Intel has released a statement saying it will be discussing “a new technology that is about to appear on the market” on Thursday, the day expected by some to bring updates to Apple’s MacBook Pro line. Coincidence? I think not. It’s almost certainly the roll-out for Intel’s big new interface, Light Peak, which was supposed to hit in 2010 but was delayed.
Apple was rumored to have a hand in creating it, but that doesn’t seem to have been true, although the source of the rumor may have been (I’m speculating) talks between Apple and Intel about developing and adopting the tech. It’s true that Apple didn’t come up with it, but they might have wanted to get in early, seeing it as something that would further differentiate their products.
Could Light Peak be implemented in the new MacBook lineup? And could that be the mystery port on the iPad 2? I don’t know. Anyway, this isn’t really about Apple, and they don’t have a monopoly on the tech.
Light Peak, which may be revealed under a different commercial name, and would be far faster than USB 3.0, bidirectional, and able to be used for stuff like video out instead of HDMI or DisplayPort. It really would be a massively useful thing for us all to switch to, but adoption will be a problem since USB is so dominant. I’m interested to see how things will turn out.