Thunderbolt 3 vs Thunderbolt 4 Leave a comment

Introduction to Thunderbolt technology:

Technological change is accelerating today at such an extraordinary speed and could create a world we can barely begin to imagine.
Speed and space have become two important factors in the world of technology nowadays.
Today, everyone wants to save time while processing their work like storage sharing, streaming, video editing, and managing various projects.
Well, the above-mentioned hardware interface allows you to carry out your work progress at a better speed.
Thunderbolt, developed by Intel (in collaboration with Apple), this interface is an input-output medium for connecting external hardware peripherals and devices to a computer. It gives better communication speed between your computer and the connected devices. Thunderbolt technology is much faster than the current maximum speed for USB.

It has 4 versions.

⦁ Thunderbolt 1
⦁ Thunderbolt 2
⦁ Thunderbolt 3 (latest)
⦁ Thunderbolt 4 (upcoming)

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Old versions like Thunderbolt 1 and Thunderbolt 2 use the same connector as mini-DisplayPort, whereas the latest version, Thunderbolt 3 re-uses the USB-C connector from USB. However, Thunderbolt 4 is yet to arrive in the market and will surely pass already existing versions in terms of efficiency and utilization.
I am going to discuss about the latest version (Thunderbolt 3) and the upcoming version (Thunderbolt 4) in this article.
So, let’s begin!

Thunderbolt 3 (the USB-C that does it all) :

Thunderbolt 3 is the most advanced available port on a computer. Thunderbolt 3 provides DisplayPort, which can natively connect to all displays with DisplayPort and mini-DisplayPort, and via adapters can connect to all other modern display interfaces, including HDMI, DVI, and VGA.

It shares USB-C connectors with USB and can require special “active” cables for maximum performance for cable lengths over 0.5 meters (1.5 feet).

It is 7 times faster than a standard SATA connection. It is also 8 times faster than USB 3.0 and 4 times more video bandwidth than HDMI.
It creates one compact port that delivers a fast and versatile connection to any dock, display, and data device.

You can get an idea about the speed of the Thunderbolt 3 from the below image

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You can transfer a 4K movie in less than 30 seconds, back up a year’s worth of continuous MP3s in five minutes, and connect to any display, Thunderbolt, or USB device.

Features and specs:

⦁ Thunderbolt, USB, DisplayPort, and power on USB-C

⦁ USB-C connector and cables (small, reversible)

⦁ 40 Gb/s: Thunderbolt 3 – double the speed of Thunderbolt 2

⦁ Bi-directional, dual-protocol (PCI Express and DisplayPort)
⦁ PCI Express Gen 3
⦁ DisplayPort 1.2 – supports two 4K displays (4096 x 2160 30bpp @ 60 Hz)

⦁ USB 3.1 (10 Gb/s) – compatible with existing USB devices and cables

⦁ DisplayPort 1.2 – compatible with existing DisplayPort displays, devices, and cables

⦁ Connect DVI, HDMI, and VGA displays via adapters

⦁ Power delivery

⦁ Up to 100W system charging
⦁ 15W to bus-powered devices

⦁ Thunderbolt Networking

⦁ 10Gb Ethernet connection between computers

⦁ Daisy chain up to six devices

⦁ Lowest latency for PCI Express audio

Pros:

⦁ Three in one-technology (combines PCI Express, DisplayPort and DC connection for power)

⦁ Faster data transfer rates (transfer rate of up to 40 Gbps)

⦁ Graphic-based expansion capability

⦁ Daisy-chaining (connecting multiple devices in a sequence or a ring)

⦁ Up to 6 devices

⦁ Support for USB-C

Cons:

⦁ Similarity with standard USB (confusion with other USB cables)

⦁ Much expensive

⦁ Small product ecosystem (few compatible devices and peripherals)

Here is a comparison of USB 3.1 with Thunderbolt 3.

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Thunderbolt 4 (upcoming technology):
Thunderbolt 4 is yet to launch in the next half this year. However, at CES 2020, Intel’s Sarah Kane said that Thunderbolt 4 “standardizes PC platform requirements and adds the latest Thunderbolt innovations,” but didn’t reveal real detail about what those innovations were.

Revealed features (compared to Thunderbolt 3):
It is disclosed that Thunderbolt 4 would be four times faster than USB 3.2 Gen 2, which has a maximum speed of 10Gbps. So, Thunderbolt 4 should operate at a maximum speed of 40Gbps. And, this is not going to make it faster than Thunderbolt 3.
It stated that Thunderbolt 4 will first be supported by upcoming Tiger Lake mobile processors, slated to debut at some point in 2020. Tiger Lake is also characterized as a “10nm+” chip.
Thunderbolt 4 will be more compatible with eGPUs (getting popular day by day) in order to improve the overall graphics performance of your laptop. One more thing, that Thunderbolt 4 will surely be more expensive than Thunderbolt 3.
The new Thunderbolt standards use the same plug as USB-C and are compatible with it. It’s not clear if the new standard is based on PCI Express 4.0 or not (Thunderbolt 3 used PCI Express 3.0) or what other advantages Thunderbolt 4 might bring. Intel will announce the full details later.

What to do before Thunderbolt 4 release?

Before we get Thunderbolt 4 though, we need to wait for PCIe 4. This is the innovation that will permit our devices to work with Thunderbolt 4. Without it, our PCs just won’t realize that it is even there, rendering Thunderbolt 4 completely useless. New technology usually takes some time to get common and recognized in the community but in the end, it always eases the situation for us.

Pros:

⦁ Exceptional performance
⦁ Smaller size
⦁ Ease of use
⦁ Quality for USB-C connector-based products

Cons:

⦁ Confusion of speed and features (which are not yet revealed properly)
⦁ Few compatible devices
⦁ Wait for PCIe 4
⦁ More Expensive than Thunderbolt 3