The "feeling of electricity" some people report when not using a grounded power block may be an annoyance, but it means there's something wrong. Remember, it is impossible to get shocked from a properly grounded appliance, and a bad power supply is a lot cheaper to replace than a fried-out laptop. Although the Magsafe and most other appliances will function normally with the ground disconnected, it's a foolish and unnecessary risk to take. Even the static from your body can be enough to damage some computer parts, and the presence of a ground wire prevents any charge from getting through.Īpple has stupidly made the use of the ground wire an option on their power supplies. You may notice that soldering irons meant for integrated circuits always have a grounded plug, but most others don't. When it comes to sensitive electronics like your computer, tablet, recording equipment, etc, the ground wire protects the device from being fried in the event of a power surge or heavy static electricity buildup. This could be from liquid getting into it, a loose wire, a broken switch or circuit board, or any number of other things. Here's why: the ground wire on any laptop's power supply serves two important functions:įirst, as in all grounded appliances, it prevents you from being shocked, burned, or electrocuted in the event of an internal fault. While many people claim they can fix things without doing this I've seen the damage by not doing it, as it can cause damage that overtime can cause the device to fail. If you do open your system to add more RAM or swap-out your HD (or do any other service internally) then you should follow good ESD protection practices. Also using a grounded cord Vs the two prong fold down option on the brick makes no difference as well (except maybe some EMI emission). The scoop on ESD is as long as you don't open your system to replace the RAM or HD your laptop is not at any more at risk being plugged in or running off the internal battery. In fact the current buzz on the bad 3rd party iPhone chargers in China and elsewhere is likely do to a bad connection inside the charger! In any case you wouldn't want a direct path to ground as you could then be at risk of electrical shock. So there is no direct connection to Ground. Within the brick and feeding into the system via the MagSafe connector the laptop power feed is isolated via a transformer and filter circuitry. So you had either one connection grounded and the other not! How confusing!įYI - In other countries you may not have this as an option as local electrical codes may dictate a grounded plug is needed in all cases. Yet, you could snap off the cord and place the supplied two prong foldable plug unit onto the brick (here in North America).
Early systems had just a two prong cord (here in North America). I'd like to hear that there is an aftermarket charging cord or some accessory keeper that has a nice strong magnet but I rather doubt it.Apple sells your MacBook, MacBook Pro & MacBook Air with a grounded power cord. I'm tired of chasing the plug every 10 minutes. I cannot think of any other reasonable solutions but I feel like epoxying the **** thing to the machine. I tried a big rubber band but it covers up the top row of the keyboard so that isn't workable. So I tried to fix it using duct tape to keep it attached to the computer but that proved to be messy and ineffective after several cycles of removal and reinstallation. I thought it was just a defective cord so I went to the Apple store to check out the other machines on display and they are all exactly the same weak plug. If I use the laptop on a desk, there is no movement to disengage the plug and it works fine, but I'm using it as a LAPTOP not a desktop. The old cord stayed engaged with nearly all motion and unplugged only when I wanted it off but the new model comes off with the slightest pull. The old and new power cords are of equal length but the design of the charging plug is different and they are not interchangeable. The new Pro has an incredible weak magnet holding the cord in place and it accidentally disengages many times per hour just from small, insignificant movements. With the old MacBook, I never had any problem with the power cord coming off when I would move - either to put the computer on a nearby table or holding it with one hand to adjust my seating position.
I do intentionally unplug it once or twice a day when I store it or if I move to another room. I use the Pro the exact same way I used the old MacBook - I compute while seated in a recliner, I'm actually using it as a true laptop but with the AC adapter plugged in about 80% of the time. It replaced a 2008 MacBook of the same size. I've had my retina MacBook Pro 13" for about 4 months.
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