Intel held a press conference today to announce the new technology and to share details about how the product works and might be applied. The company didn’t reveal much more than Stacey already discussed in her post earlier today during its presentation, but in the Q&A afterwards, we got a better sense of what exactly users might expect to get out of the tech.

First of all, let me say that Intel acknowledged that early pricing for Thunderbolt technology will be in line with “other high-performance technologies,” meaning that it probably will be way more expensive than your standard USB gear. That, combined with the sparsity of other devices that use Thunderbolt will mean that for the foreseeable future, Thunderbolt usage among general computer users will be light.

The class of Mac owner that stands to gain the most from Thunderbolt in the short term is the media professional. Thunderbolt, like FireWire before it, allows users to transfer lots of media very fast between devices, with very low latency and extremely high data preservation. That means that what you put in on one end will come out exactly the same on the other, which is exactly what professional photo, video and graphic design professional need to best do their jobs.

Thunderbolt-equipped digital cameras are a good logical next step that Intel says are already in development, and the tech makes it remarkably easy to transfer large media files between workstations, servers and other devices. Because Thunderbolt can also use optical cables, which can be built much longer than copper-based ones, a hardwire networked studio or office is a definite possibility for the tech.

Professionals will also appreciate the fact that Thunderbolt supports daisy-chaining and display connections. That means you can plug a hard drive into the Thunderbolt port, and then plug a monitor into that drive if it also has a Thunderbolt port, with no loss of bandwidth. Thunderbolt also uses both channels interchangeably for whatever demands are put upon it, prioritizing as needs be. That means that it’ll give priority to display output in order to maintain a seamless image, while throttling data traffic on the same connection if need be. Intel showed off a MacBook Pro rendering in Final Cut Pro while also daisy-chained to a Promise drive array, a LaCie drive and a Cinema Display.

The fact that displays can be daisy-chained with storage should allay user fears that they’ll have to unplug storage devices just to use a second screen. Even if your external storage isn’t Thunderbolt-equipped, I don’t think it’ll be too long before we see hubs that allow USB connections and provide an additional Thunderbolt port for further daisy-chaining.

Intel made clear throughout its conference call that Thunderbolt wasn’t designed as a competitor to USB 3.o, but as a complimentary technology. While the company admitted that we’ll probably see amazing, unthought-of uses for the product, it seemed the company was also acknowledging Thunderbolt would have limited, niche appeal. The impact of Thunderbolt for general Mac users won’t be felt for a long time, until prices go down and other companies adopt the tech into its products. And even then, users are right to worry that like FireWire, Apple may eventually downscale or abandon its support of the platform if it fails to catch on.

Unless, that is, Apple decides to speed things up by including Thunderbolt in upcoming versions of its portable devices. Apple has remained fairly committed to its 30-pin Dock Connector to date, but Intel noted multiple times during the conference call that Thunderbolt is perfect for small devices owing to its relatively minor space requirement, and said as much in its press release. Looking at the size of the Mini DisplayPort on the side of a MacBook Pro, it’s possible that Apple could put a similarly sized port on the iPad or iPhone, though it might have to increase the width of the iPad’s edge slightly to accommodate it. Alternatively, the company could introduce a “mini” version of the standard.

A Thunderbolt connector makes a lot of sense for Apple’s iOS devices, since it would mean syncing even large libraries could happen in a few seconds instead of over many minutes. Thunderbolt also supports video and audio out, making it the ideal all-purpose A/V connector. A Thunderbolt connection would even provide Apple with an excuse for further delaying the introduction of wireless sync capabilities for iOS devices. It does require a small Intel controller chip to manage traffic, but that doesn’t necessarily preclude its use in Apple mobile products.

Apple also apparently has pretty much exclusive access to the technology for the next year, according to Intel, which could let it create even closer links between its Mac- and iOS-based device ecosystems.

Related content from GigaOM Pro (sub req’d):

• 5 Companies That Ruled Mobile in 2010
• 5 Connected Consumer Companies to Watch in 2011
• 5 Connected Consumer Companies That Ruled 2010

Parallel/LPT Port Printing

First, a former PC often has an old printer lying around that might at least have some ink or toner left in it. Sometimes that printer might even be a heavy duty laser printer that unfortunately has a old PC parallel/LPT port which isn’t compatible with your Mac. After you set up your PC to print to the printer, simply right click on Properties and then set print for sharing.

On your Mac, go to System Preferences, and then Add Printer. If you click on Windows, the printer should show up as shared. You’ll probably need to choose the type of printer, since the Mac won’t automatically recognize it. When the ink or toner dries up, you may still want to keep this print server around to offload larger jobs without tying up your Mac or your main printer.

Networked Storage Space

While you’ve got that PC networked for printing, you might also like to use Windows File Sharing and create a network-accessible hard drive commonly called NAS (for Network Attached Storage). Your hard drive will be accessible to anyone in your household. Best of all, most PCs can often take more than one hard drive, so adding additional storage is relatively inexpensive and easy to do.

