Thunderbolt 3 Laptops – The complete list of 2021

Recently, Thunderbolt 3 has become a standard port for laptops. At the same time, more and more expansion devices will support this port. A wide range of devices, from docking stations with simple expansion features to external graphics cards, which can significantly improve laptop performance, all support Thunderbolt 3.

In the future, it will be widely applied. Therefore, it is necessary for users to buy a laptop with a Thunderbolt 3 port when replacing their old laptop. Currently, a limited number of high-end laptops offer Thunderbolt 3 ports on the market. In the table below, we will list the current Thunderbolt 3 laptops on the market.

Due to its cost and other reasons, the port is only available for high-end lightweight laptops and motherboards. In addition, only a few external devices support Thunderbolt 3, and it has not yet been widely adopted in products. However, one of Intel’s policies may make it gradually popular. Intel has announced that it will integrate the Thunderbolt 3 control unit directly into the CPU in the future and make the technology available to partners for free. They will also work with Microsoft to enable the system to directly support TB3 and achieve hot-plugging.

This makes it easier to integrate Thunderbolt 3 into laptop products, and Thunderbolt can be found in lightweight laptops in the future. Thunderbolt 3 has a high transfer speed, which makes it easier for lightweight laptops to use external graphics cards. In addition, once it is widely used, it will be possible for one port to replace multiple ports. For example, only Thunderbolt 3 can achieve all the features that multiple USB ports and HDMI ports have. Therefore, the price will be lower as the number of docking stations increases in the future.

12.5-13.3 inch ultrabooks

Please click the laptop model to see its teardown guide.

14.0-17.3 inch laptops

Owing to the development of broadband, it can support two 4K displays or a 5K display and successfully transfer a 4K video within 30 seconds. In the meantime, it can utilize a new USB Type-C port to achieve such a high transfer speed instead of a Mini DisplayPort. Undoubtedly, this will greatly benefit both device manufacturers and host computer manufacturers.
The transfer speeds up to 40 Gbps. Source

The port has better performance compared to the first and second generations. It uses technology that has made significant breakthroughs, and its compatibility and adaptability have been greatly improved. To provide maximum speed, it has a bandwidth of up to 40Gb/s, which is eight times faster than USB 3.0 ports and four times faster than USB 3.1 ports.

In addition, the port provides devices with more power, supporting a 100W power supply, and offers devices a maximum charging power of 15W. Intel also provides the same alternate mode, which allows the Thunderbolt signal to pass through PCIe. Since the USB 3.1 10 Gbps control unit is integrated into the Thunderbolt control unit, it also fully supports USB 3.1.

In general, Thunderbolt 3 can handle many tasks that require many ports. That’s why more and more laptops are looking for perfect lightweight features that only offer USB Type-C with Thunderbolt 3 support. After all, in addition to the device, keyboard, and motherboard, the lightness and thickness of a lightweight laptop depend on the expansion ports.

As a computer protocol, Thunderbolt can be thought of as a transport technology rather than a port for laptops. The implementation of Thunderbolt 3 technology relies heavily on USB Type-C ports. Unlike other hardware that uses USB Type-C ports, USB Type-C that supports Thunderbolt 3 has a small flash symbol printed on both the plug and connector to represent TB3.