....but still not as good as a real NIC that just follows or creates packet chains in main memory; USB2 is still splitting everything into 512 byte packets, still not able to send asynchronously (has to wait for the next IN token to send a packet) etc.

$30 for a thunderbolt NIC is pretty amazing, and I was just about to buy one to go with the new macbook but then realized I don't use wired ethernet either at home or the office... I suppose I'm going to regret that the instant I want to migrate my old macbook over to the new one, as it doesn't have firewire. WiFi will be painful.