Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet Adaptor

Reviews for Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet Adaptor

Customer Reviews and Ratings

3.5 out of 5 stars

Based on 84 reviews

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Exceptional with the 2011 Macbook Air 13

    • Written by from White Plains

    Installed the new Driver / Thunderbolt 1.2 Update from Software Update, plugged it in, and zoom. Works great, no longer wasting a USB port, and its super fast! Will be perfect in those hotels with no WiFi. No compatibility issues with my 2011 MBA 13 inch I bought last year.

    240 of 267 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Works great on Retina MBP

    • Written by from Hewitt

    Works perfectly fine on the new Retina MBP.

    218 of 251 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Works if you can find the Thunderbolt 1.2 update

    • Written by from Kentfield

    This adapter requires an update to the AppleBCM5701Ethernet plugin to work. That update was present in the thunderbolt software update 1.2 package. Said update was pulled from the automatic update list due to it crashing non-thunderbolt systems such as old macbook pros. I haven't read a report of any problems for us macbook air users, and it works great on my 2011 macbook air. If you're lucky enough to have grabbed a copy of the update from apple's KB article before it was pulled from there as well, you should be able to use the adapter. Presumably apple will fix this big error in a day or so with a newer thunderbolt update.

    If you know what you're doing, you could always backup your IONetworkingFamily kext before applying the update, and then restore just that kext it if your system crashes from the update.

    Nice performance with this dongle - I get 900Mbps throughput. Driver (and broadcom's specs) indicate jumbo frame support, but I haven't tried it. Jumbo frames not really necessary IMO since the CPU is beefy enough to handle high packet/second data rates.

    Finally a cheap way to get data on&off a macbook air at speeds above USB 2.

    184 of 203 people found this useful

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  • 3.0 out of 5 stars

    Windows 7 Problems

    • Written by from Colorado Springs

    I have a Macbook Air that I installed bootcamp on and primarily use Windows 7 64bit for many reasons (one being my job). I purchased the Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet Adapter and assumed it worked flawlessly with Windows 7 and the Mac OS X. First I would like to clarify for the Mac OS X side, it works great, wish I could say the same for Windows. Here are the list of issues with Windows 7 and the Thunderbolt Ethernet adapter.

    1) If the computer is already turned on and booted into Windows, Windows will not detect new hardware, even if you search for new hardware under device manager. To get around this issue, you need to either plug in the adapter then reboot the computer into Windows or shut down the computer then plug in the adapter and then turn it on and boot into Windows.

    2) Windows 7 does not automatically find the driver, even if connected to the internet. For me this wasn't a problem as I am in the IT industry and was able to find the drivers in a short time, but for the average user, this can be problematic. Hopefully Apple will include the driver in a future patch for the Windows 7 Bootcamp Installer. I downloaded the driver directly from Broadcom's website (NetXtreme Desktop/Mobile drivers)

    3) Having the Thunderbolt to Gigabit Ethernet adapter plugged into the computer disables sleep mode. Even if you plug in the adapter, use it then unplug it, the only way to re-enable the option to use sleep mode is to reboot the computer. Hopefully Broadcom will write a new driver that is S3 Sleep compatible.

    Hopefully this issue will be addressed shortly. I most likely will be returning this item and getting the USB to ethernet adapter which I'm not excited about since it has slower speeds then even 100Mbps due to the limitation of USB 2.0.

    83 of 91 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    It works, but

    • Written by from Coquitlam

    It works out of the box on my MacBook Air 13' - 2012, but sometimes it will hang the Mac when hot-plugged.

    54 of 55 people found this useful

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  • 4.0 out of 5 stars

    Works great! (But don't buy it for MBA!!!)

    • Written by from Vancouver

    Why? This is nothing wrong with the product at all and it works great! The problem is... if you are using Macbook Air and you need to connect to extra monitor with thunderbolt you are out of luck. Either have this or the thunderbolt to DVI/HDMI adpter. I never thought of this until I bought it went home and had the "Ahhhh moment". Get the USB version instead. If you never care about extra monitor ever at all or you don't need to do presentation on bigger screens then sure go ahead.

    65 of 82 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    Stopped working after 20 days.

    • Written by from VERNON HILLS

    Bought it at Bestbuy. And it stopped working after 20 days.

    The size could be smaller. And it quality could be more reliable.

    52 of 61 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    Requires OS X update. No instructions for Win7.

    • Written by from CHICO

    I couldn't get mine to work until I downloaded the update for OS X.

    In boot camp (windows 7) it's not detected at all. The one thread I found explains how to load the drivers but they are buggy - BSOD.

    Only buy this if you REALLY need gig speeds in OS X and have some understanding of how to load drivers in Win7.

