Thunderbolt 3 option for GPU -- what laptops are known to have it?

cytherian · 10 Jan 2022

I'm not that knowledgeable about the Thunderbolt technology, but from what I understand it provides a means whereby the GPU can be bypassed to a more capable external GPU docked via Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt 3 was released in 2015... so conceivably, there must be a number of laptop models out there made after 2016 with this option.

But... knowing how tech often goes, I imagine there are motherboard design issues to consider as well. Are there any particular laptops from 2016 ~ 2019 that implemented the Thunderbolt 3 tech well and might be worth getting on the used market?

hsehestedt · 10 Jan 2022

There are quite a few laptops out there now with Thunderbolt. I'm sure that other users will have some specific models in mind, but in general, it tends to often be the higher end laptops like HP's Spectre lineup that have the Thunderbolt ports.

With the latest iterations that seems to be trickling down now as well. Also, bear in mind that we are now up to Thunderbolt 4 as well.

cytherian · 11 Jan 2022

hsehestedt said:

There are quite a few laptops out there now with Thunderbolt. I'm sure that other users will have some specific models in mind, but in general, it tends to often be the higher end laptops like HP's Spectre lineup that have the Thunderbolt ports.

With the latest iterations that seems to be trickling down now as well. Also, bear in mind that we are now up to Thunderbolt 4 as well.

Yes, I did see that Thunderbolt 4 came out in 2020, and any used laptops from that year forward will be a good bit more than prior to 2019. I wonder if there was much of a difference in the specification from Thunderbolt 3 to 4, like USB 3.0 to 3.1?

hsehestedt · 11 Jan 2022

Here is an article detailing the differences.

The most notable differences are doubling of the speed, support for 8K displays, increased security and USB 4 support.

What is the Difference Between Thunderbolt 3 and 4? - Anker

Ghot · 11 Jan 2022

cytherian said:

I'm not that knowledgeable about the Thunderbolt technology, but from what I understand it provides a means whereby the GPU can be bypassed to a more capable external GPU docked via Thunderbolt. Thunderbolt 3 was released in 2015... so conceivably, there must be a number of laptop models out there made after 2016 with this option.

But... knowing how tech often goes, I imagine there are motherboard design issues to consider as well. Are there any particular laptops from 2016 ~ 2019 that implemented the Thunderbolt 3 tech well and might be worth getting on the used market?

Laptops with Thunderbolt 3 or 4...

1 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,1 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,3 x Thunderbolt 4,1 x Thunderbolt 3,2 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 3 Laptops / Notebooks | Newegg.com

Gaming laptops with Thunderbolt 3 or 4...

1 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,1 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,2 x Thunderbolt 4,1 x Thunderbolt 3 Gaming Laptops | Newegg.com

There's probably some overlap on these lists.

You can use Newegg's navigation to sort for Thunderbolt, among other things.

cytherian · 11 Jan 2022

hsehestedt said:

Here is an article detailing the differences.

hsehestedt said:

The most notable differences are doubling of the speed, support for 8K displays, increased security and USB 4 support.

What is the Difference Between Thunderbolt 3 and 4? - Anker

Good article, thanks. Looks like TB3 is pretty sufficient for me, as I don't use more than one external monitor. Here's another useful article. ultrabookreview thunderbolt-3 laptops

Ghot said:

Laptops with Thunderbolt 3 or 4...
1 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,1 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,3 x Thunderbolt 4,1 x Thunderbolt 3,2 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 3 Laptops / Notebooks | Newegg.com
Gaming laptops with Thunderbolt 3 or 4...
1 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,1 x Thunderbolt 4,2 x Thunderbolt 4 / USB4,2 x Thunderbolt 4,1 x Thunderbolt 3 Gaming Laptops | Newegg.com
There's probably some overlap on these lists.
You can use Newegg's navigation to sort for Thunderbolt, among other things.

Thanks! Very useful. Nice to see an electronics retail vendor providing that kind of search detail.

Ghot · 11 Jan 2022

cytherian said:

Good article, thanks. Looks like TB3 is pretty sufficient for me, as I don't use more than one external monitor. Here's another useful article. ultrabookreview thunderbolt-3 laptops

Thanks! Very useful. Nice to see an electronics retail vendor providing that kind of search detail.

PCPartpicker is even better... but they don't have laptops listed.
But for any other computer parts...

Pick parts. Build your PC. Compare and share. - PCPartPicker