Apple Might Launch a 4K 60Hz Supported Thunderbolt Cable for its iPhone Pro Series

The iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max might distinguish themselves from regular versions by shipping with more robust Thunderbolt cables rather than the more common USB 2.0 cables. The rumour states that Apple has been using future premium models to test these high-bandwidth accessories, including cables with amazing specifications.

Majin Bu, who also provided photographs of the attachment, says that the length of the physical Thunderbolt cable is 70cm. We immediately noted that it is thicker than other cables on the market, and this is likely owing to the increased power and data it can carry. The designed cable can supply up to 150W of power and provide an output for a 4K display running at 60 frames per second.

This may indicate that Apple is testing the Thunderbolt cable with more than just the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. The engineering unit supports up to 20Gbps data rates, which is equivalent to USB 4 Gen 2 speeds. Such speeds can be reduced to 5Gbps or USB 3.2 if needed. We additionally found that the USB-C connections on both the ‘Pro‘ iPhones and the iPad Pro devices may not achieve the maximum specified bandwidth of the Thunderbolt standard.

Regardless of bandwidth constraints, this cable may have an unlimited feature set. It was previously speculated that Apple might implement support for high-resolution monitors for professional use on the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max, although this capability may not be accessible at launch but rather in a future software update. Nothing has been verified, but we speculate that Apple’s official Thunderbolt cable will be slimmer and come in greater lengths for convenience.

The iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will be the first handsets to feature Thunderbolt connectors, and we thank Apple for this groundbreaking achievement. However, we hope that their capabilities have not been artificially constrained by software.