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Genuine vs Conterfeit Chargers

Well I also have good info for everyone.

DO NOT BUY ANY MAGSAFE ADAPTER OFF AMAZON WHAT SO EVER.

They may be $60 but spend the $79 for a proper adapter from Apple. At the computer shop I work at we ordered one from Amazon and immediately pulling it out of the box it was counterfit. Wish I took pictures.
 
I bought a $5 power supply for my PB once off eBay. Caught fire at Starbucks. Learned my lesson on that one.

Learned my second lesson when some Chinese seller advertised 65W chargers but only seemed capable of sending me 45W chargers. Returned all and got my money back.

I stick with one particular outfit now. $35-40 but they don't catch fire either.
 
eyoungren said:
I bought a $5 power supply for my PB once off eBay. Caught fire at Starbucks. Learned my lesson on that one.

Learned my second lesson when some Chinese seller advertised 65W chargers but only seemed capable of sending me 45W chargers. Returned all and got my money back.

I stick with one particular outfit now. $35-40 but they don't catch fire either.
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Wow that must have been a sight! It was that day that Erik found out he liked his coffee extra roasted/dark :p
 
There were plenty of "good" 3rd party charger makers for PowerBook and iBook G3/G4 but the sea of "cheap" makes it insanely hard to find them with a normal search. In my experience besides NewerTech, BTI(Battery Technology Inc) & Anker made some good aftermarket chargers before they EOLed production. Hardest part is 45W power adapters were the most common as Apple used the same connector since the USB PowerBook G3 era and Clamshell iBook era.

I just ordered two 85W Magsafe chargers from Woot(Amazon), I'm bracing for the worst of them being counterfeit but finding them at local dealers are getting hard due to rMBPs being out for so long. In my experience with MagSafe the lower wattage models for the 13" is a very poor design if they don't short their capacitors either pop or start leaking a fluid--in my situation(leaking a clear goo) the local Apple Store replaced it even though my MBP was well out of warranty.
 
Mezmorizor said:
The magsafes are also very far from being particularly safe. It runs way too hot, and a significant portion of them short circuit within two years.
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Uh no. No matter what, when stepping down voltage from 110v (or others) you will produce heat. Heat isn't bad, nothing is really at risk of majorly degrading (other than standard component degradation) from that temperature. It would take a lot hotter to begin to desolder components.

What 'significant portion'? Sure, I hear a lot that are abused that end up losing their sheathing. Heavy abuse will result in breakage, fact of life. My 2011 MagSafe, which shipped with my 2011 MBP, is almost mint, aside from one of the folding tabs being a bit difficult to shut, but that is simply because a friend swung it into a wall (he was using it like a lasso, that dummy, swinging it over his head with the tabs extended). I have two other magsafes, much older, (2006, 2008) that work fine, no breaking either. I do have one that was mistreated, and I've taken steps to fix it.
 
sawpits said:
That was SONY manufactured batteries if I recall correctly. Not peculiar to Apple either.
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It doesn't matter where the batteries were sourced from - it's an Apple product - you're buying into a brand of quality and distinction, the blame can't be shifted elsewhere.
My point was, quality control can slip regardless of manufacturer.
 
Dronecatcher said:
It doesn't matter where the batteries were sourced from - it's an Apple product - you're buying into a brand of quality and distinction, the blame can't be shifted elsewhere.
My point was, quality control can slip regardless of manufacturer.
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Apple doesn't produce batteries. It has to outsource them. You see, I would blame Apple if they got batteries from some shifty manufacturer, but they got it from Sony, a very reliable brand and Steve Jobs' favourite brand next to Apple. I don't think you can blame Apple for trusting Sony with the batteries, only to have it literally blow up in their faces. Same with Dell. At the end of the day, those two corporations went to a trustworthy brand for their batteries and got lemons. There was simply no way Apple or Dell could have known this.
 
they are what they are I picked up a cheap one for a black macbook I got from a hamfest and sold to my friend he's had it over a year it still works fine. so its take your chances I guess.
 
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