27-inch Thunderbolt Displays start to trickle out
The new 27-inch Apple display has the distinction of being the the world's first Thunderbolt display and comes in at the same $999 price point as its predecessor. Although it depends on availability, there's a good possibility that Apple will drop the price of any remaining non-Thunderbolt 27-inch inventory by $100 to $200 -- so deal-hunters should be on the lookout after T-Bolt ships.
In addition to its 2560 x 1440 LED-backlit resolution, FaceTime HD camera, high-quality audio, the new Apple Thunderbolt Display is also the world's first Thunderbolt hub using a single Thunderbolt cable to expand to three USB 2.0 ports, a FireWire 800 port, a Gigabit Ethernet port, and a Thunderbolt port for daisy-chaining additional devices.
This will come as great news for those who have been waiting for almost two month for the new monitor's release. Announced on July 20, 2011, it was quoted as being available "within the next 60 days." I placed an order on July 20 and Apple's order status page indicates that mine is slated to ship on September 15 with delivery on September 17. Yee haw!
I use the current Apple 27-inch LED Display and hope that Apple put a little more slack between the Thunderbolt and Magsafe cable ends on the new model. It's a bit of a stretch (although possible) to connect the existing 27-inch display's cable to a MacBook Air because the power and Thunderbolt ports are on opposite sides of that machine.
Now, all I need is for Drobo to announce Thunderbolt support and I'll be all set!
What's your take? Thunderbolt or USB 3.0?
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