[donawalt]

Hi all, I have a 2017 MBP 15", and I had a question that I have not been able to find an answer to. From what I have read, all 4 ports on the 15" are identical Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C compatible) ports - completely interchangeable. Yet, from time to time I read someone who says something like "that only worked when I plugged into a port on the right side...)

Are there differences between the ports, even for legacy devices, or are they truly identical?

Thanks!

[Quis89]

They are identical on the 15 inch model.

Thunderbolt 3 data speeds per MacBook Pro port
MacBook Pro models introduced in 2016 vary slightly in the data speeds they provide to each Thunderbolt 3 port:
MacBook Pro (15-inch, 2016) delivers full Thunderbolt 3 performance on all four ports.
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) supports Thunderbolt 3 at full performance using the two left-hand ports. The two right-hand ports deliver Thunderbolt 3 functionality, but have reduced PCI Express bandwidth.
Always plug higher-performance devices into the left-hand ports on MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Four Thunderbolt 3 Ports) for maximum data throughput.
MacBook Pro (13-inch, 2016, Two Thunderbolt 3 Ports) delivers full Thunderbolt 3 performance on both ports.

[donawalt]

Thanks, this says 2016 MBP. Mine is a 2017. Are the two 2017 models the same as this?

[Abu Khadija]

I bought the 2017 15" MacBook Pro almost 3 weeks ago. All I've done so far is to see if all the ports will charge the thing. All of them do. I haven't yet hooked a monitor up yet.