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New battery & charger for late 2006 Macbook

S

Sepultura

macrumors regular
Original poster
Jul 10, 2013
157
1
Howdy all. Haven't been to the forum in a few months.

I have a Macbook, model A1181 late 2006. It does not have a battery and it also needs a charger.

It needs a Magsafe charger and I know that Magsafe 2 is not compatible with the original Magsafe. Apple has the original one for $89, but the reviews are bad with people complaining about poor build quality.

Is there a 3rd party seller who makes a better charger, and hopefully cheaper? I've seen a few locally for $50.

I also need a new battery.

Suggestions?

Thanks
 
Well, personally I have just used those cheap chargers you get from eBay, but then again I have never bought full priced Macbook but instead resurrected couple from dead, wouldn't use them with brand new or relatively new machine.

Once of those chargers did broke after slightly over a year of service, but couple days before it broke I accidentally dropped it on the floor so there is high chance that it was my fault and not necessarily it being cheap charger. After the drop I kept using it just fine for some days until one day I heard faint pop and charging stopped, that was it.

One thing that I have noticed is that some chargers have plastic tip where the power cable or power plug is hooked while some, including original chargers, have metal tip. Dunno if it makes any difference but I have always favoured ones with metal.
 
Sepultura said:
Howdy all. Haven't been to the forum in a few months.

I have a Macbook, model A1181 late 2006. It does not have a battery and it also needs a charger.

It needs a Magsafe charger and I know that Magsafe 2 is not compatible with the original Magsafe. Apple has the original one for $89, but the reviews are bad with people complaining about poor build quality.

Is there a 3rd party seller who makes a better charger, and hopefully cheaper? I've seen a few locally for $50.

I also need a new battery.

Suggestions?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Check Craigslist for a used charger. I just picked one up for $40. Just make sure, its the 60W.
Battery wise, your best bet is eBay. the aftermarket batteries(6 cell) are better than the genuine Apple ones and you can get one for around $30-40.
 
Don't get a third party charger, their circuit design is poor and have a tendency to overheat and burn themselves out. Apple chargers do fail sometimes, but will typically last longer.

Third party batteries are OK, I haven't noticed a difference in battery life, but they do have a higher failure rate. Make sure you get one will a 1 year warranty.
 
Ok so avoid third party? Because there are some on ebay for $15-25 with free shipping.

There is only one 60w charger local that is $45. The others I saw were 85w.

Do you guys know any reputable sites that sell the battery?
 
Sepultura said:
Ok so avoid third party? Because there are some on ebay for $15-25 with free shipping.

There is only one 60w charger local that is $45. The others I saw were 85w.

Do you guys know any reputable sites that sell the battery?
Click to expand...

Those 30 dollar ones are crap. You don't want that. The only third party batteries I would get are the Anker ones on
Amazon or one from OWC.
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
I was referring to the $15-25 chargers. I have not looked at any batteries yet besides the Apple one which is $150 and has poor reviews.

Yours has some good reviews, but one of the top rated comments is a 1/5 star.

A few people say this battery cannot hold a charge.

Though it is much more affordable than the Apple one and has a warranty too.

OWC is a little more expensive than Anker and it has no reviews.

Anyone else got suggestions?

Thanks
 
What's your intent for the 2006 device?

Are you just fixing it to sell? or keep? Because the device is so old, I would be reluctant to spend much to keep it going.

With the ability to get decent 2008's on craigslist for so cheap, I am unsure what is wisest choice here.
 
Sepultura said:
I was referring to the $15-25 chargers. I have not looked at any batteries yet besides the Apple one which is $150 and has poor reviews.

Yours has some good reviews, but one of the top rated comments is a 1/5 star.

A few people say this battery cannot hold a charge.

Though it is much more affordable than the Apple one and has a warranty too.

OWC is a little more expensive than Anker and it has no reviews.

Anyone else got suggestions?

Thanks
Click to expand...

+1 for Anker, they make good batteries. They aren't the third party batteries that fail within a year that I was referring. They are a quality product.
 
WildCard^ said:
What's your intent for the 2006 device?

Are you just fixing it to sell? or keep? Because the device is so old, I would be reluctant to spend much to keep it going.

With the ability to get decent 2008's on craigslist for so cheap, I am unsure what is wisest choice here.
Click to expand...
It's a friends and he is going to keep it. He just wants it for Netflix, Facebook, and listening to music.

The 60w charger I found locally was already sold.

There is another, it's a Magsafe 2 but it looks different then the current generation Magsafe 2. This has the 'T' shape connector.

Would it work with this Macbook? It's 85w and the guy wants $60 firm.

35281958_934.jpg
 
Magsafe 2 will not work (they are a different size), but the adapter can be either 60 or 85W
 
trevm999 said:
Magsafe 2 will not work (they are a different size), but the adapter can be either 60 or 85W
Click to expand...
Ahh I see now... Before they adopted the 'L' style they had a slimmer version of the 'T' style connector. I didn't know that.

1241125-magsafe-magsafe2.jpg


I have no choice now but to get one online. The official Apple charger is $85 and has terrible reviews.

Are there any 3rd party chargers that anyone can recommend? I don't want to pay a lot but also don't want my friends house to catch on fire.

I am out of luck looking at local chargers.
 
Looks like Apple doesn't even sell the original Magsafe anymore.

I read 'Magsafe' on the website last night, but they are the 'L' style so they won't work.

So I have no choice... 3rd party or used. None are available local.

3rd party suggestions please!
 
The L shaped style will work. Still highly recommend an Apple one rather than third party.
 
trevm999 said:
The L shaped style will work. Still highly recommend an Apple one rather than third party.
Click to expand...
Yep your right I just tried a friends with the laptop.

So the 'L' style is actually a redesigned Magsafe 1 and the slimmer 'T' style is actually Magsafe 2.

How confusing...
 
I've tried third party chargers and batteries and found both to be a money pit. I would say buy the genuine article.
 
wb123 said:
I've tried third party chargers and batteries and found both to be a money pit. I would say buy the genuine article.
Click to expand...
The genuine Apple charger and battery has terrible reviews.

I am agreeing with you guys on the charger though since I have heard some can catch on fire or damage your laptop. Either way though, the Apple still has insulation cheap insulation and frays.
 
Well I have to bump this topic because I was hoping the Anker battery would go on sale. I was watching for Black Friday and Boxing Day but no deals.

I just tried to order it and saw at check out that they do not ship to Canada...

On Amazon's Canadian site it says...

Currently unavailable.
We don't know when or if this item will be back in stock.

So if anyone can suggest a reliable battery with warranty that is in that same range ($60-70) and ships to Canada.

Thanks
 
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