Thunderbolt is finally making it's way to Windows OS. The 10-gigabit interface, after being available for more than a year on the Mac OS only will be welcomed by many. Of course how well the Apple- and Intel-developed connection works on Microsofts Windows platform is yet to be thoroughly tested. That is until now. AnandTech has given one of the first motherboards to support the spec on Windows PCs, an Ivy Bridge-ready board from MSI, a good roasting. It sure looks positive in most areas along with a few flies in the high-speed ointment. The good news? Most general storage devices will work fantastically and you can even get some features of Apple's Thunderbolt Display working if you're willing to accept a lack of pre-supplied software brightness controls and USB support but no doubt someone will eventually sort something out here. The bad news comes mostly in the absence of true hot-plugging which the Mac has: if a device isn't plugged into the Thunderbolt port on boot, Windows won't see it. Professionals who need everything to be just perfect will want to wait, then, but bandwidth lovers will still find something to like if they're willing to build Thunderbolt-equipped PCs themselves.
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