Am I the only one to remember that the PowerBook used to come with international power adaptors??
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Compact MacBook Pro Power Adapter
- Thread starter pianos101
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I liked the bigger brick because it showed this "Intel chips are lower power" rubbish for what it is...
That said, I'm glad they shrunk it before I actually had to buy one. The AC adapter for my PowerBook has always drawn admiration from coworkers-- or I should say further admiration after they've finished commenting that I've gone through most of an all day meeting without needing to plug in at all...
Given that most laptops can only run 2-4 hours on battery, I'm amazed that so many manufacturers ignore the design of the AC adapter. What's the point of a slim and light laptop if you need to carry it in a suitcase to bring all the cords and cables along. I love that when I travel to Europe, I can disconnect the adapter from the extension cable and just carry two tiny 2-prong adapters with me and still charge in US airports and European hotels. I love the fold out tabs to store the length of wire and the little dohickey that snaps back to the wire so it doesn't unwind. And I love that it's small enough to just throw in my backpack without taking a ton of room.
I also like that my iPod doesn't require a separate adapter to charge-- just wish it didn't require yet-another-unique cable.
Not only is the [Power/Mac]Book[Pro] itself more portable than most PCs, the system is much more portable and easy to use.
The MBP brick was larger for a reason - higher wattage meant more heat generated on charging, and the larger the brick, the less concentrated the heat, which was dissipating.
I am a little concerned about the shrinking of the housing. I have not heard about any recent breakthroughs in adapter technology which will almost halve the surface area required to let heat escape safely.
Let's hope that we don't have a repeat a few months down the line of the Airport Express units crapping out because of inadequate cooling.
I am a little concerned about the shrinking of the housing. I have not heard about any recent breakthroughs in adapter technology which will almost halve the surface area required to let heat escape safely.
Let's hope that we don't have a repeat a few months down the line of the Airport Express units crapping out because of inadequate cooling.
What are you talking about?
As a former non-Mac portable user, power bricks vary in size depending on manufacturer. I've used portables where the adapter takes up as much equivalent space, though admittedly not in the same dimensions, as the Power/MacBook Pro. I'm not sure why the iPod makes it into your post as it has nothing to do with anything. I must run my Mac through the ringer when typing because I don't usually make it past four hours.
I don't know where this more portable comes in. The Thinkpad T series, some models of Toughbooks and I'm sure Dell makes laptops that are as portable as a Mac.
Back on topic, anyone know why the original brick was so large? I'll admit, I was surprised a maybe disappointed it was big when I got my MacBook Pro but it isn't anything I lose sleep over. Is it really some Intel chip power requirement?
I could do with one of these, in fact I posted it as "next Apple product I'm waiting for" recently! It looks as though it's the same size as the old PowerBook power bricks. Great that it's smaller than the existing MBP charger but shame they couldn't make it *even* smaller.
Perhaps now people won't be thinking that I have an external hard drive on my desk. (I actually get that a lot of times)
It often means that a thread on the topic with a link to the same article/ sources was started before the official MacBytes thread. So we merge the threads together but as one was started earlier (earlier time stamp) it's got a few posts before the official banner post.When someone posts some news they've picked up why does Admin post the same news lower down the page (or the next page even)? If you have to repeat it why not move it to the first post? It's like deja vu.
Does that make any sense? I'm workin' off not enough sleep.
bummer. i have two of the old mbp adapters - one for work, one for home. guess i'll just have to live with a bigger power brick.
ehh, i just bought my SR MBP, it hasn't shipped yet, so maybe I'll get the new one.
in any case, i'll be happy.
in any case, i'll be happy.
Well, I think as far as 15.4" machines go, most of the competition doesn't have anything quite in the weight and dimension range as the MBP. The T series is somewhat close I guess (and the extra size and weight is made up for with the T series with things like it's internal rollcage, etc.).
Obviously there are overall more portable machines (Sony Vaio TX, ThinkPad X61, etc.).
But people often leave the power brick out of the equation; my previous laptop was a 3.7 pound ~1" thick Sony Vaio SZ, and it was pretty nice, but had a big annoying power adapter that often got tangled up, etc.
