Microsoft for ARM PCs don’t come with Thunderbolt ports, but luckily you don’t have to give up all your Thunderbolt accessories and peripherals just yet.

Microsoft wants to make Windows on ARM a success and is well on its way with the new Qualcomm ARM chip as the engine. Anyone who wants to take such a PC home should know that it does not have Thunderbolt ports. Fortunately, there is a solution to every problem. Future Windows on ARM PCs are expected to have USB4 ports, which are theoretically compatible with Thunderbolt 3, 4 and 5.

What are ARM PCs?

ARM stands for “Advanced RISC Machine” and refers to a type of processor architecture known for its energy efficiency and commonly found in mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets. Every Mac device Apple sells today also has an ARM chip on board.

Microsoft is making a comeback of Windows on ARM PCs by running the Windows operating system on computers with ARM processors instead of the traditional x86 processors from Intel and AMD. These are modified versions of Windows 10 and Windows 11 that are optimized to run on ARM hardware. New technologies from Qualcomm and Microsoft could give Windows on ARM a big boost.

Thunderbolt support

Although Windows on ARM offers many advantages such as power efficiency, mobile compatibility, fast boot time and always-on connection, there is one major drawback: Windows on ARM PCs do not have Thunderbolt ports as it is proprietary to Intel. Does this mean that users who forego Intel and opt for a Windows on ARM PC will also no longer be able to use their Thunderbolt accessories and peripherals?

The answer is no. Although Thunderbolt is owned by Intel and the ARM PCs are powered by AMD or Qualcomm hardware, there is a lifeline for people interested in Windows on ARM PCs: USB4. The new USB4 standard is based on the Thunderbolt 3 specification and can theoretically be supported by ARM devices.

So if you’re looking to buy a new PC with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Thunderbolt 4 has 40Gbps bidirectional bandwidth and 80Gbps unidirectional bandwidth, so you’ll need a USB4 port labeled “USB 40Gbps.” With Thunderbolt 5, that bandwidth is increased to 80Gbps and 120Gbps, meaning you’ll need a USB4 port labeled USB 80Gbps.

It is not yet certain whether compatibility is fully guaranteed. But theoretically, USB4 ports can be just as powerful as Thunderbolt. So if you want to switch to a Windows on ARM PC soon, you don’t have to worry about Thunderbolt compatibility.