The Thunderbolt 3 / USB-4 port of the Mac is backwards compatible with older thunderbolt / usb protocols. Make sure to always look at the product description. You’re just supposed to know what kind of ports they are. Unfortunately the ports on the new Macs, as well as USB-C ports on most other devices, are seldom marked properly. Of course the ports on the new Macs with Apple Silicon M1 CPU accept both Thunderbolt AND USB-C to be connected to the slots.īut you need to be aware that you can’t connect Thunderbolt gear to a regular USB-C slot on your other PC/Mac computers.

There is a BIG misconception about the USB and Thunderbolt technology since the ports look exactly the same.Īlthough the slots and cables look the same, Thunderbolt and USB-C is not the same interface. A very nice and portable docking station for your Mac! Thunderbolt is NOT the same as USB-Cįirst, let’s talk about the Thunderbolt ports of the new M1 Macs. Review of the Belkin Thunderbolt 3 Dock Core.