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Filing the corners off my MacBooks

kentwalters.com

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Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#351

Post by normie3000 »

ranger207 wrote: post #304
sitharus wrote: post #250

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They can’t, it’s caused by the capacitors required to suppress electromagnetic interference caused by the switch-mode power supply. These allow a very very tiny amount of current to leak through from the mains side, which is then capacitively coupled to the metal case (IIRC Apple do not connect the case to power negative) reducing it further, but it’s enough for humans to sense it. It can be avoided by using a ground…

Why do only Macbooks suffer from this problem? When I had a work-issued Macbook I charged it and my personal Framework off the same USB-C charger and I only every felt the leaking current from the Macbook

Additional question: why do only some people notice?

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#352

Post by masklinn »

ddlsmurf wrote: post #243
russelg wrote: post #238

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you swap in the extension cable head, that does indeed have a ground pin, at least in Australia anyway. The grounding comes from that metal ring that the connector uses as a guide. https://www.apple.com/au/shop/product/mw2n3x/a/power-adapter...

only two prongs of which make it through. Usually the regulation as I understand is that it's fine if you can prove the case can never get in contact with anything electric, for most laptops that's just being made of plastic.

> only two prongs of which make it through

The big recess above the pins is what encases the button of the charger and provides grounding if it includes metal strips. Assuming the charger itself has a metal button.

In the EU a grounded cable has been the default forever (I have a grounded cable from my 2010 MBP which I use as travel cable for my 2021 MBP)

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#354

Post by sitharus »

normie3000 wrote: post #351
ranger207 wrote: post #304

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why do only Macbooks suffer from this problem? When I had a work-issued Macbook I charged it and my personal Framework off the same USB-C charger and I only every felt the leaking current from the Macbook

Additional question: why do only some people notice?

It’ll depend on how well grounded you are compared to how well grounded the laptop is, where it’s touching your body, and your sensitivity to electricity which varies.

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#355

Post by ebbi »

robotbikes wrote: post #282
sitharus wrote: post #250

Earlier quoted context omitted.

They can’t, it’s caused by the capacitors required to suppress electromagnetic interference caused by the switch-mode power supply. These allow a very very tiny amount of current to leak through from the mains side, which is then capacitively coupled to the metal case (IIRC Apple do not connect the case to power negative) reducing it further, but it’s enough for humans to sense it. It can be avoided by using a ground…

I once had an HP with an aluminum case and it had a grounded power supply but if you plugged it in without grounding his an adapter (sometimes you gotta do what you gotta do). You could feel it straight up vibrate while conducting current if you rubbed your hand over it. Not enough to shock me but it felt like kind of a shoddy design and leaked a lot more current than I've felt on a MacBook.

Is that what it is! On my pre-unibody MBP I used to run my finger across the body sometimes and it had this weird wavy feeling (honestly can't describe it well). I thought it was just a quirk of the aluminium itself!

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#357

Post by Lio »

compounding_it wrote: post #275
jasoneckert wrote: post #222

Thanks for this interesting post - I've been showing it to co-workers to get their reactions, which was incredibly entertaining for me! Co-worker 1: Interesting. I wonder if that voids the warranty. It's Apple you know. Co-worker 2: May Jobs have mercy on their soul... Co-worker 3: Not a bad idea. But not sure if that would cause problems with structural integrity of the laptop, like if you drop it or something. Co-w…

I’d suggest if you are going to do this to your MacBooks to get the silver one. The silver one is actually aluminum and no one would notice.

I’d actually be interested to see it on a black one. It might look like “brassing” on an old, well used camera.

Whilst I like that it increases the “tooliness” of the Mac it’s not of me I think.

I like mine pristine. ”There are many like it but this one is mine”, yada, yada.

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#358

Post by VorpalWay »

jaggederest wrote: post #305
Tempest1981 wrote: post #298

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What tools are needed to redo the anodized color? Is it doable at home?

To echo the sibling comment: approximately not, it's a strong acid bath which precludes operating electronics in it, and it's electrochemistry. People do home anodizing all the time, but colored home anodizing on electronics is very rare. The way to do it would be wrapping it in, say, a wet paper towel with your strong acid solution (but not sulfuric, because that would turn the paper into pure carbon foam) and runni…

Wouldn't you want to completely disassemble the laptop first anyway, at which point the electronics would be disconnected from the metal parts anyway?

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#359

Post by LtWorf »

cesarvarela wrote: post #114
LtWorf wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't think apple computers are meant for people who do use computers. I used to have marks on my wrists (I no longer have an apple computer now).

Tell that to the people responsible for the trackpads of any other computer maker.

I wouldn't know, I use a trackpoint :)

Re: Filing the corners off my MacBooks

#360

Post by jaggederest »

VorpalWay wrote: post #358
jaggederest wrote: post #305

Earlier quoted context omitted.

To echo the sibling comment: approximately not, it's a strong acid bath which precludes operating electronics in it, and it's electrochemistry. People do home anodizing all the time, but colored home anodizing on electronics is very rare. The way to do it would be wrapping it in, say, a wet paper towel with your strong acid solution (but not sulfuric, because that would turn the paper into pure carbon foam) and runni…

Wouldn't you want to completely disassemble the laptop first anyway, at which point the electronics would be disconnected from the metal parts anyway?

You really can't fully disassemble current macbooks and put them back together without major tooling - the chassis is not just a wrapper, it's structural to the way they're interconnected, lots of glue and things like that.
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