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still in school

macrumors 6502
Original poster
Feb 21, 2009
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My sister has a 13" MacBook Pro. Is it safe to use her charger to charge my MBA? From my understanding, the MBA would only draw as much power as it can take. So in theory, it should be safe. Correct?
 
I've read online that it's supposedly okay to use any MagSafe adapter that's greater (and not less) the wattage for your Apple laptop, but is it IDEAL?

I mean, is there any benefit to using only the 45W adapter for your MBA vs using your MBP 17" 85W adapter?

Otherwise, if you have both MBPs and MBAs, wouldn't you want to just buy the highest wattage adapter to take care of all your charging needs? (assuming you don't care about the slightly smaller size of the different adapters).
 
I've read online that it's supposedly okay to use any MagSafe adapter that's greater (and not less) the wattage for your Apple laptop, but is it IDEAL?

I mean, is there any benefit to using only the 45W adapter for your MBA vs using your MBP 17" 85W adapter?

Otherwise, if you have both MBPs and MBAs, wouldn't you want to just buy the highest wattage adapter to take care of all your charging needs? (assuming you don't care about the slightly smaller size of the different adapters).

Apple advises against using a 45W adapter on a Mac that was equipped with a 60W or 85W adapter because the battery might discharge faster than the 45W charger can recharge it, but they say it is fine to use a 60W or 85W adapter on a 45W Air. The charger will adapt to the requirements of the battery. I'm guessing size and cost are the main reasons they ship a 45W adapter with the Air rather than standardize on one wattage.
 
Why did Apple make the MagSafe plug the same on all adapters? I have a new MacBook Air and a 2008 15" MacBook Pro they have the same MagSafe plug... The transformers are under my desk... Until I marked one with a red dot I was always grabbing the wrong power cord. It seems to me that if there is a problem interchanging the adapters between apple products, then Apple should have marked the plugs with the wattage or in some way that the user can easily tell them apart.
 
If I recall correctly, the 45W for the Air is a good bit smaller than the 85W for the Pro. The 60W would fall somewhere in between. Also, newer adapters seem to be labeled as well.
 
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Any Magsafe adapter will operate any MacBook model, the change will only effect battery charging speed.

...or it may just make it flat out impossible to charge the battery. I just recently had a customer who was using the 45watt charger on an older MacBook. The battery was so dead (9V) that we had to reset the SMC to get the thing to turn on when it got here.

You should never use a power supply of any kind on any device that asks for more than the power supply is capable of providing.
 
Apple says yes:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT2346

Power adapters for Intel-based Apple portables are available in 45W, 60W, and 85W varieties. Although you should always use the proper wattage adapter for your Apple portable, you can use an adapter of a higher wattage without issue.

For instance If you have a MacBook (13-inch Late 2009) that normally uses a 60W adapter, you can also use an 85W adapter with that computer. You would not use a 45W adapter with that computer; it would not provide enough power for that MacBook. Using an adapter of higher wattage than the adapter that came with the computer will not cause the computer to charge more quickly or otherwise operate any differently than using the adapter that came with the computer.
 
Using one with more power is no problem indeed, that's why the Cinema Display has a 85W charger built in. It works with al Macbook's.
 
I have one of each size...

The 45W one for the fiancee's MBA has the right-angle plug, so we can tell the difference.

The 60W one is near my bed for my 13" MBP.

The (spare) 85W one is in the living room near the couch, I use it for my 13" and (work) 15" MBPs.

I don't use my work 15" MBP in bed, so I just know where they are and I'm good.

The ones with more power work fine.
 
Why did Apple make the MagSafe plug the same on all adapters? I have a new MacBook Air and a 2008 15" MacBook Pro they have the same MagSafe plug... The transformers are under my desk... Until I marked one with a red dot I was always grabbing the wrong power cord. It seems to me that if there is a problem interchanging the adapters between apple products, then Apple should have marked the plugs with the wattage or in some way that the user can easily tell them apart.

If you're going to have MagSafe adapters plugged permanently into hard to reach places, then u outta just buy 1-2 85W adapters and leave them there. That's what I do, no need to care which MacBook I'm plugging into it because it will charge it fine.
 
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