Are power adapters interchangeable?

We have a mid-2010 MacBook Pro and a late-2010 MacBook Air. I know Macs have different power chargers--45W, 60W, or 85W--but the magnetic connector connects to all of them. Is there a problem using one charger for another Mac?

MacBook/Air models can have a different shaped magnetic plug due to
the locations of the magsafe port on the computer's body; angular. So
if looking to buy one for certain Air models, the plug/port have to match.
The Air magsafe is still available at the Store, a 45W model.
Top MacBook/Pros usually can use a higher output 85W magsafe adapter
especially if one expects to use it at highest performance while charging
the battery; and depending on configuration, other power needs. Higher
automatically will not over-power the lesser demands in other MacBooks.
These can be backward compatible in so much as a high-output adapter
may work with a lower-power device. If the port is compatible.
•Intel-Based Apple notebooks: Indentifying the right power adapter & cord:
http://support.apple.com/kb/ht2346
There was a Magsafe, then a Magsafe-2.
https://www.google.com/search?q=magsafe+power+adapters+compared
Exact parts do vary, so that is another consideration:
(there still are 45w, 60w, + 85w models at Apple)
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC461LL/A/apple-60w-magsafe-power-adapter-for- macbook-and-13-inch-macbook-pro
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MC556LL/B/apple-85w-magsafe-power-adapter-for- 15-and-17-inch-macbook-pro
So where there is a part number, a suitable replacement or upgrade may
exist; if there is a different part number, contact Apple Store or sales
support for more information if you can't match the specs to the year.
Good luck & happy computing!

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Are power adapters covered under the protection plan?

Are power adapters covered under the protection plan, or should I just go to a store and buy a new one?

Yes they are. Call Apple and talk to them and as long as your under warranty you should be OK

Power adapters interchangeable?

My wife and I have a 17" MBP and a 13" MBP. We use the power adapters interchangeably--it's even hard to determine which is which.
Of course, the 13 uses a 60 Watt Power Adapter and the 17 uses a 85 Watt. Any problems with this?

Here's the skinny. If you have the computer under heavy load then it draws the needed extra power from the battery. If you were to remove the battery and run from the AC adaptor alone then the CPU's clock speed is throttled back to reduce the power demand to what is supportable on the AC adaptor alone.
Since rechargeable batteries require a level of current at the charging voltage, if the charger cannot supply the current then the battery may not charge completely or will take a longer time to charge.

Are the iPhone/iPad power adapters interchangeable?

My wife and I have two 4th generation iPads, two iPhone 5s and two iPods. When we plug our gear into the surge protector at night it can be a challenge sorting out which plugs go to which device.
Does it matter if we plug the iPhone into the power adapter for the iPad and vice versa?
Thanks.

Sungroupie wrote:
Thanks for your replies.
So...is it possible that the iPad adapter might supply too much juice to the phone?
No. The Phone will only take as much power as it needs. The iPad charger is designed to work with all devices without risk of overcharging. It is fully compatible with all Apple devices as can be evidenced by looking at its compatibility list in the Apple Online Store.
http://store.apple.com/us/product/MD836LL/A/apple-12w-usb-power-adapter
The iPhone and iPod chargers will simply not provide enough power to charge the iPad correctly. While it still may charge while its off with the smaller phone chargers, its better and faster to use its specific charger for it.

2 fried power adapters

A while ago, within a one-week period, I had two power adapters get fried while plugged in to a particular outlet in my home. The second time, it was connected through a surge suppressor when it got fried. I've since been avoiding that outlet like the plague, although I had used it for several months without problems before the frying incidents.
Should I be concerned about this outlet? Any ideas? I know this is a bit non-Mac-related, but it is concerning to my PowerBook G4's latest power adapter.

Thomas,
I had the same problem here in Singapore. This was after a lightning storm. The surge protector on my power block blew and shorted the a/c adaptor. I noticed an acrid burnt smell and discovered that the pins were "charred". I duly checked the fuse on the interchangeable plastic bit with the adaptor prongs and found it was blown. I changed the fuse and plugged it in and the fuse blew again.
I eventually traced the problem to the a/c adaptor after replacing fuses on all the plugs and the burnt diode on the power block. Chalk up one "killed" a/c adaptor. But it's the first time it's happened to me.
I'm not sure if the US plugs have a fuse, but here in Singapore, we use the UK standard 3-pin 13-amp plugs. I've had power cords come in from the US with fuses in them, so I'm thinking the a/c adaptor cords are also fused.
If all these fail, then the problem would most likely be the grounding in the wall socket itself. You might want to get an electrician in to check.
I hope this proves helpful to your dilemma.
Regards
Nicholas

2 Power adapters...one glows amber to charge the other stays green??

Hello,
I have 2 power adapters for my ibook, the one that came with it originally & one I bought as an extra. They are both 45W apple ones. I have had problems with my ibook powering up & after replacing the dc-in board to no avail I have been told it's the logic board that needs replacing.
I have just got a replacement logic board which I am yet to fit. As it stands at the moment I have replaced the dc-in board but still won't charge the battery?
Also when I use the adapter that came with my ibook the light on the adapter glows green. When I plug the extra adapter in it glows amber but doesnt charge the battery?
I am just confused as to why one adapter glows green & the other glows amber with the same battery in?
I am also concerned to know if it would have been possible for the replacement adapter to have caused the logic board failure in the first place? As I am replacing the logic board soon I don't want the same mistake to happen again!
Anyone help??

