Many have wondered whether Apple’s new Thunderbolt I/O technology would ever really take off, considering that it only works with a small number of expensive devices, but shipping times at the Apple Online Store indicate that Thunderbolt is a real hit with Apple customers.
So far, the only Thunderbolt peripherals that are actually available are a few high-end storage devices, like the Pegasus R4 and R6, and the Apple Thunderbolt Display. Nevertheless, a current 3-5 week lead time for Thunderbolt storage products and a 2-3 week lead time for Thunderbolt displays suggests that customers are purchasing Thunderbolt products in a serious way.
What’s more, though, is that Thunderbolt is just another I/O standard like USB – it’s something significantly different than consumer products have ever had before, featuring the ability to power devices that would normally have to be connected to a PCI bus, and the ability to daisy-chain numerous products together without affecting performance.
Despite early criticisms of Thunderbolt, it seems like it’s already off to a good start – and things will only get better once additional manufacturers begin rolling out Thunderbolt-enabled products to consumers and professionals alike.