Items tagged with Thunderbolt
There's a new hardware exploit that's being brought to light courtesy of security researcher Björn Ruytenberg from the Eindhoven University of Technology. The security vulnerability affects devices equipped with Thunderbolt ports, and it's appropriately named Thunderspy. Before we get started, we should first let you know that while this security exploit is serious, it requires actual physical access to a device to execute. However, with that access comes unprecedented control over a device, once connected to a free Thunderbolt port. In fact, a hacker could theoretically access all data on a computer in under 5 minutes. On top of that, this data can be accessed even if the PC is locked,...
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A set of vulnerabilities related to Thunderbolt connectivity leave most Mac systems released in the past several years susceptible to malicious exploits, according to researchers who presented the data at the Network and Distributed Systems Security Symposium in San Diego earlier this week. Dubbed "Thunderclap," the collective vulnerabilities take advantage of how Thunderbolt works, and specifically the privileged, low-level direct memory access (DMA) it affords. The way Thunderbolt is constructed, peripherals have more privileges than regular USB devices. "If no defenses are used on the host, an attacker has unrestricted memory access, and can completely take control of a target computer: they...
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Patriot is perhaps one of the lesser-known PC component and accessory manufacturers in comparison to large players like Kingston or Corsair, but the Northern California-based company has actually been around since 1985. About 10 years ago, Patriot launched its Viper Gaming brand, which offers high-performance gaming memory and peripherals. The product we have today, the Patriot EVLVR, is from Patriot's more business-facing product lines and it is an external, portable NVMe SSD which employs the Thunderbolt 3 interface for full PCIe Gen 3 performance capabilities. The Patriot EVLVR Portable NVMe TB3 SSD The Patriot EVLVR we have in hand is a 1TB model that retails for about $429.99 at Amazon,...
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Samsung has been a leader in the solid state storage market for a number of years. Whether you were looking for affordable SATA-based offerings or high-performance NVMe gumsticks, Samsung usually has an answer. And we’re not just talking about internal drives either; Samsung has also released a number of excellent external storage devices, like the T3 and last year’s T5, for example. What Samsung hasn’t had was an ultra-high speed external solid state device that shed the limitations of legacy interfaces – until today, that is. Samsung’s latest storage product, the X5 Thunderbolt Portable SSD, is a durable, attractive, external device packing an NVMe solid state...
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Many professionals like to use Apple’s MacBook Pro range when on the go, however, these notebooks aren’t exactly known for their graphics prowess — even with discrete GPU options available. Couple that with the fact that Apple has not exactly been on top of things when it comes to upgrading its Mac lineup over the years, you can understand why customers could be left wanting for some extra graphics muscle. That’s where Wolfepack Inc.’s Wolfe external graphics enclosure comes into play. The project hit Kickstarter yesterday and it has already reached its funding goal of $50,000. In fact, the project has already amassed over $145,000 from over 400 backers. For $450, you’ll get a Wolfe Enclosure...
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Thunderbolt (and its Thunderbolt 2 successor) is a technically impressive high-speed data standard. Thunderbolt offers maximum bandwidth of 10Gbps while, Thunderbolt 2 doubled that to 20Gbps. However, the standard, which is used for everything from hyper-fast external storage solutions to external graphics cards, has been slow to take off. You can blame the high-priced Thunderbolt peripherals and the uber-expensive cables (at last when compared to your garden variety USB cables). For most people, USB 3.0 is “good enough” and making a huge investment into the Thunderbolt ecosystem has been reserved for those in the professional video editing arena. However, Intel is looking to change all of that...
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It's tough to say when, or if, the heralded USB port will ever be truly replaced in the eyes of the masses. But Thunderbolt is sure working towards becoming a great secondary option, if not an outright replacement in time. At this year's NAB Show in Las Vegas, Intel announced Thunderbolt 2. It's the latest edition of the high-speed transfer protocol, with a bandwidth boost up to 20Gbps. Moreover, there's the addition of Thunderbolt Networking, which effectively acts as a crossover cable in order to allow two computers to directly connect and share information over a high-speed superhighway. Thunderbolt Networking, emulating an Ethernet connection environment, provides 10GbE throughput between...
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Western Digital used MacWorld as a springboard to announce its new My Passport Pro, the first portable, Thunderbolt-powered dual-drive storage solution. The high-performance storage device is intended specifically for Mac users working with large files including photographers, videographers, graphic designers, and other creative pros, WD says. Since this is a dual-drive solution, users can choose between RAID 0 for added performance or RAID 1 for data redundancy. "The only Thunderbolt dual-drive solution that’s bus-powered, WD’s My Passport Pro enhances the workflow of mobile creative professionals by providing fast transfers and data protection for the large amounts of digital content...
