Thunderbolt Share was unveiled by Intel on Might 15, 2024, with guarantees of “ultra-fast PC-to-PC experiences” for anybody with a succesful Intel laptop computer sporting Thunderbolt 4 or Thunderbolt 5.
Intel gave Home windows Central Senior Editor, Ben Wilson, a first-hand take a look at its new Thunderbolt Share know-how just some weeks later on the 2024 Tech Tour in Taipei, and he got here away impressed with its potential.
On the time of the Tech Tour, Thunderbolt Share wasn’t accessible to the general public. It is a know-how that requires particular licensing, and it took about 4 months from the tech’s announcement for Razer to announce its Blade 18 as the first laptop with proper certification.
What about different laptops which have Thunderbolt 4 or 5 however lack Share certification? That is the place docking stations can bridge the hole. Kensington despatched me its new SD5768T EQ Thunderbolt 4 dock with Intel’s Thunderbolt Share certification to check out. Whereas I will have a full evaluation coming quickly for the docking {hardware}, I used to be desirous to see how Thunderbolt Share performs and the place it is most helpful.
Making sense of Thunderbolt Share’s compatibility
Thunderbolt Share is designed to work with laptops that includes Thunderbolt 4 and Thunderbolt 5 connectivity. The laptops should have Home windows 11, and so they should have a minimum of Intel Graphics Driver model 0.101.4826 or newer. Should you’re maintaining with Home windows Updates, that should not be a problem.
One ultimate requirement is the place most laptops fail the compatibility test. Thunderbolt Share solely works if a minimum of one system within the hyperlink has Share certification. As I discussed, the Razer Blade 18 was the world’s first Thunderbolt 5 laptop computer to select up certification in September 2024, and I have not noticed any information surrounding different laptops receiving certification (please right me for those who discover different {hardware} with certification).
In my case, neither laptop computer used for testing is licensed for Thunderbolt Share. It might be a non-starter when it comes to testing the software program, however Intel additionally opened up certification to docking station producers. Now that Kensington despatched me a dock with Thunderbolt Share certification, I can join any two laptops with Thunderbolt 4 or Thunderbolt 5, with the dock in between.
After some transient testing, Thunderbolt Share is now a staple in my workplace
With my two Thunderbolt 4 laptops — an HP Spectre x360 16 and a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon — related to the Kensington SD5768T EQ dock, all I needed to do was download the Thunderbolt Share software on each laptops. It is a small file that installs practically immediately.
As soon as the software program is up and working on each laptops, the connection is prompt. You are greeted by a window with 4 most important choices:
- Management Different Laptop
- Drag & Drop Information
- Sync Information
- Switch Information to New Laptop
Management Different Laptop does precisely what it says, immediately opening a brand new window on the management laptop that has the managed PC’s desktop in view. The practically full lack of any latency makes the entire expertise really feel loads smoother than I used to be anticipating.
Choices on the high of the window help you pause the management session, disable enter, and even paste clipboard textual content from one PC to the opposite. Quite a few sizing and coloration controls are additionally included, which do not change the managed PC’s native settings (solely within the management PC’s Thunderbolt Share window).
Drag & Drop Information has its personal twin File Explorer setup to maintain every thing organized. Clicking the device instantly brings up a cut up take a look at the recordsdata on each PCs, and you may rapidly transfer and customise recordsdata or folders throughout the 2 PCs.
As somebody who typically wants to maneuver screenshots and knowledge from take a look at PCs to my most important work PC, this function goes to be extraordinarily helpful and can take away the necessity for additional {hardware} like thumb drives and exterior SSDs.
Sync Information helps you to select particular folders on each PCs, which then robotically sync with the identical knowledge. It is a great way so as to add some redundancy or to make it simpler to collaborate.
Switch Information to New Laptop is a step down from full drive cloning, geared toward those that purchase a brand new laptop computer and need all the information from their outdated PC on the brand new {hardware}. You merely select which PC is the brand new one (and thus set to obtain the information), choose which recordsdata and folders you wish to switch, and let it do its factor.
Thunderbolt 4’s huge bandwidth (40Gbps) allowances make every thing clean and with out noticeable latency, and I think about the soar to Thunderbolt 5 with its 80Gbps bandwidth will actually push it over the sting.
Dragging and dropping a whole lot of pictures between laptops takes mere seconds with Thunderbolt 4, and although I did not wish to overwrite my different PC with the recordsdata on my work PC, I do not think about establishing a brand new laptop computer together with your outdated knowledge would take lengthy.
As I mentioned, controlling one PC from the opposite in a window feels so clean that you possibly can little question trick somebody into considering it was working domestically if in fullscreen mode.
What I need for the way forward for Thunderbolt Share
Thunderbolt Share does precisely what it advertises, and it does it properly. Linking two laptops is prompt (so long as each have the required Share software program), the connection is low latency, and there are not any pointless frills that get in the way in which of productiveness.
The highest three instruments are clearly a boon for professionals, multitaskers, and collaborators, whereas the fourth — Switch Information to New Laptop — ought to change into a mainstream method to put your outdated stuff onto your new stuff with out a lot problem.
As for what I wish to see sooner or later, compatibility is on the high of my record. Sure, I am utilizing the device with two laptops that do not have particular Share certification because of Kensington’s SD5768T EQ Thunderbolt 4 docking station, however the additional piece of {hardware} costs about $300. It is proving to be a succesful dock, however that is not cheap for those who solely care about Thunderbolt Share.
I am uncertain what kind of certification Intel calls for from laptop computer and dock makers, but it surely’s not arriving in a short time. As demonstrated with the Blade 18, certification can come at any time for laptops already available on the market, so I hope to see extra producers fork cash over to Intel to select up compatibility.
I at all times have a docking station on my desk in my workplace, however I will be way more impressed when I’ve Share’s means all over the place I am going on all my trendy Intel laptops with nothing greater than a single cable.
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