MacBook Pro with Thunderbolt 3 ports

[RH7]

Hi. I want to buy the newest Macbook Pro, which has only Thunderbolt 3 ports, and no USB ports. I want to know if I'll be able to connect to NI hardware (DAQs, USB-to-GPIB-HS) with a Thunderbolt 3 to USB adapter.

[Nick@NI · Accepted solution]

Hello RH7,

Yes you will be able to connect to those USB hardware without issue. Thunderbolt 3 is an "all in one" port that can run USB, Thunderbolt, and DisplayPort. That means no special Thunderbolt 3 to USB adapter needed (these don't exist anyway). Just use a basic USB-C to USB adapter and plug them in directly.

As a side note, NI has recently released PXIe-8301 (https://www.ni.com/en-us/shop/model/pxie-8301.html) which will allow your Macbook Pro to connect to a PXIe chassis via Thunderbolt. If you run Windows OS on your Mac, you can take full advantage of PXI/PXIe hardware. 

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