Thunderbolt 4: Unrivaled simplicity, reliable connectivity, and maximum performance

Timeline of block arrows with advances in USB technology and Thunderbolt releases

  • 1996 USB 1.0
  • 2001 USB 2.0
  • 2011 USB 3.0 / Thunderbolt 1
  • 2013 Thunderbolt 2
  • 2014 USB 3.1
  • 2015 Thunderbolt 3
  • 2017 USB 3.2
  • 2019 USB 4.0
  • 2020 Thunderbolt 4

Maximum data rate

  • USB 3 – 10Gbps
  • USB 4 – 20Gbps
  • Thunderbolt 4 – 40Gbps

Display capability

  • USB 4.0 – Single 4K TV icon
  • Thunderbolt 4 – 2 4K TV icons or single 8K TV icon

Power delivery and PCIe support

Table showing:

  • USB 3 - power delivery (with USB-C connector) 4.5W to 100W, PCIe is not supported
  • USB 4 - power delivery (with USB-C connector) 7.5W to 100W, PCIe support of 16Gbps
  • Thunderbolt 4 - power delivery (with USB-C connector) 15W to 100W, PCIe support of 32Gbps

Supporting products

(with photos)

  • Intel 8000 series Thunderbolt 4 Controllers
  • ntel 11th Gen Core U-Series Processors