The wonders of magsafe Melting... with photos!

[MacAodh]

My girlfriend and i have macbooks, both first gen, both of our power adaptors have gone. That's madness!!! This is ridiculus and stupid. There must be something we can do about this.

Anyway, to prove that i'm not lying, here's the pictures of both of them

Sorry, there both my one, these are my girlfriends. As you can see, mine melted going into the computer, her's is coming out of the power block

 

[scienide09]

Call Apple.
If the rep doesn't believe you, as for his/her email address, email the pics.
Then escalate to a AppleCare manager/supervisor if nothing is done.

Or go to your local Apple store and do the same.

 

[CrzyCanuck72]

same thing happened to me 6 months out of warranty. I just called and they replaced it no problem.

 

[MacAodh]

They'll replace it but i don't think that's good enough. It's obviously a fairly crapy product, There failing left right and centre.

 

[Mal]

They'll replace it but i don't think that's good enough. It's obviously a fairly crapy product, There failing left right and centre.

What do you want, song and dance? They'll replace a product that failed, without question. That's all they're required to do, and frankly, all they should do. Seriously, what more do you want?

jW

 

[MacAodh]

Well song and dance would be nice...

But seriously, they should issue a recall if there's that many problems with it, plus they should replace them with out questions, which is not my experience nor several people's i know

 

[Virgil-TB2]

In fairness to Apple, that first shot is of a cord that failed at the exact point that the user has put all that weird twisty pressure on it. I'd like to know why/how that cord got all twisted up like that for so long that it stuck that way and caused the failure.

Granted, the product should not have failed so easily, but the OP sure didn't take very good care of the product either. Cords are not magical, and require that you keep them from getting too terribly tangled for a too long a period of time.

 

[Surely]

Well song and dance would be nice...

But seriously, they should issue a recall if there's that many problems with it, plus they should replace them with out questions, which is not my experience nor several people's i know

How widespread is this? Does it even warrant a recall?

Maybe it has something to do with the power supply that you and your girlfriend are using?

It hasn't happened to mine.

I'm not trying to defend Apple here, but unless it's a larger problem than just the two of you, a recall probably isn't necessary. They should definitely replace both of yours though.

 

[flopticalcube]

This is a fairly well known problem. Apple redesigned the strain relief last year and will probably give you a new power supply without much hassle even if the MacBook is out of warranty.

 

[BanjoBanker]

A couple of people I know had problems with their first gen mag safe connectors. They were all swapped at the Apple store, no hassles. My son's C2D MacBook's frayed at the junction to the power converter, I looked at it and it was clearly his mistreatment that caused the damage. However, the Apple folks swapped it no questions asked. Yes, there have been quite a few failures from the first generation, but hardly the sore of problem to warrant a recall. I believe Apple is correct in handling these on a case by case basis.

 

[Anderson3133]

What do you want, song and dance? They'll replace a product that failed, without question. That's all they're required to do, and frankly, all they should do. Seriously, what more do you want?

jW

This is a safety hazard.... they should be able to compensate for more then just a faulty product.

 

[Bobioden]

In fairness to Apple, that first shot is of a cord that failed at the exact point that the user has put all that weird twisty pressure on it. I'd like to know why/how that cord got all twisted up like that for so long that it stuck that way and caused the failure.

How did the cord get so twisted up?

 

[KompleX]

In fairness to Apple, that first shot is of a cord that failed at the exact point that the user has put all that weird twisty pressure on it. I'd like to know why/how that cord got all twisted up like that for so long that it stuck that way and caused the failure.

Granted, the product should not have failed so easily, but the OP sure didn't take very good care of the product either. Cords are not magical, and require that you keep them from getting too terribly tangled for a too long a period of time.

i was about to say the same thing. it looks like the cord got twisted enough to permanently deform it, which as you pointed out, is where the damage occurred.

 

[krye]

Are you wrapping the cable around the brick like a ball of string? That's bad. And after a while, you cause a break in the wire, a short, and then a meltdown.

I coil up the wire about the size of a CD and then tie it off with a twisty tie. Never wrap the cable around the brick. That's bad.

 

[MacAodh]

In fairness to Apple, that first shot is of a cord that failed at the exact point that the user has put all that weird twisty pressure on it. I'd like to know why/how that cord got all twisted up like that for so long that it stuck that way and caused the failure.

It's twisted because i managed to get it working this morning in that position and it was sitting like that for about three hours before i took the picture. The first time i had to spend several hours on the phone over three days onto about five different people to get my girlfriends one done. I've only made one attempt at calling as of yet but no indication as to how long it will take.

Case by case is fair enough if it's not a big issue but in my opinion, a power adaptor that heats up so hot it melts plastic so that it flows off a section of the cable is dangerous enough that it warrants a recall if it's a widespread issue.

Are you wrapping the cable around the brick like a ball of string? That's bad. And after a while, you cause a break in the wire, a short, and then a meltdown.