    49 of 58 people found this useful

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  • 2.0 out of 5 stars

    Piece of junk

    • Written by from PALMERSTON

    What a piece of junk this is. It used to be so easy to connect my ReadyNAS NV+ via the ethernet cable to my Macbook. Now on the new Retina Macbook Pro, there is no Ethernet port anymore so I have to purchase and use this piece of useless gear. It just does not connect reliably with the ReadyNAS and I have to unplug and plug back in for both ethernet cards to negotiate the IP address. I don't care if there is a logical reason for why this occurs. All I know as the customer is that something that was previously easy and reliable is now patchy and annoying. Apple, please fix this with a firmware or driver update for the Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapter. Please!

    44 of 59 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Very good product!

    • Written by from DIXON

    Now I can have ethernet port when my wifi is not working or when I am in hotels with wired connection only. At first it did not work, gave it a few minutes, plugged it again and then it is connected and ready to go! I have a Macbook Air 2011.

    30 of 31 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Try checking for a Thunderbolt update if it doesn't work

    • Written by from CARDIFF

    When I first plugged the Thunderbolt to Ethernet adapter into my Macbook Air nothing showed up in the Network Preferences. Tried rebooting, etc. but nothing.

    Luckily I had a wireless connection available so tried Software Update and lo and behold there was a Thunderbolt Update available. Installed that and rebooted and the adapter worked perfectly.

    39 of 49 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Not working with 2011 Macbook Air

    • Written by from Saratoga

    Pick one up today at the retail store, I have a 2011 MBA (Thunderbolt port) 1.8GHz and 10.7.4, plugs into the TB port and nothing happens. Went into Network under System Preferences and tired to see if I can manually add, no go... Not sure if I have a defective one or what.... Need some confirmation from other users....

    85 of 146 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Works perfectly

    • Written by from Manchester

    Excellent addition to my Mid-2011 MacBook Air 13'' i5 4GB-RAM 128GB.
    I did install the Thunderbolt update from Software Update before first using this adapter, but all works fine, great product and good use of thunderbolt connectivity, about time such an adapter exists.
    Simply plugged it in to an ethernet cable and it worked instantly. I turned off wifi before first using just as a precautionary measure, to prevent any glitches or hiccups etc. after reading a few negative experiences first using this adapter, but all is fine.
    All we need now is a thunderbolt to thunderbolt x 4 hub or a thunderbolt splitter to take full advantage of the blazing fast speeds offered.

    33 of 43 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Solid and fast.

    • Written by from North York

    Used on a MacBook Air mid 2011 (11"). All updates installed for 10.7.4 and the adapter got an IP address in less than thirty seconds after being plugged in.
    Constant network traffic for at least 7 hours straight and it never faltered.
    This adapter is not leaving my computer bag.
    All you need is to have your MacBook software up to date.

    23 of 23 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Do not use if you want this to work with WIndows 7

    • Written by from marina del rey

    I dual boot my MBP to Windows 7 in order to do work on it. Although I can get this adapter to work in Windows 7, there are two major drawbacks. First is that the dongle has to be attached to the MBP AT BOOT or it will not see it. You cannot plug it in after it has booted and expect Windows to see it. Second is that once you do have it working, the laptop CANT GO TO SLEEP! It goes into hibernation mode, which is a deal-breaker. If you need a network adapter that'll work with Windows 7, this is NOT your product. I am very disappointed with Apple about this.

    26 of 30 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    works great (adds the port that should have been there)

    • Written by from Laguna Niguel

    I used with a MacBook Pro (Retina).

    I connected with a Cat 6 cable directly to a Mac Pro (2008) ethernet port. Using the Finder, can transfer files at about 100 MB/s (as seen in Activity Monitor during the transfer). This is way faster than the 7 MB/s I get when doing the same thing over the Airport Extreme network (WiFi 802.11n).

    Pros: works great. Way faster than WiFi. Adds a port I think should have been there (yes, even in 2012).
    Cons: Uses up a Thunderbolt port (no daisy-chaining this puppy). Is an additional thing to carry around.

    22 of 22 people found this useful

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  • 1.0 out of 5 stars

    Does not work

    • Written by from Dallas

    WAIT FOR UPDTE PATCH BEFORE PURCHASING. Bought this to use with my MacBook Air and Apple messed up the patch to make it work and then pulled it with no explanation (typical). Currently I have an unusable dongle and cannot download any software while at the WWDC since they require you to have a wired connection to do so. Nice job Apple - not.

    109 of 196 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Works great!

    • Written by from Tampa

    Got it because the wifi in my dorm was unbearable and now my internet is super fast.

    25 of 29 people found this useful

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  • 5.0 out of 5 stars

    Waited for update 1.2.1....works great!

    • Written by from Coppell

    I empathise with all the 1.2.0 update users...but you know what they say, there is light at the end of the tunnel. Works like a dream!

    21 of 21 people found this useful

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  • 3.0 out of 5 stars

    Very fast but.... (rMBP)

    • Written by from Uckfield

    It is a very fast adapter, bought it for my rMBP to use at uni. the issue is that it falls out VERY easily, which is somewhat of an issue for me. when working at a desk its fine, but at other times it gets knocked even just a little and it disconnects and takes a while to reconnect. This is annoying!

    23 of 26 people found this useful

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