A string of rumors before the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max announcement stated that both models would feature a USB-C port that supports Thunderbolt 3 ports. Unfortunately, Apple has limited the bandwidth to 10Gbps, whereas Thunderbolt 3 has a throughput of 40Gbps. However, one tipster states that the A17 Pro powering both devices has the same USB 3 controller as the M1, meaning it should have supported Thunderbolt 3, but it appears that the feature might have been removed for various reasons.
Thunderbolt 3 support would likely have added to the total cost, so the A17 Pro is limited to the USB 3.2 Gen 2 standard
Instead of the older USB controller present on chipsets like the A12X, A12Z, or even the A16 Bionic, ShrimpApplePro states that the A17 Pro features the same crucial hardware as the M1 that allows Thunderbolt 3 connectivity right out of the box, but for various reasons, the feature did not make it to the iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max. While the tipster mentions that having 40Gbps bandwidth support on a smartphone would be overkill, there are certain use cases where the increased speeds can prove beneficial.
However, adding Thunderbolt 3 support would no doubt increase cost, and seeing as how Apple already incorporated a boatload of upgrades to the iPhone 15 Pro while keeping the same $999 starting price, bringing another feature would likely have forced Apple to charge customers more. This year, only the iPhone 15 Pro Max is $100 more expensive, but even then, you are getting double the internal storage, the exclusive tetraprism camera, and more, making it a decent value proposition, at least according to some.
Well what happened to Thunderbolt on iPhone 15 Pro Max you asked ?
Well from what i saw, it turns out the hardware of the phone including the A17 Pro SoC support up to USB4 and Thunderbolt 3
But it was off for various reasons.
And we only get 3.2 gen 2x1 10Gbps— ShrimpApplePro
(@VNchocoTaco) October 6, 2023
Also, for those that do not know, Thunderbolt 3 is a proprietary technology developed by Intel, so Apple might have been forced to pay the processor giant a royalty for every iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max had it made the cut. Now that it is proven that both handsets have Thunderbolt 3 support at a hardware level, perhaps the feature will end up in the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max next year. Also, assuming the A17 Pro gets renamed next year, it will give the regular iPhone 16 buyers more functionality, too.
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