USB-C is a standard implemented by the Apple company in the new MacBook Retina, the product having a single connector of this kind instead of the multiple connectors used in the past. Although users are not, to a great extent, satisfied with the choice made by Apple, those from Intel still made the decision to adopt the USB-C standard for Thunderbolt 3, so that future Macs will have this type port instead of the classic ones.
Intel claims that the USB-C standard has great potential thanks to its versatility, allowing simultaneous charging and data transfer, while offering compatibility with a multitude of other standards. Adding the fact that a USB-C port is reversible and has small dimensions, Intel considers that its adoption of Thunderbolt 3 is a logical measure, so that future laptops will have USB-C ports.
Thunderbolt was developed to simultaneously support the fastest data and most video bandwidth available on a single cable, while also supplying power. Then recently the USB group introduced the USB-C connector, which is small, reversible, fast, supplies power, and allows other I/O in addition to USB to run on it, maximizing its potential. So in the biggest advancement since its inception, Thunderbolt 3 brings Thunderbolt to USB-C at 40Gbps, fulfilling its promise, creating one compact port that does it all.
Thanks to this implementation, data can be transferred via USB-C at speeds of up to 40 Gbps, so theoretically any kind of data should be able to be transferred at very high speeds in almost any kind of conditions. Moreover, the port is compact and allows the connection of a multitude of other cables, so users will not have problems connecting monitors, accessories or charging.
It is not yet known when new Macs with USB-C ports will be released, but probably by the end of this year Apple will extend the implementation to new products, along with some design changes.
