For years, the best way to get 10 gigabit networking on laptops was to buy an expensive, large, and hot 10 GbE Thunderbolt adapter. With new RTL8159-based 10G USB 3.2 adapters coming onto the market, the bulky adapters might be a thing of the past. Just look at the size of the thing in comparison to my Thunderbolt adapters:



2.5G and even 5G USB adapters have been out for a while, but sometimes you need more bandwidth.

Jeff Geerling is a software developer, author, and open-source contributor known for his expertise in infrastructure automation and Drupal development. Readers can learn about DevOps practices, Ansible automation, and web development with Drupal. With blog posts, tutorials, and open-source projects, Jeff Geerling shares  insights and best practices for building and managing web infrastructure.

Jeff Geerling

RTL8159-based 10G USB 3.2 adapters are now available for around $80, offering a smaller, cooler, and cheaper alternative to bulky Thunderbolt 10GbE adapters. Testing across four machines (Framework 13, MacBook Neo, M4 MacBook Air, AMD desktop) shows full 10 Gbps is only achievable with a USB 3.2 Gen 2x2 (20 Gbps) port; other machines top out at 6-7 Gbps. Mac support is plug-and-play, while Windows requires a manual Realtek driver install. Thermals are notably better than Aquantia-based adapters, peaking at 42.5°C. For most users without a 20 Gbps USB port, a 2.5G or 5G adapter remains better value, but for those with a 10G network and compatible port, this is a compelling compact option.

New 10 GbE USB adapters are cooler, smaller, cheaper