Thunder3 Quad X Thunderbolt 3 Storage Solution From Akitio

Akitio release a four-bay, Thunderbolt 3 storage solution for Mac and Windows at the BIRTV Show in Beijing, China.

The Thunder3 Quad X, while similar to the Thunder3 Quad, features an new design and is compatible with both macOS and Windows computers. It supplies 27W of power delivery (PD) to help charge a connected Thunderbolt 3 laptop.

The Quad X holds four drives and can accommodate either 3.5″ HDDs, 2.5″ HDDs or SSDs. It was designed for use with the 2016/2017 Apple MacBook Pro lineup (macOS) as well as Thunderbolt 3 Windows PCs. Developed to handle the data protection and performance requirements for growing media libraries, the Thunder3 Quad X offers fast transfers with the added flexibility of a DisplayPort video output and 27W of power delivery. The built-in power supply adds the convenience of portability and saves the space for the external power supply compared with its earlier version.

“New Apple MacBook Pro users have looked to Akitio for their external Thunderbolt 3 storage solution needs for quite some time now. The Quad X is our third macOS compatible enclosure and will be especially useful for anyone dealing with large amounts of data such as 4K and 8K uncompressed video files,” said Richard Wright, VP, sales and marketing, Akitio. “The Thunder3 Quad X is extremely affordable and will allow users to better store, transfer, save, protect, and edit their creative content while also freeing up valuable space on their computers.“

The Thunder3 Quad X can deliver transfer speeds of up to 1,375MB/s while simultaneously providing two 4K video streams to connected displays, which is not feasible by other common interfaces such as USB due to the limitations of their features and bandwidth.

“Thunderbolt 3 delivers unparalleled 40Gb/s bandwidth through a single cable,” said Jason Ziller, GM, client connectivity division, Intel Corp. “Akitio’s Thunder3 Quad X delivers on performance, simplicity and flexibility only possible with Thunderbolt 3.“

The Thunder3 Quad X features two Thunderbolt 3 Ports and a DisplayPort video output to connect to the latest 4K 60Hz displays while also supporting Power Delivery (PD) up to 27W. The second Thunderbolt 3 port on it operates the same as a Thunderbolt 3 computer port by supporting Thunderbolt 3 (up to five daisy chained), as well as allowing users to connect USB Type-C devices (10Gb/s) such as external HDDs, and DisplayPort monitors.

The Thunder3 Quad X will have a suggested MSRP of $379 and will be shipping in 3Q17.