dinhr
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Q: Is there a thunderbolt adapter-to USB-C for the new MacBook

I have several 4TB thunderbolt external hard drives. I've just purchased a MacBook. The MacBook has just the USB-C port. I can figure a way to get the info from my Thunderbolt drives by first transferring the files to a USB-3 drive then using a USB-C to USB-3 adapter, but I'm hoping there is a USB-C to Thunderbolt adapter available.

Posted on May 25, 2016 10:14 AM

by Lanny,Solvedanswer
Lanny Lanny
Level 5 (7,888 points)
Desktops
A:

No, there is no USB-C to Thunderbolt adapter. If your Thunderbolt drives have USB 3 ports, you would be able to use a USB-C to USB-A adapter.

Posted on May 25, 2016 1:20 PM

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dinhr

Q: Is there a thunderbolt adapter-to USB-C for the new MacBook

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  • by Lanny,Solvedanswer

    Lanny Lanny May 25, 2016 1:20 PM in response to dinhr
    Level 5 (7,888 points)
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    May 25, 2016 1:20 PM in response to dinhr

    No, there is no USB-C to Thunderbolt adapter. If your Thunderbolt drives have USB 3 ports, you would be able to use a USB-C to USB-A adapter.

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 1:25 PM in response to Lanny
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    May 25, 2016 1:25 PM in response to Lanny

    I didn't know there were Thunderbolt drives with USB-3 ports. My Thunderbolt drives, however, do not.

  • by Lanny,Helpful

    Lanny Lanny May 25, 2016 1:34 PM in response to dinhr
    Level 5 (7,888 points)
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    May 25, 2016 1:34 PM in response to dinhr

    I didn't know there were Thunderbolt drives with USB-3 ports.

    https://eshop.macsales.com/search/thunderbolt+bus-powered

     

    The issue with the MacBook is that it is limited to 5 Gbps, Thunderbolt provides 10 Gbps, 20 Gbps, and 40 Gbps in its various forms. So, there would be no way for an adapter to meet the requirement. It wouldn't be able to speed up the MacBook.

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 1:38 PM in response to Lanny
    Level 1 (16 points)
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    May 25, 2016 1:38 PM in response to Lanny

    Thank you. That may be worth looking into. Since I bought my drives several years ago, (from Seagate), I've been concerned that that company seems to have stopped supporting my particular drives and they were not cheap. Thanks again.

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 1:46 PM in response to Lanny
    Level 1 (16 points)
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    May 25, 2016 1:46 PM in response to Lanny

    So, we probably won't see an adapter unless something is done to re-engineer things, which will mean a new version MacBook.

     

    Looks like I'll have to move things I want from my Thunderbolt drives to a USB-3 drive, which is what I was afraid of.

  • by Lanny,

    Lanny Lanny May 25, 2016 1:50 PM in response to dinhr
    Level 5 (7,888 points)
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    May 25, 2016 1:50 PM in response to dinhr
    So, we probably won't see an adapter unless something is done to re-engineer things, which will mean a new version MacBook.

    Well, it is my understanding that there are some PC laptops available with higher performing USB-C implementations than what is currently being used in the MacBook. So, something may be able to be produced with compadibility for them.

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 2:04 PM in response to Lanny
    Level 1 (16 points)
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    May 25, 2016 2:04 PM in response to Lanny

    This is all great information, thank you. Also, I did happen to remember that I can use iCloud to move files and that is all I'm concerned about at this point. I never intended to transfer large quantities of files, my plan was to use iCloud as storage for my MacBook but I can use it to move files too.

  • by Deltaman,

    Deltaman Deltaman May 25, 2016 5:38 PM in response to dinhr
    Level 1 (8 points)
    May 25, 2016 5:38 PM in response to dinhr

    I own~still use several Seagate "GoFlex" drives with interchangable bases (I have USB, FireWire and ThunderBolt versions). If your Seagate drives are GoFlex style, you can replace a ThunderBolt base with a USB base which would be compatible with a MacBook 12" via either of Apple's USB 3 adapters.. Although the GoFlex product line appears to have been discontinued, these devices are still widely available; a USB-3.0 desktop base can be found for less-than $100USD. My GoFlex drives and their bases have continued to perform reliably across multiple OS X upgrades.

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 5:41 PM in response to Deltaman
    Level 1 (16 points)
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    May 25, 2016 5:41 PM in response to Deltaman

    I do remember something about those bases but as I recall you had to reformat the drives somehow. Is that correct? Those bases must cost quiet a bit too.

  • by Deltaman,

    Deltaman Deltaman May 25, 2016 6:18 PM in response to dinhr
    Level 1 (8 points)
    May 25, 2016 6:18 PM in response to dinhr

    I've never experienced any difficulty swapping bases; was only an issue back in OS X 10.4 era. I did quick search just before my prev. reply to your post, but saw many "hits" to "GoFlex" search on Amazon - with a used 3.0 base on 1st page, for $79. Entirely possible you could do better, since I've previoiusly found the bases for as little as $10 on eBay...

  • by dinhr,

    dinhr dinhr May 25, 2016 6:49 PM in response to Deltaman
    Level 1 (16 points)
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    May 25, 2016 6:49 PM in response to Deltaman

    There has always been confusion in my mind about what these drives are called. My drives are called "Backup Plus For Mac", yet I've only seen bases for "Go Flex".

     

    I have four of these drives and within months of purchase, Seagate stopped supporting them, I couldn't even get info from them about these bases, (Go Flex vs Backup Plus). At this point I'm not sure any more time or money spent on these drives is worth it. The drives work with all my other computers it was just the new MacBook that they won't work with and I can do a work-around for files I need.

  • by Deltaman,

    Deltaman Deltaman May 26, 2016 12:56 AM in response to dinhr
    Level 1 (8 points)
    May 26, 2016 12:56 AM in response to dinhr

    For a short time, Seagagte offered Backup Plus drives bundled with GoFlex ThunderBolt bases:

    thunderbolt-bundle-desk-mac-main-gallery-110x110.jpg...called the "ThunderBolt Desk Bundle for Mac"

     

    Apart from the sllver stripe, the drive component is the same as other GoFlex Desk products and they are compatible with the family of GoFlex Desk bases...

    Unknown.jpeg 

     

    Although the answer you previously received is true, it appears that your intention was (still is?) to be able to connect one or more of these drives to a MacBook 12". Since GoFlex USB 3.0 bases are still readily available from a variety of sources — at prices starting in the mid-teens — they represent the lowest-cost means for hooking up any of your existing GoFlex drives to a MacBook 12" — but the connectors on the drives and bases are only rated for occasional (not daily) swapping. Even so, over several years of use, I've swapped bases on some GoFlex drives dozens of times without experiencing any connection failures. The theoretical max speed of USB 3.0 is well matched to the 5 Gp/Sec max speed of the MacBook's port; However, you would still need to employ a powered Multiport Adapter like Apple's own, to reliably bridge between a variety of USB 3.0 device(s) and a MacBook 12's USB-C port.

     

    Afa your apparent ambivalence re. "grafting new legs onto an old race horse" — I cannot advise you on that, but you now have enough info to make an informed choice...

     

    Good luck!