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Storage products maker LaCie is claiming an industry-first 5TB 7200 RPM hard drive, and it’s deploying the spacious HDD in several Thunderbolt-equipped devices. “Increasingly larger file formats for film and photography have driven the demand for more storage capacity,” reads a LaCie press release. “The availability of 5TB hard drives enables LaCie to deliver significantly more storage capacity in its same compact desktop designs.” The LaCie 5big Thunderbolt Series, 2big Thunderbolt Series, and the d2 Thunderbolt Series, as well as the LaCie 2big Quadra and d2 Quadra products, are all loaded with the big HDD, which gives LaCie a range of devices that scales to a...
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We spent a little time meeting with the folks from Gigabyte while zipping from demo suite to demo suite at CES, and have some interesting products to show you. Along with a their wide array of existing motherboards, graphics cards, and peripherals, Gigabyte was showing off some brand new products as well, including a few updated (and more powerful) Brix small form factor machines and a couple of Thunderbolt 2.0 certified motherboards. This GA-ZZ87X-UD7 TH is one of Gigabyte’s latest flagship Z87 Express based motherboards for Intel’s 4th Gen Core processors. In addition to all of the features inherent to the chipset, Gigabyte has also equipped this board with high-end...
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Things are about to get faster. The USB Promoter Group announced that it has completed the USB 3.1 specification, which will enable SuperSpeed USB performance of 10Gbps. This, of course, rivals Intel and Apple’s blazing fast 10Gbps Thunderbolt interface, and the new USB connection will make use of more efficient data encoding, and it will be compatible with earlier USB specifications (USB 3.0 and 2.0). USB 3.1 will offer double the effective data throughput of current SuperSpeed USB offerings. Developers will be able to learn technical details of the new spec this summer and autumn at three developer conferences, one each in the U.S., Europe, and Asia. One will be on August...
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Intel’s Thunderbolt interface technology is not yet ubiquitous, although it’s common among Macs and slowly catching on in the PC industry, but the company is already plowing forward with a new controller called “Falcon Ridge” that promises to double Thunderbolt’s already impressive 10Gbps. The technology is being called “Thunderbolt 2” and offers a whopping 20Gbps of bandwidth. The way it works is that two previously-separate 10Gbps channels are combined into a single, bi-directional channel, and that new channel can handle both data and display. On its face this is a big deal, but Thunderbolt 2 is important because it will help unlock 4K video; additionally,...
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Intel’s Thunderbolt interface technology is blazing fast, and it’s getting an upgrade in the form of the new DSL4510/4410 controllers, which Intel is showing off at the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) this week in Las Vegas. Specifically, the new controllers support DisplayPort 1.2 when connected to native displays, as well as better power management and lower platform BOM costs. The chip giant also debuted the prototype silicon for its upcoming Falcon Ridge Thunderbolt controller. Falcon Ridge promises 20Gbps speed, which will make handling 4K video files much easier; Intel says that the controller will allow 4K file transfers and 4K playback simultaneously. LaCie's Family...
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Most HTPCs have more modest components than your average gaming rig, and they’re typically designed to be quiet and to blend in with a home theater. Enthusiasts who go the HTPC route will often keep a dedicated PC in the media room and keep another set up for serious gaming. Velocity Micro is apparently not a fan of that model, because the company just released a monster system called the Raptor Multiplex that’s designed to be a kitchen sink sort of computer with both powerful gaming capabilities and all the home media amenities you’d want. The solid all- black aluminum chassis certainly looks like it means business, and on the inside there’s a Thunderbolt-enabled Asus...
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A humorous thing about CES is that every year, there's always a couple of buzzwords that you can't ignore. "3D" has been a big one in recent years, as has been "cloud", "ultrabooks", "superphones' and so on. This year, a major buzzword is one that really caught fire throughout 2012: "4K". We're of course talking about display resolutions here, though exactly how it's used varies. While true 4K displays are going to take a while to catch on due to their cost (we are talking ~8 million pixels+, after all), some companies have found ways to use the buzzword elsewhere, such as GIGABYTE. At CES, the company is showing off its dual-Thunderbolt motherboards that are able to drive a 4K resolution with...
