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Stainless steel charger has gone rusty
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If left wet for periods of time, stainless steel can rust. And if the water that comes in contact with the stainless steel is hard water, it can expedite the process.
Don't know why you are mad at Apple for something that isn't their fault.
Don't know why you are mad at Apple for something that isn't their fault.
Have you asked Apple if they will replace it?
I don't see any claim on Apple's site that the charger is made of stainless...
I don't see any claim on Apple's site that the charger is made of stainless...
What have you been using to clean this, or the surface it sits on? What kind of surface is it sitting one?
Even the highest quality stainless will rust depending on what it is exposed to. If it is sitting on a carbon steel table, or exposed to carbon steel shavings etc carbon can "infect" the stainless steel and allow it to rust.
Also, as far as I know there are only 2 different Apple watch chargers (or three if you count the stand), and the only difference between them is the length of the chord. You don't get a different charger with the stainless watch compared to the aluminium watch.
Even the highest quality stainless will rust depending on what it is exposed to. If it is sitting on a carbon steel table, or exposed to carbon steel shavings etc carbon can "infect" the stainless steel and allow it to rust.
Also, as far as I know there are only 2 different Apple watch chargers (or three if you count the stand), and the only difference between them is the length of the chord. You don't get a different charger with the stainless watch compared to the aluminium watch.
I have stated what I think in clear English. I would only be repeating myself to respond.
There are many different types (and quality of SS)
No, its already been pointed out that there is no claim to it being stainless steel on Apples website, though I would imagine many owners would be surprised to find its not.
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It was on a tiled surface. It must have come into contact with a small amount of water (not much as the mark on the side is only @ 1mm).
For info, the Sport came with just a plastic puck and the SS watch comes with the metal housing.
There are many different types (and quality of SS)
No, its already been pointed out that there is no claim to it being stainless steel on Apples website, though I would imagine many owners would be surprised to find its not.
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It was on a tiled surface. It must have come into contact with a small amount of water (not much as the mark on the side is only @ 1mm).
For info, the Sport came with just a plastic puck and the SS watch comes with the metal housing.
The Americans will also say only $29 will get you a fresh new charger, and you’ll be back to charging your WATCH on top of your aquarium in no time.
Apple Watch Magnetic Charging Cable (1 m)
https://store.apple.com/xc/product/MKLG2AM/A
The back of the charging puck is not made of stainless, it’s some sort of type of brushed aluminum I believe. Either way, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to see if Apple would at least willing to either replace it or at least offer discount. Not that Apple should have to, because the situation is not Apple’s fault at all.
If you think so badly about Apple, you maybe should look elsewhere. Something came into contact for your puck to look like that but rather than telling what really happened, you found it better to bash Apple for pinching pennies. Your bitterness towards large companies tells much.
I have a Space Black Stainless Series 3, and my wife has an Aluminium Series 2, they both came with the same charger. Maybe it was different with Series 0 or 1?
I propose that this thread be temporarily locked (before it goes even farther off the rails) until the OP comes back with Apple's response to the rusty charger.
The metal housing is all the same for the stainless model pucks, it has not changed.
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Except the OP never stated they were going to address the charging puck with Apple through this entire thread. Also, the thread doesn’t have to be “locked” based on your reasoning, others can still discuss their findings or beliefs regarding the topic.
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Then he should S T F U and clean it like a big boy.
The original Apple Watch Sport came with an all plastic charging puck. I wish the cable was shorter (it’s 2m, I think) but the plastic puck looks much nicer in my Native Union charging dock.
Upon checking last night I realized my wife's series 2 sport did actually come with the plastic puck, where S3 LTE Stainless came with the metallic puck. I guess I just never noticed the difference before.
All I can tell for certain from that photo is that the marks/"rust"/staining is various shades of brown. Maybe it's rust, maybe not (consider the brown mark on the cable). To my eye, whatever it is has been deposited on the surface of the metal. As Tolkien might have written:
All that is gold does not glitter
Not all of russet hue is rust
"Stainless steel" is a marketing description. It isn't a guarantee that it won't discolor or stain. It's a steel alloy containing chromium and perhaps nickel and/or molybdenum. Stains, mineral build-up and the like can be deposited/embossed on the surface of the metal (it's not stick-free), even if the metal itself does not corrode. Any cook who uses "stainless" pots and pans can testify to that.
Here's what Wikipedia has to say about localized corrosion of stainless steel:
The OP would like to believe this is an example of Apple cheaping-out. Hardly seems likely. In the quantities Apple needs for this purpose, there'd be nearly no difference in cost between common steel and stainless. Machining/forming/polishing are likely to be far more costly components.
However, there are engineering purposes to chose one type of steel/stainless over another. Again, cost of raw material would take a back seat to the properties needed during manufacture. In this particular case, the puck contains an electromagnetic coil, and the magnetic properties of the surrounding metal enclosure can affect the performance of the charger. The more chromium and nickel the poorer the magnetic properties, for example. For this use, poor magnetic properties seems likely to be beneficial. That argues for a more expensive alloy, rather than cheaper common steel.
In the end, I think the OP encountered an unusual set of conditions - I suspect some material or other was present on the surface of the workbench in addition to water. The warmth of the charger then "baked" it onto the puck.
All that is gold does not glitter
Not all of russet hue is rust
"Stainless steel" is a marketing description. It isn't a guarantee that it won't discolor or stain. It's a steel alloy containing chromium and perhaps nickel and/or molybdenum. Stains, mineral build-up and the like can be deposited/embossed on the surface of the metal (it's not stick-free), even if the metal itself does not corrode. Any cook who uses "stainless" pots and pans can testify to that.
Here's what Wikipedia has to say about localized corrosion of stainless steel:
The OP would like to believe this is an example of Apple cheaping-out. Hardly seems likely. In the quantities Apple needs for this purpose, there'd be nearly no difference in cost between common steel and stainless. Machining/forming/polishing are likely to be far more costly components.
However, there are engineering purposes to chose one type of steel/stainless over another. Again, cost of raw material would take a back seat to the properties needed during manufacture. In this particular case, the puck contains an electromagnetic coil, and the magnetic properties of the surrounding metal enclosure can affect the performance of the charger. The more chromium and nickel the poorer the magnetic properties, for example. For this use, poor magnetic properties seems likely to be beneficial. That argues for a more expensive alloy, rather than cheaper common steel.
In the end, I think the OP encountered an unusual set of conditions - I suspect some material or other was present on the surface of the workbench in addition to water. The warmth of the charger then "baked" it onto the puck.
There was a similar thread in the iPhone forum while back where another member was complaining why the tip of their lighting Charger was “Rusting.” Later the OP admitted that they left their iPhone charger in the car regularly, which when temperatures rise and fall, moisture/condensation can form on metal parts, which caused it to have some surface rust. That’s the nature of any metal in most cases depending on the environment its subjected to. When You factor in metal parts such as the stainless steel Apple Watch charger metal casing and an iPhone charger lightning tip, those parts are not corrosion resistant, but it is preventable as well.