Hopefully a quick question. I am trying to migrate data from an early 2014 macbook air to a 2025 macbook pro. Is there a wired connection to go from the mini display on the old computer to a thuderbolt c connection on the new computer? Thanks for any info.
The 2014 MacBook Pro actually has a Thunderbolt 2 port, not specifically Mini-Display.
You can use a Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter and a Thunderbolt 2 cable to connect them and migrate using migration assistant.
click here ➜ Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter - Amazon.com
You can also just transfer over Wi-Fi.
click here ➜ Transfer your information to Mac from another computer or device - Apple Support
The 2014 MacBook Pro actually has a Thunderbolt 2 port, not specifically Mini-Display.
You can use a Thunderbolt 3 to Thunderbolt 2 adapter and a Thunderbolt 2 cable to connect them and migrate using migration assistant.
click here ➜ Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) to Thunderbolt 2 Adapter - Amazon.com
You can also just transfer over Wi-Fi.
click here ➜ Transfer your information to Mac from another computer or device - Apple Support
Flyer1Lake wrote:
Thank you. This early MacBook Air may have just a Thunderbolt 1. It is a very early 2014 model. I may pick up an adapter and see if it works, or I may have to do it through the wifi connection. Much slower for sure. The Apple Care tech person suggested the wifi approach, as they did not know of a Thunderbolt connector that would work. OK, I am confused. HA!
Given the cost of an Apple Thunderbolt 3-to-2 adapter ($50) and a Thunderbolt 2 cable ($30+) – hardware that you will likely never use again after the migration – it might make more sense to buy an external drive.
Unless you've installed an aftermarket upgrade, an Early 2014 MacBook Air would have, at most, a 512 GB SSD. So it wouldn't be hard to find an inexpensive portable hard drive or SSD large enough to hold a full backup, and provided that you got a large enough drive, it might be useful for backing up the new Mac after the migration.
The best way to migrate from the old to the new is to use a Time machine backup created on an external drive.
When you're done with that, use the external drive for Time Machine backups on the new Mac. Anything else is a waste of resources.
Here is one example of a compatible external drive that is inexpensive and available at Amazon: Seagate Portable 2TB External Hard Drive - Amazon.
You can also migrate from a bootable clone backup ("startup disk") made with Carbon Copy Cloner or SuperDuper!.
I have seen people say on these forums that migrating over Wi-Fi is not always reliable. So you might want to avoid that in favor of migrating from a backup (TM, CCC, SD) or migrating over a cable.
Thank you. This early MacBook Air may have just a Thunderbolt 1. It is a very early 2014 model. I may pick up an adapter and see if it works, or I may have to do it through the wifi connection. Much slower for sure. The Apple Care tech person suggested the wifi approach, as they did not know of a Thunderbolt connector that would work. OK, I am confused. HA!
The early 2014 MacBook Air included a Thunderbolt 2 port, not TB1.
MacBook Air (13-inch, Early 2014) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support
Unless it's a Mid 2013 MacBook Air that was bought in 2014.
In that case it would have a Thunderbolt 1 port. But the connector type is the same as Thunderbolt 2.
MacBook Air (13-inch, Mid 2013) - Technical Specifications - Apple Support
Migrating from Early 2014 MacBook Air to a new MacBook Pro....How?