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Look out, Thunderbolt! Apple and Intel's high-speed interconnect just got some new competition, but if you aren't looking closely, you may think it's actually old technology. USB 3.0 is planning to get a major update, and in fact, it'll end up doubling the transfer rates of an already quick technology. The USB 3.0 Promoter Group today announced development of a SuperSpeed USB (USB 3.0) enhancement that will add a much higher data rate, delivering up to twice the data through-put performance of existing SuperSpeed USB over enhanced, fully backward compatible USB connectors and cables. This supplement to the USB 3.0 specification is anticipated to be completed by the middle of this year. Key characteristics...
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With its orange bumper and snow-white housing, the LaCie Rugged looks downright dainty. But LaCie says that the portable SSD can handle 4-foot drops and is meant to withstand the rigors of frequent shipping. Toughness aside, what makes the device really interesting is its dual USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt ports and support for bus power. According to LaCie, the Rugged offers up to 380MB/s bus-powered speeds. You’ll need to use electrical Thunderbolt cables (as opposed to faster optical Thunderbolt cables) to bus power the device. The box includes an electrical Thunderbolt cable and a USB 3.0 cable, so you’re good to go. LaCie is releasing the Rugged in 120GB ($199.99) and 256GB...
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Thunderbolt, originally dubbed “Light Peak”, is a dual-protocol interface that combines PCI-Express and DisplayPort into one metaprotocol with bi-directional speeds of up to 10Gbps. The technology makes even the relatively speedy USB 3.0 interface (5Gbps) look downright pokey by comparison. What would you do if you were a storage company and had this next-gen I/O technology in hand? Probably more or less what Western Digital has done, which is to make an external storage device that teams Thunderbolt’s impressive interface bandwidth with a pair of the company's fastest 1TB VelociRaptor 10,000RPM HDDs. WD calls it the My Book VelociRaptor Duo. Western Digital My Book VelociRaptor...
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While we were testing the WD My Book VelociRaptor Duo, a funny thing happened. At one point, we reflected on our first external hard drive--a 40GB unit salvaged from a laptop--and remarked at how quaint it seems in comparison to WD's powerful, spacious storage beast. Indeed, external storage has come a long way in a relatively short time. Hampered in the past by relatively slow interfaces such as USB and FireWire, Intel’s Thunderbolt interface promises comparatively blazing fast speeds, and available storage capacities are now in the multi-terabyte range. Thunderbolt, originally dubbed “Light Peak”, is a dual-protocol interface that combines PCI-Express and DisplayPort...
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Not to be outdone in the speed department by the new USB 3.0-capable WD My Passport for Mac external drives, Western Digital’s new My Book VelociRaptor Duo line of external drives boasts a pair of smoking fast Thunderbolt ports. What’s more, the device has two 10,000 RPM 1TB WD VelociRaptor drives rumbling inside, and between them and the Thunderbolt interface, the unit offers about as much speed as you can get from an external storage system without slapping in an SSD. In fact, WD states that the My Book VelociRaptor Duo offers transfer rates of 400MBps. According to the company, the unit can transfer almost two dozen full-length HD movies in under 65 seconds; two thousand picture...
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Drobo is dropping another couple of storage arrays into the market--the Drobo 5D and Drobo Mini, both of which boast one USB 3.0 and two Thunderbolt ports (with free included cables)--and the pair are now available for preorder. Built for the media-crazed home user, creative pros with heavy media needs, or simply businesses looking for better storage, the Drobo 5D supports up to five 3.5-inch (or smaller) disks plus an mSATA drive and features carrier-less bays and power fail protection with a total capacity of up to 20TB. The smaller Drobo Mini is essentially the same product in a small package (about 7 inches square and 2 inches tall) and can handle as many as four 2.5-inch drives with room...
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GIGABYTE announced its new GIGABYTE 7 series motherboards complete with dual onboard Thunderbolt ports. Each Thunderbolt port supports maximum data transfer speeds with simultaneous bi-directional data transfer at speeds up to 10Gbps. You'll find dual Thunderbolt ports on the GIGABYTE Z77X-UP5 TH and GIGABYTE Z77X-UP4 TH motherboards. These GIGABYTE Thunderbolt motherboards can be connected to up to 12 devices and 3 digital displays simultaneously. Thanks to the onboard Thunderbolt technology, users will be able to transfer 1TB of data in just five minutes. The Z77X-UP5 TH and Z77X-UP4 TH motherboards use the ATX form factor and feature GIGABYTE Ultra Durable 5 technology. According to...
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