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Alternative to MagSafe

maflynn said:
I never got a notification that chat responses are within an hour
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I finally got a response, 15 hours later 😱

Of course he didn't go into detail, just stating its not compatible.

I can see customer service is a priority with Vinpok 😛
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If I'm reading the thread correctly, it seems the most reputable cables are either the ELECJET MagJet, and the Baseus, but it seems none of them have a LED indicating if the battery is being charged or not (well, I don't know if that's technically possible to achieve, or if the original MagSafe got that information from the MacBook through some pin in the connector).

Is there any other cable, with the quality of either the ELECJET or the Baseus, and with a LED telling if the battery is being charged? (of course you can get that bit of information from the icon at the system menu bar, but I admit that seeing either the green or the orange LED in the original MagSafe was a pretty comfortable hint).

Or, wait... can you customise the Touch Bar to see an icon telling whether you are running on battery, on power, or charging the battery? ...and can you place that icon at either the left edge or the right edge, at the same place where you plug the power cable? (just guessing because I never used a TouchBar before, and my new MBP didn't arrive yet).
 
Update (Sept 29): I'm going to buy either the Baseus (or is it Basevs? this to be more exact: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07863DZ4D ) or the Elecjet Magjet (this: https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-MacBook-Reversible-Compatible-MagSafe/dp/B079PYZJ2B ). I want the best, but, honestly, reading the Amazon reviews, it's hard to tell which one is the best: both of them have comments telling of a failure after few days/weeks of use. Some comments seem to assure that the Baseus(Basevs?) has a stronger magnet. Do you have any extra facts that might help me in the choice?
 
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I hate that apple has forced us to trial and error cobble together usability solutions with these sketchy 3rd party vendors because the USB c only ecosystem is so under-developed (even after 2 years!)

I’m currently trying to get a replacement for a monitor adapter that was shipped to me non functional out of the box.

And it seems everywhere I’ve read these MagSafe alternatives are even more so unreliable, yet apples own charging cable is the most difficult to unplug thing I’ve ever encountered.

I never realized how much I took for granted the convenience of plugging and unplugging my laptop through a workday as I go between my desk and meetings.

I really wonder who in these large companies thinks through product decisions anymore.
 
The reason Vinpok states that their adapter will not work on the 2018 MBP is because they claim that the usb c port on these new machines is "smaller", therefore their adapter won't fit. I asked them about this specifically via email, and that was their response. They also stated that their adapter would work on the 2018 machines, but it would be very difficult to insert and remove.

It certainly seems strange, as usb c is a defined standard.

I also asked them if they found the issue which caused their product to destroy usb c ports. They simply said that this was a rare problem, and their newer products are "better".

I was a backer on their Indiegogo campaign, and I have received the product, however I will likely never use it because of the issue stated above.
 
I still haven't taken the decision to order any of these magsafe alternatives yet, because by reading the Amazon reviews, all these cables have horror stories of damage to the usbc port in the Mac, or to the Apple power adapter (yes, very few cases, but even if it's one case, it's worrying, because 2018 MBPs are not cheap).

One thing that seems to be common to all these cables is that they come from small businesses, freelance-like projects through fundraising, or unknown brands that don't even have a website (with perhaps the only exception of Griffin, but it has horrible reviews regarding the too weak magnet and that the connector doesn't match in a clean/clear/confident way).

I'd really wish that some big and serious brand with good reputation at making Mac accessories, made a MagSafe alternative. We are talking about an accessory related to power charging, which is potentially dangerous by nature, both to the Mac, and even to persons. I'd really wish to buy a MagSafe alternative backed by a reputable brand in a serious way.
[doublepost=1538823421][/doublepost]BTW, one more thing: Why are they making these MagSafe alternatives so tiny? Yes, USB-C is tiny, but the magnetic breaker should have the same size as the original MagSafe if you want it to be good and adequate. By trying to make it as tiny as the USB-C, it's obvious the two parts will not match as cleanly as the original, and it will be more prone to fail and have a shorter life. Make it bigger please!! (at least the same size as the original). And make it match in a clean way, with a clear "clack" sound and no possibility of skewed connection.
 
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asiga said:
I'd really wish that some big and serious brand with good reputation at making Mac accessories, made a MagSafe alternative.
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Griffin makes the BreakSafe Magnetic USB-C cable. I purchased one in 2016 and hated it. I still have it, but never use it. I find it constantly separates under the weight of its own cable.

I am not sure if they’ve improved the design at all since 2016.
 
SDColorado said:
Griffin makes the BreakSafe Magnetic USB-C cable. I purchased one in 2016 and hated it. I still have it, but never use it. I find it constantly separates under the weight of its own cable..
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This was even mentioned in the post quoted.. and everyone seems to hate it, sadly.

So far my elecjet has performed ok, the magnet latches on firmly enough. A very few times it seems to fail to negotiated connection fully and has remained not charging, but relatching it seems to sort it. It can throw a little that it takes a few seconds to start actually charging after recognising power plugged in.
 
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iMacDragon said:
This was even mentioned in the post quoted.. and everyone seems to hate it, sadly.

So far my elecjet has performed ok, the magnet latches on firmly enough. A very few times it seems to fail to negotiated connection fully and has remained not charging, but relatching it seems to sort it. It can throw a little that it takes a few seconds to start actually charging after recognising power plugged in.
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I wasn’t sure if anyone had tried one recently. It’s a shame, it looks good and over all quality seems good. Nice heavy cord and connectors. But the magnet is too weak to reliably hold it together.

