$99 is far more reasonable than what we have seen to date (e.g. the $149 Echo ExpressCard 34 slot), and it is starting to get closer to the point where it can achieve critical mass. Hopefully Intel puts out some cheaper controllers this year so that adapters for about $50 and docking stations for $100-$150 can start appearing.
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Seagate Starts Selling GoFlex Portable Thunderbolt Adapter
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I can't believe that Macworld tested this adapter with a 500GB 5400RPM drive. I'm sure that they were in a rush and tested this with whatever they had around, but it just seems a little bit lazy not to test a 7200RPM 2.5" drive (at least send someone over to Best Buy and pick up a GoFlex Pro).
I can't wait to see this with a current generation SSD.
I can't wait to see this with a current generation SSD.
Apple will support USB 3.0 this year when it becomes a standard part of the Ivy Bridge chipset. I disagree that Apple could have "easily" had USB 3.0. Only a handful of the Ultrabooks do, and none of them support Thunderbolt. Clearly Apple wants to promote Thunderbolt, so it made sense to add it to the MacBook Air.
The Airport Thunderbolt Display is a good demonstration of what is possible with Thunderbolt. Once more Ultrabooks start coming out with the Thunderbolt port (and ASUS, Acer, and others have already announced support), we will see more practical devices and the price will come down. The Seagate is a good start. While pricey at $99, it is significantly less expensive than what has come out to date. The next move is Intel's. They own the technology, so they need to come out with cheaper controllers if the technology is to move forward this year.
That's true of almost all new technology. Manufacturers are not going to go "all in" on tech that has yet to be market tested and has a relatively tiny install base. Add to that the extra engineering required w/ TB because it's more than just a faster version of an existing spec.
Mac users must accept that Apple frequently goes it's own way. It's been this way since it continued using NuBus even as PCI became the PC standard. It bet on DVD-RAM and stuck with it until it introduced DVD-R (the first computer manufacture to do so and iMovie 1.0). There is whole laundry list like this.
Bottom line: if you really want/need the Win PC standard then buy a Win PC because Apple, historically, walks a different path.
USB 3.0 ports have been standard on most notebooks for a year now, USB 3.0 is the standard hence the vast selection of USB 3.0 compatible peripherals. Thunderbolt will just be a niche.
Having the best cost... been that way forever! I know, they should just give it away.
Why do people just whine about everything? if you don't want it, don't buy it!
So..this is a $150 premium, where the main benefit is supposed to be the enhanced speed of thunderbolt. But...using 2.5" hard drives means I take a huge it and capacity and *performance*.
This has got to be the stupidest product idea I've heard of all year, and it's no wonder people outside the apple fanatic community already think thunderbolt is doa.
This has got to be the stupidest product idea I've heard of all year, and it's no wonder people outside the apple fanatic community already think thunderbolt is doa.
SATA 3 Support
I've just emailed their support. I want to know for sure if this adapter supports 6Gbit SATA 3. If they say yes i would definetely buy this. (Vertex 3 is waiting in FW800 enclosure
..)
It's ideal for iMac SSD upgrade.
I've just emailed their support. I want to know for sure if this adapter supports 6Gbit SATA 3. If they say yes i would definetely buy this. (Vertex 3 is waiting in FW800 enclosure
..)It's ideal for iMac SSD upgrade.
Video professionals who work in the field would disagree. Just because you have no use for a product doesn't make it "stupid." I have no need for a Red 4K camera.
I went on the Seagate website where they have this product listed. They have a variety of adapter "cables" for drives to USB2, USB3, FW800, TB, and even powered eSATA.
I think Seagate would be just as good a vendor for a TB "hub" as Belkin and such. There is a need for a dual port TB device (I/O) with "legacy port" connections. I think Seagate could pull it off with less marginal engineering than most vendors. Perhaps also add a couple of display connectors as well. They seem to like the $99-199 price point for these accessories, so $199 for a Thunderbolt hub that supports multiple storage and display standards could be a pretty high volume accessory. Something that belongs in every computer store as well.
