Thunderbolt Backwards Compatibility?

[borisiii]

Hi everyone, from reading all the announcements, I am assuming that thunderbolt is exclusive to the new MBPs, but can someone (ideally with a link to show) confirm that there is no backwards compatibility on older Mini DisplayPort Macs? I wouldn't put it past Apple to extend compatibility but keep quiet about it so more people upgrade!

Sorry if this has already been covered but I mroogled and couldn't find an answer.

 

[miles01110]

What? Thunderbolt is an entirely different interface that has the same form factor as the MiniDisplay Port in Apple's implementation of Light Peak. It will work fine as a standard MiniDisplay Port.

http://www.apple.com/thunderbolt/

One small port. One giant leap in possibilities.

MacBook Pro now gives you access to a world of high-resolution displays and high-speed peripherals with one compact port. That’s because Thunderbolt is based on two fundamental technologies: PCI Express and DisplayPort.

PCI Express is the technology that links all the high-performance components in a Mac. And it’s built into Thunderbolt. Which means you can connect external devices like RAID arrays and video capture solutions directly to MacBook Pro — and get PCI Express performance. That’s a first for notebooks. Thunderbolt also provides 10 watts of power to peripherals, so you can tackle workstation-class projects on the go. With PCI Express technology, you can use existing USB and FireWire peripherals — even connect to Gigabit Ethernet and Fibre Channel networks — using simple adapters.

And because Thunderbolt is based on DisplayPort technology, the video standard for high-resolution displays, any Mini DisplayPort display plugs right into the Thunderbolt port. To connect a DisplayPort, DVI, HDMI, or VGA display, just use an existing adapter.

 

[philipma1957]

If I said only the 2011 macbook pros with sandy bridge will work and give this link would it be enough

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1102073/



https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1100934/


another way to explain it is the new macbook pro is a fire hydrant anyone can plugin with t-bolt if they have a mini display port.

 

[borisiii]

If I said only the 2011 macbook pros with sandy bridge will work and give this link would it be enough

That's great - thanks. That was what I assumed all along but I wasn't going to take it as writ until I read it somewhere.

I'm increasingly tempted by the i7 13" but I think I'll stick with my 2008 unibody until the next revision. By the time they update the design there might just be some thunderbolt peripherals worth having.

Sorry if I wasn't clear Miles; I was asking if pre-2011 Macs were compatible with thunderbolt, not whether thunderbolt works with displays.