I was kinda hoping that maybe they addressed it and improved it. But it does not appear so.
 
SDColorado said:
I wasn’t sure if anyone had tried one recently. It’s a shame, it looks good and over all quality seems good. Nice heavy cord and connectors. But the magnet is too weak to reliably hold it together.

I was kinda hoping that maybe they addressed it and improved it. But it does not appear so.
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It looks like they tried to develop a second generation one, but it seems to not have been very successful, I couldn't even find anywhere to buy one of the 100w ones.
 
iMacDragon said:
It looks like they tried to develop a second generation one, but it seems to not have been very successful, I couldn't even find anywhere to buy one of the 100w ones.
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Bummer. I was sooo happy with my original one for the first 10-15 minutes hahaha

Edit: I should have returned it, but forgot to
 
SDColorado said:
I wasn’t sure if anyone had tried one recently. It’s a shame, it looks good and over all quality seems good. Nice heavy cord and connectors. But the magnet is too weak to reliably hold it together.

I was kinda hoping that maybe they addressed it and improved it. But it does not appear so.
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In fact, the Griffin is the one with the best design, IMHO: it’s big in size, so the mechanical coupling between the two magnetic parts can be as good as Apple’s if they designed it well (shocking that some reviews criticize it for being too big: precisely one of the reasons why the rest of alternatives tend to become loose with time and to suffer bad contact, is their tiny size).

Also, the Griffin looks like the one least prone to get the usbc part stuck in the Mac.

But it’s not valid for the 87W required for the 15’’ MBP. And lots of people claim the magnet is too weak so that you need to press it with your hand.
 
I have thought about trying to add a tiny rare earth magnet to each side of the connector. But I somehow also missed that it was only rated to 60w, until I just double check that. So I guess I won't bother trying it 🙂
 
i bought a Griffin and I will never go back or use a third party one again. The issue with these are that they get hot VERY hot untouchable hot. Perhaps this is because I use the 15 inch Macbook Pro which is uses the higher wattage. if you use your laptop a-lot and charge it a-lot i suppose. With any wireless charging or non connecting charging you have heat issues, this is perhaps the other reason why Apple has yet to release their own charge pad for the the Iphone and Airpods, which has been on delay for like 2 years I feel like now.

Anyways again same issue...
 
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I got my magsafe alternative via a kickstarter campaign that I invested in. I forgot which it was. After a few weeks of use, the charging didn't work reliably anymore. I had to connect the cable multiple times and turn it around.

When I finally removed the magnets and inserted the USB-C cable itself I had the same issues. It turned out that the magnet connector somehow damaged the usb-c cable. After buying a new charging cable everything worked fine again.

I will never use one of these magnets again.
 
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cloudyo said:
I got my magsafe alternative via a kickstarter campaign that I invested in. I forgot which it was. After a few weeks of use, the charging didn't work reliably anymore. I had to connect the cable multiple times and turn it around.

When I finally removed the magnets and inserted the USB-C cable itself I had the same issues. It turned out that the magnet connector somehow damaged the usb-c cable. After buying a new charging cable everything worked fine again.

I will never use one of these magnets again.
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Yesterday I realized that my TomTom GPS has a MagSafe-like attachment with its mount. It's a very strong magnet (in fact I think it would be too strong for a MBP MagSafe), but most important of all, it's reliable. I've detached and attached this GPS unit many, many times in my car, and it's as reliable as the first day. And there's no possibility to connect it in a skewed way that doesn't make contact: it has a rock solid design.

So, if TomTom can do it, any other reputable brand could design a MagSafe alternative in a reliable, rock-solid, durable, and safe way.
 
Followup on the ElecJet... mine stopped working a few days ago (so about 3.5 months after purchase). Contacted them, they asked me to send a video of it not working, which I did (as well as showing that the brick worked fine with the stock USB-C cable).

They responded "We are so sorry about that issue. We plan to send you 2 new version of tips today.
Our newest versions of Magjet are in Chinese warehouse, there are old Magjet in Amazon warehouse.
So we send the newest version from China."

I inquired about whether they were certain that it was the "tip" that was bad (presumably they mean the piece that gets inserted into the MBP) and not the cable, and they said they were confident that's where the problem was. We'll see!
 
After a year of use, this...

https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Rep...2493030&sr=8-5&keywords=leonis+magnetic+usb+c

Is still as good as new. No issues what so ever. I bought two, just in case one broke, and I just keep the second magnet on the other side of the Mac, just to use whichever side I want.

I have tried three others that have broke, but this one is amazing. I have even accidentally plugged it in.

I would bet my legs on it.
 
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I am currently waiting for my 16'' MBP delivery and already ordered all kind of dongles so that I can fit the new device into my existing setup.

I work at several locations that provide either 27'' Cinema Displays, 27'' Thunderbolt Displays and/or old MagSafe power bricks.
To avoid carrying around the new 96W power brick, I am looking into buying a MagSafe to USB-C adapter like this one: https://elecjet.com/products/anywatt-magsafe

Did someone already try one of those adapters in combination with the new MBPs?
As the wattage of the old power bricks is usually lower (https://support.apple.com/en-au/HT201700), will this harm the new MBPs or would it just result in slower loading? Does someone know wattage details about the Cinema/Thunderbolt Displays?
 
I'm curious if you have decided to go ahead with the purchase and how it worked out. Care to share your findings?
 
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