I coil up the wire about the size of a CD and then tie it off with a twisty tie. Never wrap the cable around the brick. That's bad.

I always used the built in clips to tie the cable around. As a point, the little thing to clip the end of the wire to another section (looks like a capital A sort of) melted through and i found it on the floor (now looks like a capital H!!).

To see how widespread it is, type "melted macbook charger/power" into google... or look here.

http://store.apple.com/us/product/MA938LL/A?fnode=home/shop_mac/mac_accessories/power&mco=MTA4MTcx

http://store.apple.com/us/product/MA538LL/B?fnode=home/shop_mac/mac_accessories/power&mco=ODgxNDg

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPLE/WebObjects/AppleStore.woa/wa/RSLID?mco=59543445&nplm=MA938LL/A

http://www.flickr.com/photos/vargapeter/588845204/

http://ibloggedthis.com/2006/06/25/apple-macbook-pro-magsafe-melt-problem/

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/324527/

http://www.shauninman.com/archive/2006/11/02/macbook_pro_magsafe_power_adapters_fraying_melting

http://forums.hexus.net/apple-mac/120610-melting-macbook-lead.html

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20080329031331AAOYZGH

 

[ScottFitz]

This is a safety hazard.... they should be able to compensate for more then just a faulty product.

I guess if they house burns down because of it, you might get more compensation than a new charger.

 

[ntrigue]

They will absolutely replace it. Even if there are no signs of damage, they are aware of the problem. 5 minutes at the Genius Bar.

That being said 'keep the connecting inch of a cord' straight when you pack it!

 

[Consultant]

Were the cords wrapped this way for transport? (Well, with the plug retracted of course)

 

[maxxscholten]

Yep same thing happened to me a few weeks back. I took it into an Apple store who said that my warranty had expired and even so, they don't replace "accessories." I made the point that a power source is not an accessory, but a NECESSITY.

After a bit of fussing the manager came over and instantly replaced it.



And to all of the jerks saying that the OP didn't "take care of it," you obviously have no idea what you are talking about. This happened to me and my friend and we both rarely carry it around/wrap it up. I don't even charge my computer over night. This is just a problem that Apple has obviously had to deal with. I've even heard several people claim that when Apple found out about this problem they redesigned the power adapter.

 

[marbles]

which is not my experience nor several people's i know

I could say that about many folk too

...welcome to Apple Uk & Eire !!!!




shame really , could be sooo much better the 'care' we are given over here !

 

[MacAodh]

I could say that about many folk too

...welcome to Apple Uk & Eire !!!!

shame really , could be sooo much better the 'care' we are given over here !

It's kind of like being second class citizens really...

Were the cords wrapped this way for transport? (Well, with the plug retracted of course)

Exactly, like your meant to have it. don't use the extended power cord so always carried it like that. My girlfriend always used the extended power adaptor (the plugs in the library in her collage can't fit the bigger block as there too close to the table) and always folded it in about 15/20cm segments, not putting any pressure on it at all.

They will absolutely replace it. Even if there are no signs of damage, they are aware of the problem. 5 minutes at the Genius Bar.

That being said 'keep the connecting inch of a cord' straight when you pack it!

Genius Bar??? Ireland??? never... why would we have them??? just ring up call centers, there all $%£$%£ geniuses there, gods gift to mankind, didn't you know!

 

[mosx]

Looks like more MagSafe adapters fell victim to both being wrapped too tightly and being pulled out of the system by the cord rather than the head.

 

[MacAodh]

Looks like more MagSafe adapters fell victim to both being wrapped too tightly and being pulled out of the system by the cord rather than the head.

And my roasting hot hands melted them... now why didn't i think of that...

 

[mosx]

And my roasting hot hands melted them... now why didn't i think of that...

When you disconnect the MagSafe from the MacBook by pulling on the cable it causes stress on the cable. Over time that stress breaks down the components inside the cable and allows them to burn out like your pictures.

MagSafe was designed for accidental disconnects. Proper disconnection means you pull it by the head not by the cable. Theres plenty of pages on Apple's site showing you how to properly disconnect the cable

You also have to leave some resistance when wrapping the cord up too. Apple's site shows about an inch of the cable sticking out then moved, not pulled, down to wrap around the adapter.

I'd bet good money that 9 out of 10 MagSafe failures are caused by wrapping too tight or by the user pulling the cord and not the head.

 

[kvasir]

Yep same thing happened to me a few weeks back. I took it into an Apple store who said that my warranty had expired and even so, they don't replace "accessories." I made the point that a power source is not an accessory, but a NECESSITY.

After a bit of fussing the manager came over and instantly replaced it.

The EXACT same thing happened to me. I was very nice about it and said that it could have caused damage if it had caught fire. He said "we don't replace them." The "genius" was rude and I asked for a manager. The genius came right back out with a new one.

I called and reported him to Apple Corporate. They asked what I wanted done and I said I would like him reprimanded, but I have never been treated like that before by any company.