

- Best mac ethernet adapter upgrade#
- Best mac ethernet adapter full#
- Best mac ethernet adapter portable#
- Best mac ethernet adapter pro#
- Best mac ethernet adapter free#
Also, users may want to have an upgraded networking experience that is much faster than the default Wi-Fi and Ethernet NICs on their devices without having to upgrade the whole laptop.īesides, there's also the issue of security. Sure, we do have many high-end gaming routers on the market that narrow the gap between Ethernet and Wi-Fi, but performance-conscious users and pro-gamers still swear by wired Ethernet. While these are not completely invalid reasons, wired Ethernet is still the best choice when it comes to raw performance, particularly for gamers and power users.
Best mac ethernet adapter portable#
It hinders creating extremely thin and portable designs.

In pursuit of thin and light utopia, we are seeing a trend where OEMs don't mind leaving out the Ethernet port, the popular arguments being: While this immensely helps with portability, the downside is that OEMs have to cut down on port selection in order to achieve the slimness targets that are demanded by the market.
Best mac ethernet adapter free#
If you don’t care about portability, and desire a 10GbE solution with additional I/O, then I recommend checking out the Thunder3 Dock Pro, which you can learn more about in our video below.ĭo you currently use 10GbE? Feel free to share your thoughts about the T3-10G down below in the comments.Thin and light laptops are fast becoming the order of the day thanks to the availability of highly energy-efficient processing that does not require a massive cooling setup to deliver great performance. It’s the difference between having a NAS that can accommodate realtime 4K video editing, and having one that can’t.Īkitio is very good at making Thunderbolt 3 products, and they have a ton of experience under their belt. If you need 10GbE connectivity on your MacBook Pro, then this, along with the slightly more expensive Sonnet Solo 10G adapter, is one of the best options that I’ve seen.
Best mac ethernet adapter full#
As you might imagine, the difference between Gigabit Ethernet and 10 Gigabit Ethernet is immediately apparent when working with a NAS full of stripped hard drives. I used the adapter to connect to Synology’s DS1817, a NAS machine that features built-in 10GbE connectivity. Because of this design, the T3-10G is dead quiet when in use, which is music to the ears of anyone who works in audio or video production. This necessitates its size and build, as the large gaps facilitate airflow, and the heatsink helps keep things nice and cool. Instead of building the adapter with a fan, Akitio wisely opted for a passive cooling setup. Keep in mind that it’s pushing a whole lot of data, which uses electricity, which in turn generates heat. Though small compared to Akitio’s other 10GbE dock, the T3-10G is still quite a bit bigger than your typical Gigabit Ethernet dongle. I suggest removing the bumper if it’ll be primarily stationed on your desktop.
Best mac ethernet adapter pro#
The fact the T3-10G is bus-powered makes it particularly appealing for MacBook Pro users.Īkitio includes a removable bumper, which is great for travel, but it also adds a little more bulk to the package. Subscribe to 9to5Mac on YouTube for more videosĪs mentioned, this isn’t Akitio’s first crack at making a 10 Gigabit Thunderbolt 3 Ethernet adapter, but it’s definitely its most compact and portable solution.

Large gaps for airflow and heatsink for passive cooling.Ethernet port supports auto-negotiation for 10Gb/s, 5Gb/s, 2.5Gb/s, 1Gb/s and 100Mb/s.Thunderbolt 3 interface with reversible USB-C connector.

Watch our hands-on video review for the details. If that describes your situation, you’ll be happy to know that the prolific Thunderbolt 3 hardware manufacturer has the T3-10G, a much smaller bus-powered 10 Gigabit Thunderbolt 3 Ethernet adapter. But what if you have a regular iMac or MacBook Pro? You can use Akitio’s Thunder3 Dock Pro ( review), which provides 10 Gigabit Thunderbolt 3 Ethernet, but that may be overkill if you just need to upgrade your network connection. The iMac Pro comes with 10 Gigabit Ethernet out of the box, which is great for connecting to high speed networks and devices like NAS boxes.