Besides extending your network storage space and sharing files, you can setup a utility like CrashPlan. CrashPlan allows you to easily backup one computer to another over a network. As always, standard caveats apply regarding setting a proper password, firewall, and antivirus for your PC.

iTunes Home Sharing

Even if you don’t enable file sharing, iTunes Home Sharing via Bonjour will still be accessible to you. Install iTunes on this older PC and store music you want to share with others in your household. With the proliferation of laptops in a household, iTunes music sharing is a bit harder without a central location. Why clog up the hard drive of your other Macs? If you backup your music to this central PC and make it accessible via iTunes, you’ve got a truly win-win solution!

CD/DVD Burner

Another great use of an old PC is as a burning station. Unlike Mac optical drives, PC drives are relatively inexpensive and easy to replace. If you’re making that mix CD for all your wedding guests [Ed. note: The RIAA views this as copyright infringement.] or want to burn 50 copies of your presentation for prospective clients, doing it on your Mac is a slow process and can wear out your drive. After you make a master CD on your Mac, use your favorite PC burning program and burn away! Your Mac isn’t tied up and if your PC burner dies, it’s easy to replace.

Virtual PC Without The Virtual

Finally, the best use of an old PC in my opinion is a faux Virtual Machine. While programs like Fusion and Parallels are great, they’ll never quite reach the speed and flexibility of a true PC. Bootcamp is great, but you always have to reboot to use the PC and its peripherals. I’ve got an older PC that serves one primary function: running Quickbooks for the PC.

Simply add the PC to your network and install a cross-platform remote control program such as LogMeIn, VNC or Timbuktu Pro. Using these, you can generally run the computer “headless”, that is without a monitor.

So the next time someone says “what do I do with this old PC?” you’ll have some great recommendations. Or you could gallantly offer to take it off their hands, free of charge. You’ll nab yourself a handy accessory, and help make the world a slightly greener place in the process.

Related GigaOM Pro Research: How to Get Your Green iPhone App Noticed

Stereo Receiver

I have multimedia speakers, one of the many Logitech 5.1 sets that seem to be deeply discounted at Best Buy at least once or twice every few weeks. They produce great sound considering how cheap they were, but they don’t have a remote and my TV clicker doesn’t control external speakers. Having to stand up and walk to the rear right speaker constantly to adjust the volume makes me feel like I’m trapped in the 1950s, and not in the good, “Those were the days” kind of way.

Light bulb: I can control the volume on my MacBook via remote, and it has both line-in and line-out ports (mini-TOSLINK compatible ones).  The problem, however, is that OS X doesn’t natively channel sound directly from input source to output.

With the help of some Google prospecting, I found LineIn, a simple freeware application that enables playthrough and does so very well.  Setup was a breeze, and with the help of a couple cables (RCA to mini-stereo for TV to Mac, mini-stereo to mini-stereo for Mac to speakers) I was once again in full control sitting comfortably on the couch.

Yogurt Thief Catcher

This is actually something I wish I’d been able to do instead of something I’ve done. I used to have roommates, and in case you never have… don’t. Ever. It seemed like a fun college-student thing to do, but it wasn’t. It was constant fighting and petty squabbles. Over things like who ate my yogurt. The yogurt which I bought with my own money for my own consumption.

Had Air Cam Live Video for iPhone (and the iPhone itself) been available, I would’ve been able to catch the culprit in the act. The application, when paired with its desktop counterpart, uses your Mac’s iSight (or any attached compatible webcam, including those that work with macam) to turn your computer into a surveillance device.  You’re iPhone and the computer with the desktop application have to be on the same network, but that’s perfect for catching thieves red-handed.  Also apparently useful as a baby monitor, if you’re into that kind of thing.

Guitar Tuner

While I am not a skilled (or unskilled) guitar player, I have one and sometimes I jab at it with my swollen, indelicate hand digits. When I do so, I like the resulting noises to at least be in tune, since they could never be melodious.  Various tuning apps are available for the iPhone (Guitar Toolkit being my personal preference) but when I’m at home I use Guitar Tuner by Hidetomo Katsura & Rustle Laidman. It’s simple, clean, and extremely accurate, and while shareware, the price to register is only $9.00. Even my friends with actual musical talent swear by this little app.

Comic Book Reader

It has “book” right in the name, so it makes sense that I would occasionally use my MacBook to actually read things.  High on the list of things I like to read are comics, because they have pretty pictures and  explosions. Paper still appeals to the collector in me, but my bachelor pad provides little archiving space and conveniently forgetting boxes of comics at friends’ houses is not a long-term storage solution.

Thank goodness for the recent rise in the availability of digital comics. Although the big houses (like Marvel and DC) seem to be sticking with web content as the method of delivery, smaller independent studios are taking advantage of image archive formats, like .cbz and .cbr. These are great, because they’re small enough to be easily stored in large numbers without taking up too much drive space, but they require special reader programs to work properly.

This is another area where there is no shortage of software available for OS X, both free and paid. Despite my general reputation as a spendthrift, here (as with Guitar Tuner), I opted for a paid product. Enter ComicBookLover ($24.95). In addition to providing better basic functionality than many of the free apps, it allows you to organize your comics collection in the same way iTunes organizes your music. And it has a convenient laptop viewing mode to automatically rotate the page for easy, readable viewing.

That’s only a few of the ways you can get more out of your Mac.  Stay tuned for more, and send in or post your suggestions below.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial.

• How to Market Your iPhone App: A Developer’s Guide
• Web Tablet Survey: Apple’s iPad Hits Right Notes
• Who and what to watch in the new era of the living room