Did anyone but one weird blogger think this wouldn't work? It just extends the pci bus, there is still a disc controller on the other end. If someone makes a device with a non bootable controller, then that device won't work. Thunderbolt is completely irrelevant to the question.
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Thunderbolt Supports Booting From External Disk
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A GoFlex Thunderbolt > SATA dock would be nice. Please Seagate, do us all a favour.
There's $20 in it for you!
There's $20 in it for you!
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The problem is that by then, current programs will be out of date, and the new ones will be flashier and more resource intensive. The MacPro will still deliver a smoother, faster experience.
We have been, however, at a point for quite some time where consumer-grade software is "fast-enough" on entry level computers that $2,000+ is simply unjustifiable for a majority of people.
Mac Micro?
Imagine a Mac Mini, a Mac Micro if you will, that did not contain the hard drive or optical drive, with those drives residing in external Thunderbolt enclosures.
Want to replace the drive? Get a second TB drive, run software to clone the old drive to the new one, unplug the old drive, and reboot.
Want to upgrade to the new Mac Micro? Just buy it, move the peripherals, including the drives over, and you've got an upgraded system with all of your programs, settings, and files.
Sure, I know how to do all of that already without Thunderbolt. So do many of you. But I'm thinking about the average consumer who believes that the guys in the Best Buy Geek Squad are technical wizards. Take the pain out of repairs, replacements, and upgrades and you make a lot more sales.
Imagine a Mac Mini, a Mac Micro if you will, that did not contain the hard drive or optical drive, with those drives residing in external Thunderbolt enclosures.
- Your Mac Micro starts having issues with WiFi, video, or just is dead.
- You unplug your drive enclosure(s) from it, take it to the Apple store, and pay them $200 to exchange it for a working refurbished one.
- You plug your drives into that, turn on the power, and you've lost nothing.
Want to replace the drive? Get a second TB drive, run software to clone the old drive to the new one, unplug the old drive, and reboot.
Want to upgrade to the new Mac Micro? Just buy it, move the peripherals, including the drives over, and you've got an upgraded system with all of your programs, settings, and files.
Sure, I know how to do all of that already without Thunderbolt. So do many of you. But I'm thinking about the average consumer who believes that the guys in the Best Buy Geek Squad are technical wizards. Take the pain out of repairs, replacements, and upgrades and you make a lot more sales.
I wonder if you could get any extra performance by stacking the Pegasus external RAID with six SSDs? I wonder how many banks you would need to rob?
So this means I can buy a SSD external drive for my iMac and boot up through it?
I would greatly appreciate an answer?
Some day maybe in the future you might be able to do that. But as of today no one sells an external TB SSD. I bet the first ones will cost $1,000
A simpler way to say all that is this "The CPU box, Storage, and display are all Thunderbird devices that can be replaced or upgraded individuality.
No - they add their own proprietary docking port based on lightpeak/thunderbold - but apparently only good for their own dock and nothing else.
Disagree. I am using an OWC FW800 SSD as my 24" iMac's boot drive right now. Much faster overall than the internal HD.
http://zweigand.blogspot.com/2011/03/original-imac-hd-vs-owc-fw800-ssd.html
That being said, I'm extremely excited about Thunderbolt. It'll unlock the full potential of external SSDs.
Very, Very sweet. I am so glad I waited for a TB iMac, since this will allow me to put in a SSD boot drive once the price for them (inside a TB drive) drops to consumer levels.
I remember reading that LaCie little big drive had a version with two SSDs in RAID 0 (not as dangerous as with mechanical drives but still not to be used for long term storage).
Looks like a ssd or 2.5in drive can be mounted right into these trays without additional adapters
http://images.anandtech.com/galleries/1208/DSC_4156_575px.jpg
Nice!
http://images.anandtech.com/galleries/1208/DSC_4156_575px.jpg
Nice!
I believe it ... I have an older setup cloned to an external USB drive (USB2) and sometimes boot it up - I'm every time surprised how usable it is, FireWire 800 must be great as boot drive. But I also can't wait for the Thunderbold/SSD combination to extend the storage for my new iMac.
Eh, I am personally indifferent. My MBP is from 2010 while my wife's is a 2011 model so only she would benefit.
I am interested in seeing how all this plays out. I don't expect it to unseat USB but I think it will displace FW. That is also assuming we can get over that pesky 6 device limit.
Good to see that it hasn't been crippled. I really want to see this standard take off throughout the industry. It's about time we threw USB 2.0 into the trashcan and 3.0 is inferior.
False: current programs won't be out of date by then. Current programs don't need Rosetta, and I doubt there will be a major processor upgrade within a handful of years which will negate the ability to run 2010-on programs.
Sure, newer programs will always be flashier, but they have come to a point where everything aside from professional video and CGI are hitting a ceiling with function. Web stuff will always evolve, true. Anything with basic writing and graphics and data shoveling is pretty much closing in on a natural limitation, so for 95% of the market, a MacPro is completely over-blown computing.
The MacPro will always deliver smoother, faster, but how fast do you need for the majority of work? So few people need that. Double the speed of the current MacPros and what do you have? A great video editor, a great CGI machine, perhaps. PS filters going from 5 seconds to 2.5 seconds isn't that big a deal-maker. Back in the days of wait-10-minutes-to-fill, MacPros were luxurious for anyone doing professional work in graphic, forget video or CGI. Now, and onward, they will become "mildly better" for the vast market majority.
Computer hardware on desktops is hitting a natural boundary at last. I've seen it progress toward this point. 10 years ago, a "MacPro" (Power Mac) seemed like heaven compared to the iMacs. That doesn't hold true anymore because of capabilities of programs being easily met by processors and memory. The industry is going to change away from the steady pace it progressively, routinely took over the last 25 years. We're right at that peak, at this moment, where the shape and function of computers will morph into something a little different.
Glossy screens + mobile GPU + enclosed happy-bake-oven design = no purchase as a workstation replacement.
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