Intel's Light Peak technology is one that the chip company touts as being a possible future replacement for USB, HDMI and even DisplayPort. With the 10Gb/s in both directions being possible now, it's already impressive – but Intel says that it's just the beginning.
"Light Peak begins at 10Gbits/sec, simultaneously in both directions," said Intel's chief technology officer, Justin Rattner, to PC Pro. "We expect to increase that speed dramatically. You'll see multiple displays being served by a single Light Peak connection. There's almost no limit to the bandwidth - fibres can carry trillions of bits per second."
Intel demonstrated Light Peak running from a laptop that was streaming two high-definition video feeds to a single display. Observers said that they could not see any signs of lag.
Light Peak hardware is supposed to hit later this year, but Intel hopes that the technology will stick and have time to grow.
"The potential of that headroom will lead people to rethink the design of their systems," Rattner said. "We've very, very excited about the potential of Light Peak."
