Apple (AAPL) Launching Intel (INTC) USB Slayer?

Apple's (NASDAQ:AAPL) next-generation MacBook Pros may thicken the plot to kill USB, using Intel's (NASDAQ:INTC) Light Peak optical technology and rebranding it as "Thunderbolt."

A trio of rumors suggest that Apple is preparing a high-speed port called Thunderbolt for its new MacBook Pros. These findings include a German spec sheet, an English spec sheet and images of marketing materials and the port itself, which looks like a Mini DisplayPort with a thunder bolt icon. The connection between Light Peak and Thunderbolt is based on previous reports that Apple pushed Intel to develop the technology.

What is Light Peak?

Light Peak is an interconnect technology that Intel announced in late 2009. By using fiber optics instead of the electrical cables found in USB, Light Peak cables can be thinner, more flexible and able to travel up to 100 meters, according to Intel. And of course, they'll be fast, supporting transfer speeds of 10 gigabits per second initially, and 100 gigabits per second within a decade. In January, however, Intel announced that the first generation of Light Peak cables would use copper, making them slower and less reliable over long distances.

Although the rumored MacBook Pro input looks like Mini DisplayPort, Intel has said that Light Peak could also make use of USB 3.0 ports with additional components.

USB Killer?





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