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MacBook Air & Ethernet
- Thread starter hoyajack
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Thunderbolt (or USB) Ethernet adapter.
http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MD463LL/A/thunderbolt-to-gigabit-ethernet-adapter
There are less expensive USB adapters out there, but some require installing drivers before they work, and they generally are USB 2 speeds, which are slower than Thunderbolt. Depending on the speed of the Ethernet network you're connecting to, that may or may not be a deal.
http://www.apple.com/shop/product/MD463LL/A/thunderbolt-to-gigabit-ethernet-adapter
There are less expensive USB adapters out there, but some require installing drivers before they work, and they generally are USB 2 speeds, which are slower than Thunderbolt. Depending on the speed of the Ethernet network you're connecting to, that may or may not be a deal.
I can think of a number of ways, it depends on your needs. Apple makes a thunderbolt to gigabit ethernet adapter, just plug it into the thunderbolt port and it works, no drivers or configuration needed. Apple also makes a USB adapter, have not checked recently but it used to be USB 2.0 and only did 100baseT. There are third party companies making USB 3.0 gigabit adapters, I have one of these. Kind of handy because it also serves as a USB hub. It requires a driver however, and I did have a couple crashes that could be related.
Then there are third party docks that plug into the thunderbolt port, they have a variety of other ports also, check the different manufacturers. These will be much more expensive and larger than the methods above.
[doublepost=1474645748][/doublepost]Just another thought, since you say you are doing this at home. What year is your MBA? From 2013 on, the MBA has had 802.11ac wifi that is very fast. The Blackmagic speed test reports about 60 MB/sec connecting to a shared disk on my LAN over wifi (I get about 100 MB/sec with ethernet). So unless you really need full gigabit speed, you might want to upgrade to a router that supports 802.11ac wifi and do everything wirelessly.
Then there are third party docks that plug into the thunderbolt port, they have a variety of other ports also, check the different manufacturers. These will be much more expensive and larger than the methods above.
[doublepost=1474645748][/doublepost]Just another thought, since you say you are doing this at home. What year is your MBA? From 2013 on, the MBA has had 802.11ac wifi that is very fast. The Blackmagic speed test reports about 60 MB/sec connecting to a shared disk on my LAN over wifi (I get about 100 MB/sec with ethernet). So unless you really need full gigabit speed, you might want to upgrade to a router that supports 802.11ac wifi and do everything wirelessly.
Thanks but I am looking to use MBA at work to connect to a PC network where there is no wireless. Using Parallels and Windows 10 to use my Mac as a PC terminal. Think USB to Ethernet is best option for me as I will use Thunderbolt for large external monitor. Thanks to all for the great help!
This is what I have, although I have not used it for awhile (802.11ac is fast enough). https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/inateck-hbu3vl3-4-ethernet-converter-review.1731986/
This was a couple years ago however, there may be other/better options now
This was a couple years ago however, there may be other/better options now