Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Do you have any Thunderbolt accessories? Which ones are good?
- Thread starter Hieveryone
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
- Not to be a bore, but that would be Mini DisplayPort to HDMI. Thunderbolt to HDMI isn't possible.
MRxROBOT
macrumors 6502a
Meh, still using their Thunderbolt port to connect via HDMI but fair point. However, It does seem the OP is more interested in using the Thunderbolt ports on their MacBook as opposed to strictly utilizing Thunderbolt.
I'm trying to use my MacBook to the fullest.
I feel like I might be missing something if I'm not using everything...
And those 2 ports are big part of the Mac.
Donfor39
macrumors 68000
Thunderbolt-Ethernet cable.
Rarely used t.b.h though handy if wifi fails which doesn't happen
Rarely used t.b.h though handy if wifi fails which doesn't happen
satcomer
Suspended
My best friend uses OWC Thunderbay 4 RAID Enclosure to save 4K video shot with his Red camera! He feels he could use/replace with his own local SSDs for cheaper.
Now he is so wondering if Thunderbolt 3 will make his setup obsolete in a few years!
Now he is so wondering if Thunderbolt 3 will make his setup obsolete in a few years!
Last edited:
throAU
macrumors G4
I have an ethernet adapter and a thunderbolt -> DVI adapter.
They both work.
As far as the ethernet adapter goes, it does the job, it just works. The CPU usage it isn't great and it chews a fair bit of power when on battery but i haven't compared to any other gigabit NIC.
I'm not unhappy with either.
I'll use the ethernet adapter if at my desk and want more reliable speed. It's definitely faster for time machine, even against 802.11AC.
They both work.
As far as the ethernet adapter goes, it does the job, it just works. The CPU usage it isn't great and it chews a fair bit of power when on battery but i haven't compared to any other gigabit NIC.
I'm not unhappy with either.
I'll use the ethernet adapter if at my desk and want more reliable speed. It's definitely faster for time machine, even against 802.11AC.
MRxROBOT
macrumors 6502a
Solid point. I've never paid any mind to the battery impact of the TB --> Gigabit Ethernet as virtually anytime I'm tethered with the ethernet cable I'm in turn near an outlet for power. When I'm not connected via MagSafe, I'm never connected long enough via ethernet for me to have noticed significant battery draw.
I'm curious now and direct this to anyone who has used both. How much power does the Thunderbolt --> Gigabit Ethernet draw in relation to USB 3 --> Gigabit Ethernet? It goes without saying that this for 3rd Party USB adapters as the Apple USB adapter is USB 2 and in turn not capable of Gigabit throughput.
I have been using the tb-eth adapter for quite some time now and have never observed noticeable higher cpu usage or a power drain at all. Obviously any device you plug into a machine will cause it to consume more power unless the device powers itself and there will also be more use of resources. None of these to an extend that it will be noticeable to the user or even measurable (it is so tiny that it falls within the error rate of the measurement so can't tell if it is an error or not). And yes, not even when stressing the connection which is nice because fast and long transfers at 1Gbit is what I got the adapter for.
There are some people who have been unlucky with their tb-eth adapter which does indeed cause significant higher cpu usage. From what I recall they returned it for a new one which fixed the issue.
Since wires restrict your movement the most likely place you're going to use an ethernet cable would be at any desk. In such cases it is not uncommon to also connect the power adapter. So even if it does drain power considerably it usually isn't that much of a problem. And since we are talking about a desk, a TB dockingstation is one of the great TB accessories one could buy. With TB3 it will be even nicer because you can then also use it to power and charge the notebook. Looking forward to those TB3 notebooks from Apple 🙂
There are some people who have been unlucky with their tb-eth adapter which does indeed cause significant higher cpu usage. From what I recall they returned it for a new one which fixed the issue.
Since wires restrict your movement the most likely place you're going to use an ethernet cable would be at any desk. In such cases it is not uncommon to also connect the power adapter. So even if it does drain power considerably it usually isn't that much of a problem. And since we are talking about a desk, a TB dockingstation is one of the great TB accessories one could buy. With TB3 it will be even nicer because you can then also use it to power and charge the notebook. Looking forward to those TB3 notebooks from Apple 🙂