USB-C hard drive support on 2017 iMac?

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David Das Author

Level 1

92 points

USB-C hard drive support on 2017 iMac?

I have a 2017 iMac Retina 4k (21.5 inch). According to its specs here it has (quote):

Two Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports with support for:

DisplayPort

Thunderbolt (up to 40 Gbps)

USB 3.1 Gen 2 (up to 10 Gbps)

Thunderbolt 2, HDMI, DVI, and VGA supported using adapters (sold separately)

I would like to buy some USB 3.1 Gen 2 drives to expand its storage. Is it as simple as buying the drives, then buying USB 3.1 Gen 2 to Thunderbolt cables? Can anyone point me to examples of the correct cables?

Posted on Dec 7, 2019 4:53 PM

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Answer 1

Top-ranking reply

Malcolm J. Rayfield

Level 7

23,095 points

Dec 7, 2019 10:52 PM in response to David Das

You just need USB 3.1 10Gbps cables, such as:

https://www.startech.com/Cables/usb-c/

Filter by: USB speed "USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10Gbps)"

No adapters needed.

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Answer 2

David Das Author

Level 1

92 points

Dec 7, 2019 6:25 PM in response to fuzzymo

Somewhat helpful, but to be more specific: I want to harness the speed of USB 3.1 Gen 2 (aka “USB 3.1 Gen 2,” “SuperSpeed USB 10Gbps” or “SuperSpeed+”). The specs are pretty clear that the USB ports on this particular machine are USB3 (aka USB 3.0).

But the Thunderbolt ports on the iMac support USB 3.1 Gen 2 (as per specs above). My question is how to connect USB 3.1 Gen 2 hard drives to these ports. Are there adapters?

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Answer 3

fuzzymo

Level 4

2,048 points

Dec 7, 2019 6:33 PM in response to David Das

https://www.macworld.com/article/3136583/macbook-pro-thunderbolt-3-adapter-guide-how-to-connect-an-iphone-display-hard-drive-and-more.html#usbc

https://thunderbolttechnology.net/tech/faq

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USB-C hard drive support on 2017 iMac?

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