But I don't know, of all the laptops I've owned, none of them have had power bricks as elegantly designed as the MB and MBP ones. Even my Sony Vaio SZ, which itself was very thin and lightweight, came with a fairly generic power brick, with thick heavy cables and some velcro to tie them together.
Dell's new XPS M1330, similarly, at least comes with a relatively small power brick, but it still has the same thick heavy cables that you have to wrap up with some velcro.
Personally I've never seen a laptop power brick as well designed the MB and MBP one; with the prongs integrated into the adapter (thus removing one thick heavy chord), and the fold-out wings to wrap the other end of the cable around, make for a much more easy to manage and compact package (not to mention that the power cable on the MB and MBP power brick is a lot thinner even than most other power bricks I've seen).... even down to the little rubber thing to "grab" part of the cable so it doesn't come loose.
Personally I wish more PC makers could "copy" this. I mean, it always baffled me, having my 3.7" pound around 1" thick Sony Vaio SZ, which was really portable in and of itself, only to have an annoying unwieldy power brick to carry along with it.
-Zadillo
This was the first gripe I had about the MBP when it came out. Supposedly it uses less power, but requires a huge 85-watt powerbrick (that's much larger than the one they included with the old 15/17" PBs). I'm glad they upgraded to a smaller form factor.
You can use a MBP adapter on a Macbook just fine.
You can even use a MB adapter on a MBP. However, the battery will charge a lot more slowly, or not charge at all, when the laptop is consuming maximum power, that is, when there is a lot of CPU/GPU usage.
I know folks who carry a Macbook adapter with their Macbook Pro when traveling because it's lighter and smaller. At least they won't have to anymore.
my one did the whole bobble up and break at the end and melt etc etc
apple replaced it freee and really nicely, i was really impressed they didn't mess about they just got me one off the shelf.
Excellent.
That's exactly what happened to my adapter, Geez~, what garbage~
BTW: the cord should definitely be softer for wrapping up.
I think that if the new compact notebook needs an 85W power supply, not very many of us are going to be at all happy with what Apple's come up with.
This is a nice little improvement, though. I love the white brick style Apple power supplies (all mine are old, though... two 45W iBook ones and one Firewire iPod one). Very nice designs. It's great how the pieces are intercompatible. If I really wanted to, I could put the long three-prong cable from the iBook onto the iPod adapter. I was kind of surprised that my AEBS (g) did not come with that style of adapter.
It could be that the cable is already shorting out. My iBook adapter just did that about 2 weeks ago.
I think that if the new compact notebook needs an 85W power supply, not very many of us are going to be at all happy with what Apple's come up with.
I doubt I'll be happy with a compact notebook because it will most likely not have what I want in a portable. I still can't believe that Apple will make a compact laptop that will most likely skimp on a good number of features that people use.
Perfect sense. Now I get it. Thanks
Best not ask why, eh? Friday night 'n' all.I'm workin' off not enough sleep.
Look at the reviews of PB's power adapter at the Apple online store. I second those reviews - it is the worst aspect about my otherwise great Powerbook. The cables are flimsy and easily break. Worse, the small white plastic thing no longer sits firmly in the adapter after a while, so that it takes several minutes of jiggling and cursing each time I plug the adapter to make it stay connected. I sincerely hope that the functionality of the MBP's power adapter is much better.
Hmm, just called the local Apple Store to see if these were in stock; they haven't even HEARD of them yet.... so it may be a while before we can get our grubby paws on them.
I want one! Finally a lighter adapter I can keep in my bag, and I can leave the heavier one at home and not have to dig it out of my bag all the time.
I want one! Finally a lighter adapter I can keep in my bag, and I can leave the heavier one at home and not have to dig it out of my bag all the time.
Exactly, me too. I think i will sell one and get one of the new ones for travelling.
At last. Despite the sorry state of the dates in the Buyer's Guide, we now have actual, incontrovertible proof that this is THE year of the Mac!
Funny, I had always assumed the MacBook and MacBook Pro had the same power adapters, at least before now...