MacBook Pro 2016 Specs Update: USB-C Port At 3.1 Speed Hosts Power For Device, Peripherals; Thunderbolt 3, DisplayPort Protocol 7 Devices Deep?

MacBook Pro 2016 is expected to arrive in the coming months. Two of the updated standards anticipated in the device are the new smaller USB-C ports with high-speed USB 3.1 and the Thunderbolt 3 data connectivity.

Currently, there are some reported incompatibility issues with the controller chip and the USB 3.1 which was also experienced by Apple in its 2015 Macbook USB-C connector. The said device was integrated with a single USB 3.1 Gen 1 connector with a limited speed of only 5 gigabits per second, Apple Insider reported.

However, Apple is suggested to integrate the newest USB-C port with high speed 3.1 in its MacBook Pro 2016. The connector is believed to potentially provide power not just to peripherals but host device power as well.

Meanwhile, the modern Thunderbolt connector of the MacBook Pro 2016 was developed by a consortium of companies named as Light Peak that include Apple and Intel. It provides device power like a USB. It has been noted that the early versions of Thunderbolt provides more power than USB could provide at the time.

In many ways, MacBook Pro 2016's Thunderbolt takes a different approach in data transfer. It is more like Apple and Texas Instruments' legacy FireWire connector than a USB. There are actually Thunderbolt to FireWire and Thunderbolt to USB 3.0 adapters but there is no USB 3.0 to FireWire or USB 3.0 to Thunderbolt connectors, IBTimes reported.

MacBook Pro 2016's Thunderbolt uses a chain of up to seven devices deep and has always contained the DisplayPort protocol. It means that a Mini DisplayPort monitor could be plugged to a Thunderbolt chain of devices without an additional chipset necessary to translate signals to a video.

MacBook Pro 2016 is rumored to equip Thunderbolt 3 in all its ports to eliminate user confusion. Users have reportedly been expecting Apple to refresh its MacBook line and the integration of Thunderbolt 3 and a faster USB-C may be exactly what they needed. Here is more of what you can expect from MacBook Pro 2016.