Rocketman
I think Seagate would be just as good a vendor for a TB "hub" as Belkin and such. There is a need for a dual port TB device (I/O) with "legacy port" connections. I think Seagate could pull it off with less marginal engineering than most vendors. Perhaps also add a couple of display connectors as well. They seem to like the $99-199 price point for these accessories, so $199 for a Thunderbolt hub that supports multiple storage and display standards could be a pretty high volume accessory. Something that belongs in every computer store as well.
Rocketman
This is the same speed of transfer I achieved with GoFlex USB3 adaptor.
I transferred 90GB of Lossless music from my laptop to a 3TB 5,400rpm hard drive just under 1hr.
The cost of the USB3 adaptor was £17 ($30) from Amazon with USB3 cable included.
So from an external storage point view, I don't see spending the extra money for the same transfer speed, unless you want to pair it with a SSD, but how many of us can afford large capacity SSD for external storage?
Absolutely true.
The TB vs USB 3.0 battle really is only appropriate to storage, and even then, TB has a much higher bandwidth roadmap than USB 3.0, which will make it the better choice in the future as SSD performance increases. That said, I would still expect Apple to incorporate USB 3.0 and TB side by side in most future products, sans MBA's.
Once you get into Audio and video creation, TB's very low latency, channel synchronization, and near term optical fiber implementation make it an easy win over USB 3.0.
For the record, I don't think that $99 is all that pricey for those that can use the capabilities today. Otherwise, and as noted by the article, TB accessories should see price drops towards fall as Intel releases second generation parts.
Not to be stupid, but are you saying this adapter would work with one of OWC's SSD drives meant for installation say in a Mac Pro or MacBook?
ie http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/internal_storage/Mercury_Extreme_SSD_Sandforce/Solid_State_Pro/
The price will come down, especially that this year Intel is adopting the Thunderbolt standard. i believe the price of the cable is down below $50 already. As for the adapter, it price will go down. GoFlex USB 3.0 adapter is $22 on Amazon, I would not doubt we will see this adapter go for $60 one day soon this year. And if they can shrink the technology - it will likely go cheaper. Why is it so big.
My concern with this adapter, will it get true 10G speed - since SATA is only 6G.
What is nice about the GoFlex system is that they have adapters for different connections - I don't have a system with Thunderbolt - but I hope to get a 2012 Air - especially if Apple comes out with 15in version.
Thunderbolt will become standard - USB will be around mainly for Mice and Keyboard stuff - but that is going wireless.
A couple years back even Apple tried to kill off their beloved FW on the 15 inch MBP line. The public rose a stink, so they put it back into the subsequent revision.
As for clipping this adaptor on to a HDD, at the current price I don't know if it's worth it. If I had a spare SSD laying around, maybe. Or, maybe if this adaptor was less than $50.
I just wish Apple jumped aboard the USB 3.0 wagon. It is extremely fast and there are peripherals galore available. Then we would have to experience this TB headache. I think it's interesting that Apple included TB in their computers when virtually no peripherals have been available, but exclude more widely available technologies like USB 3.0 and LTE for the iPhone.
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That might be because GoFlex is basically a SATA adapter which is limited to 6G while USB is 5G - but the true thunderbolt is 10G. Maybe they did something special with it - it would be interesting to see how SSD performs with it.
G5isAlive - Technically, yes.
My biggest question (which didn't prevent me from buying the adapter) is if the SATA to Thunderbolt bridge is true SATA III (6Gb/s) or SATA II (3Gb/s)? Considering they're touting 10Gb/s speeds (technically impossible), I would assume SATA III, but who knows.
If I still had a 2.5" SATA III SSD, I would let everyone know actual speeds, but right now, I only have rotational drives.
I know, i know it is 2.5", not 3.5". I just want to show, that it is not a FW800 problem. FW800 is quite fast (up to 95 MByte/s with some of my HDDs).
External HDD in this configuration:
InXtron (was MacPower) SK-3500 Super-S enclosure (2x FW800, 1x FW400, 1x eSATA, 1x USB 2.0) with a Oxford Semiconductor OXUF934DSB bridge
Tested Interface is FW800
Cable length is 3 meter
HDD is a Western Digital WD20EARS (3.5", 2 TB, min. 5.400 rpm (WD IntelliPower))
Fresh test result from yesterday below (click to enlarge):
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