Header banner
Revain logoHome Page
Richard Cunningham photo
1 Level
793 Review
54 Karma

Review on StarTech.Com 20Gbps Thunderbolt 3 Cable - 3.3Ft/1M - White - 4K 60Hz - Certified TB3 USB-C To USB-C Charger Cord W/ 100W Power Delivery (TBLT3MM1MW),20Gbps - White by Richard Cunningham

Revainrating 4 out of 5

Works good. A little loose.

If you want a 40 Gb/s 6ft cable, pickings are slim and this is one. It is handling 40 Gb/s fine for my Dell XPS 15 7590 and dual DP docking station hooked to two 4k displays. It is a slight bit lose in the connector for the Dell XPS 15. For the Lenovo T580 and T590 machines I have tried it on, it is really lose and connectivity becomes a bit of a problem. Then again Lenovo has really dropped the ball in multiple ways when it comes to TB3. A couple examples are the T590 only has 2 of the 4 lanes hooked up, the T580 only seems to have 2 lanes hooked up in their multi-port and USB 3 for the other USB-C style port (generally used for charging), so can't do dual 4k displays through one cable. Also the multi-port on the T580 and T590 is super lose. Even when I get the cable positioned so the video isn't cutting out, I am having a lot of problems with the keyboard and mouse freezing up for a couple of seconds at a time once every few seconds, so have to connect the keyboard and mouse directory to the Lenvovo laptops in order to have a usable experience. Plus the Lenovo's won't boot with the docking station plugging in, so have to plug it in after the laptop boots. The Dell XPS 15 7590 on the other hand is smooth sailing on all fronts listed here, so it is not an issue with the cable so much I think as Lenovo dropped the ball on their laptops.While my docking station is rated for 85W over TB3, my Dell XPS 15 7590 reports 65W max delivery, which is less than the 130W is is rated to carry over its dedicated charge port. Then again for most laptops most of the time 65W is fine. I have managed to get it to draw some from the battery while maxing out the TB3 link, but the laptop was also maxing out its temperature, which is not a good way to treat a laptop if you want it to last a while. I do have liquid cooled desk side computers, so my plan is to keep heavy lifting to those boxes anyways, so 65W is fine.The end verdict is with the right laptop, this cable is plenty good for the job. I mainly knock off a star because it is a little on the loose fitting side to the point of causing problems where other USB-C style connectors work well enough. It seems to only be the case of where the connector on the computer / device is already a bit on the lose side with other connectors does this one push it over the edge to be problematic. In places where it is normally a tight fit, the extra looseness in stationary use seems to not be an issue.My goal with this cable is to hook up a laptop that is off to the side to a docking station that is too far away for a passive TB3 to reach.

Pros
  • ‎No
Cons
  • Potential for compatibility issues with certain software