Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
1–10 of 324 posts
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#2My takeaway from this is that the $80 Apple charger is definitely safer and has higher-quality components than the $12 cheapo Chinese charger, but not nearly so much better that it solely explains the price difference, and that Apple is making a healthy margin on these things. So my question is, is anyone selling a quality charger without the Apple tax? Is there anyone making, say, $40 chargers that have the components of the real thing?
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#3Hidden gem in this article is a comically bald-faced lie from Steve Jobs:
> "That switching power supply was as revolutionary as the Apple II logic board was. Rod doesn't get a lot of credit for this in the history books but he should. Every computer now uses switching power supplies, and they all rip off Rod Holt's design."
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#4Fascinating. The magsafe connector is awesome in preventing something snagging the cable from dragging your laptop along with it.
But, as the article says, reliability is a problem. The thing is definitely not toddler-proof. I have a 2012 Macbook Air, and I'm on, I think, my fourth charger.
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#5Hidden gem in this article is a comically bald-faced lie from Steve Jobs: > "That switching power supply was as revolutionary as the Apple II logic board was. Rod doesn't get a lot of credit for this in the history books but he should. Every computer now uses switching power supplies, and they all rip off Rod Holt's design."
It may not quite be true, but it's not necessarily a lie. People often don't realise where an invention came from.
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#6Fascinating. The magsafe connector is awesome in preventing something snagging the cable from dragging your laptop along with it. But, as the article says, reliability is a problem. The thing is definitely not toddler-proof. I have a 2012 Macbook Air, and I'm on, I think, my fourth charger.
Had a 2011 Macbook Pro. Was always very nice to the charger, never abusing or dropping it. But Apple's decision with all their cabling to not incorporate strain relief was frustrating. I went through four chargers in four years.
Why does Apple continue to ignore strain relief on their cabling?
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#7My takeaway from this is that the $80 Apple charger is definitely safer and has higher-quality components than the $12 cheapo Chinese charger, but not nearly so much better that it solely explains the price difference, and that Apple is making a healthy margin on these things. So my question is, is anyone selling a quality charger without the Apple tax? Is there anyone making, say, $40 chargers that have the componen…
I've bought two replica chargers for $20-30 off ebay.. i'm on my second. The first one lasted a year, which is about how long my original charger lasted due to the cord fraying
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#8My takeaway from this is that the $80 Apple charger is definitely safer and has higher-quality components than the $12 cheapo Chinese charger, but not nearly so much better that it solely explains the price difference, and that Apple is making a healthy margin on these things. So my question is, is anyone selling a quality charger without the Apple tax? Is there anyone making, say, $40 chargers that have the componen…
Or is there a charger at Apple's price, but more reliable?
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#9Fascinating. The magsafe connector is awesome in preventing something snagging the cable from dragging your laptop along with it. But, as the article says, reliability is a problem. The thing is definitely not toddler-proof. I have a 2012 Macbook Air, and I'm on, I think, my fourth charger.
Had a 2011 Macbook Pro. Was always very nice to the charger, never abusing or dropping it. But Apple's decision with all their cabling to not incorporate strain relief was frustrating. I went through four chargers in four years. Why does Apple continue to ignore strain relief on their cabling?
> Why does Apple continue to ignore strain relief on their cabling?
Form > Function
Re: Macbook charger teardown: surprising complexity inside Apple's power adapter
#10My takeaway from this is that the $80 Apple charger is definitely safer and has higher-quality components than the $12 cheapo Chinese charger, but not nearly so much better that it solely explains the price difference, and that Apple is making a healthy margin on these things. So my question is, is anyone selling a quality charger without the Apple tax? Is there anyone making, say, $40 chargers that have the componen…
I've bought two replica chargers for $20-30 off ebay.. i'm on my second. The first one lasted a year, which is about how long my original charger lasted due to the cord fraying
The OP shows why replica chargers are not a good idea. You're lucky if it doesn't destroy your machine.