ASMedia ASM4242 USB4 Host Controller Chip Achieves Thunderbolt 4 Certification

[btarunr]

ASMedia announced that its USB4 host controller chip, ASM4242, has received Thunderbolt 4 certification, following its USB-IF certification earlier this year. This marks a significant milestone for the ASM4242, toward providing a comprehensive high-speed transmission solution and an outstanding user experience. The Thunderbolt 4 certification signifies that ASM4242 meets Thunderbolt's stringent standards in signal quality, compatibility, and reliability, ensuring exceptional connection stability and compatibility.

Thunderbolt 4 is fully compatible with USB4, integrating power, data transmission, and video display into a single interface, offering up to 40 Gbps bandwidth to meet the demands of high-speed file transfer, 100 W fast charging, and multi-display setups. A single cable can daisy-chain up to 5 devices, driving high-bandwidth data, power, and video transmission. Gamers, creators, and professionals can connect multiple displays and accessories through this powerful connection standard. They can also enjoy a clean and convenient workspace.



ASM4242 is backward compatible with previous Thunderbolt and USB versions, and also supports DisplayPort and PCIe standards, making it suitable for a wide range of applications including laptops and desktops. The versatility of ASM4242 allows for flexible integration into various high-end consumer electronics, providing users with faster and more convenient connectivity.

View at TechPowerUp Main Site

 

[TheLostSwede]

I don't understand why they used a fake image of the chip.
This is what it looks like.

 

[Cheeseball]

Nice. Hopefully it will be used more than Intel's old Maple Ridge crap (JHL8540) now that its certified.

 

[Assimilator]

Fucking finally, I was honestly expecting Intel to announce Thunderbolt 6 before ASMedia got ASM4242 certified and shipped (this is also a dig at Intel because a year after their TB5 announcement there are still almost no TB5 devices).

And yes, before people remind me that it's Intel's fault for holding up the certification... it's partly Intel's fault. It's also partly AMD's fault. But it's mostly ASMedia's fault IMO, and I don't think it's unfair to criticise them when this functionality was originally supposed to launch with Zen 4, two whole years ago which is basically an eon in technology terms.

Also I just realised that TB5 will need 12 lanes of PCIe 4.0 which is basically an entire x16 slot, meanwhile AMD and Intel are gaslighting us with a single x16 slot's worth of IO connectivity. How 'bout you mofos move some of those PCIe lanes down from "HEDT" (actually server now because it's so overpriced) to consumer CPUs? Or heaven forbid, make consumer chipsets that aren't effectively worthless (the TRX40 that I am using to type this message on is from Zen 2 days, yet puts out more PCIe 4.0 lanes than AMD's "best" consumer-grade Zen 5 X870E offering - how pathetic).