallen victim to the Thunderbolt connection introduced over 10 years ago, whose license rights are held by Intel. As co-designer of the interface, which now transmits up to 40 Gbit/s, Apple receives various special rights, so that the rumors of future missing Thunderbolt ports are officially cleared up.

As a pioneer, Apple remains loyal to the Thunderbolt connection

An Apple spokesman told The Verge colleagues as follows: “More than a decade ago, Apple worked with Intel to design and develop the Thunderbolt, and today our customers enjoy the speed and flexibility that it offers on any Mac are committed to the future of Thunderbolt and will support it in Macs with Apple processors.

Despite this statement, developers currently miss Thunderbolt support in the so-called” Developer Transition Kit “, the first ARM Mac (Mini) based on the Apple A12Z Bionic chips. Only a classic USB-C port with up to 10 Gbit/s is used here. At the same time, Intel announced yesterday that the new Thunderbolt 4 was officially specified, which, among other things, can address PCIe devices with significantly higher bandwidth. At the start of Intel’s new CPU generation “Tiger Lake”, the spread of Thunderbolt 4 should also start and will be added to other PCs and accessories during the year. With regard to new macOS devices, it could be those based on ARM that are expected in the fourth quarter of 2020 and may be equipped with the optimized Thunderbolt 4 ex-works.