Sorry I didn't bother to restate the entirety of what I had said a few posts earlier, so I'll just go ahead and quote myself now:
By all appearances the Matrox DS1 is sporting a dual-link DVI-I connector. There are a lot of very expensive displays in the wild that support dual-link DVI, and it is the one interface you can't convert to from DisplayPort with a sub $10 adapter. DP to dual-link DVI adapters need an external power source and generally run about $90 or more...
Thanks for providing a reference to substantiate my earlier claim, and next time I won't use such loose language as "quite easily." The reason why I said "except dual-link DVI" is because I recognized that many PC docking stations, including the ones AidenShaw was referring to, provide 1 or 2 dual-link DVI ports. The Belkin does not and it would cost quite a bit to connect a display requiring dual-link DVI to that dock, and connecting two would be out of the question.
Maybe, just maybe, PC OEMs are properly understanding Thunderbolt's niche in the industry and not trying to shoehorn it unto consumer devices ?
----------
There's a big difference between motherboards aimed at the custom systems builder, the small shops and gamers, than actual systems, shipped by OEMs. You do understand it right ?
Don't those sites say "available in 2 to 3 weeks" ?
Plenty of professionals use "consumer" devices to do their jobs, and many consumers enjoy owning "professional" gear, for whatever reason. If you prefer Mac OS, Apple is your only legitimate hardware vendor, and their product stack is pretty streamlined. Practically every model gets used by pros, consumers, students and grandparents alike. I doubt any other OEM would even consider Thunderbolt across the board. Then again, they typically have hundreds to thousands of SKUs on their hands that they need to try to differentiate somehow.
Yes there is a difference between a motherboard and a fully prebuilt system.
I thought I had one of those Lenovo's in my cart, but then again, my German could use a little brushing up. Regardless, when shipping estimates for a newly released product say 2-3 weeks, that does not equate to the product being vapor. In your experience, is Lenovo known for introducing a new model, publishing the specs, and then not actually shipping it?
What you're doing here is kind of like arguing that the moon landing was faked. You can continue ad nauseum, but I find it hard to believe that you both haven't read enough about Thunderbolt by now to know the story.
Apple negotiated a one year exclusive which expired a couple months ago. The Cactus Ridge Thunderbolt controllers were released shortly thereafter, and the embargo on non-Apple OEMs shipping Thunderbolt systems was lifted at the end of last week. Thunderbolt systems designed to run Windows must also pass Intel certification to ensure that the UEFI/BIOS properly handles hot-plugging of Thunderbolt devices before they go on sale. Not surprisingly, an Intel motherboard was among the first to be certified. As more boards and systems become certified over the next couple weeks, they'll start to hit retail channels. The reality is that at least three major PC manufacturers besides Apple have licensing agreements in place and are testing the waters with Thunderbolt (Lenovo, Asus and MSI), and, not counting Intel, there are a few more on the motherboard front (Gigabyte, Asrock and Foxconn.) Denying that any of this is happening is just irrational.
Now I'm not making any claims as to the suitability of this technology for any purpose or particular target audience. Will the attach rate for Thunderbolt on PCs shipped by OEMs other than Apple ever exceed 10%? Who knows, probably not. Will Thunderbolt be (even further) marginalized by other technologies in the near future? Quite possibly. But the point is that saying "Thunderbolt is DOA" is patently false. In fact it's beginning its first significant expansion this month.