All-right Master Meister, one last throw of the dice for me...
Do you have a friend or relative who knows how to use a multi-meter? If so, get them to check the voltage + current flow from the adapters when connected to the mains (iBook unattached).
Please do not try this yourself if you are unfamiliar with multi-meters; you could electrocute yourself or irreparably damage your equipment.
If you are reasonably competent with basic electronics, hook up a 12V car battery to one side of the charger and a 3V torch (with batteries removed) to the other side. If the bulb lights, this will tell you if the adapter is working.
I mean no disrespect: this is a potentially dangerous experiment and if you don't feel you are up to it, then don't try.
Instead, take the adapters to your local electronics store and pay them to check them for you.

Beware of some of the eBay power adapters

ok, I figured I would post this up, as I know the seller I bought from has sold a LOT of power adapters. Make sure to check the current rating on any power adapter before you buy it. I needed a couple power adapters for a few of the laptops that I have laying around. I bought an adapter that was listed as compatible with my M305, to check the quality before I bought more. Unfortunately, I had assumed that all of the specs were correct since the seller listed it as compatible, so I didn't check it. I had it hooked up to my L655 to test, and had no problems with it.
A few days later, I hooked it up to the M305, and started doing updates. I got pulled away from my office for about 20-30 minutes, and when I returned, there was a burnt plastic smell in the room. I searched the room, and noticed that the casing on the power adapter had melted. I unplugged it from the wall and the laptop, and moved it off the desk. The place where it was sitting on the desk was so hot that it burned my finger.
Checking the specs on the sticker that was now wrinkled up and peeling off, I found that the current rating of the power adapter was 3.42A. The OEM adapter for the M305(as well as a lot of other Toshiba laptops) is rated at 3.95A. I contacted the seller and let him know that the adapter should not be listed as compatible, but they of course did not respond to my email.
I checked the specs of several eBay power adapters, and I have found that there are several people selling adapters that do not have the correct ratings. So be careful with what you buy. If I would not have found that adapter when I did, it might have started a fire.
Qosmio X875 i7-3630QM, 32GB RAM, OCZ SSD Qosmio X505 i7-920XM, PM55, 16GB RAM, OCZ SSD
Satellite Pro L350 T9900, GM45, 8GB RAM , Intel 320 SSD (my baby) Satellite L655 i7-620M, HM55, 8GB RAM, Intel 710 SSD (travel system)

Who was the seller?
There's a lot of junk on ebay. Lucky the laptop wasn't damaged.
File a dispute, request a full refund and leave feedback
explaining what happened.

Understanding iPhone Charging and Power Adapters

I've been in a protracted discussion (now locked) regarding iPhone battery charging and whether it is harmful/helpful to use the iPad power adapter rather than the iPhone power adapter.
There are a lot of misconceptions related to iPhone charging and current ratings on the iPhone and iPad power adapters. As an electrical engineer, I'd like to clear up some misconceptions.
Apple supplies a power adapter, not a "battery charger," with the iPhone and iPad.
The iPhone power adapter supplies a constant 5V at up to 1A (rated–independent tests have shown that it can supply almost 1.8A).
The iPad power adapter supplies a constant 5V at up to 2 or 2.1A (rated).
The iPhone's battery charging voltage and current are regulated within the phone.
The iPhone's battery is rated at 3.7V. Charged with the raw 5V from the power adapter, it would be destroyed. Fortunately, the internal regulation in the iPhone prevents that.
The maximum current that an iPhone will draw from a 5V power adapter is right around 1 amp. It does not matter if the charger is capable of supplying more, that's the most that the iPhone will use.
Because of the internal charge regulation, the iPhone battery will not charge any faster on an iPad power adapter than on an iPhone power adapter.
Apple approves the use of the iPad power adapter with the iPhone. It is completely safe for that purpose and does not harm the phone or battery in any way.
A water analogy might make this much easier for people without electrical engineering background to understand.
Water pressure (psi) is analogous to voltage.
Water flow (gallons per minute) is equivalent to current flow (amps).
A faucet valve is analogous to the iPhones battery charging regulation circuitry.
A bucket's capacity (gallons) is analogous to a battery's capacity (amp-hours or AH).
Let's say you adjust the faucet to flow 1/10 of a gallon per hour. The five gallon bucket will take 50 minutes to fill up. Easy enough. But then...
You need a lot more water flow for a new sprinkler system.
You need a lot more current for your new iPad.
Since the water pressure is constant at 80psi, the only way to get more flow use a bigger supply line.
Since the voltage is constant at 5V, the only way to get more current is to use a higher current power adapter.
After installing the new higher capacity water supply line, you go out to your faucet and adjust it to 1/10 of a gallon per hour.
After plugging in the higher capacity iPad adapter, you plug in your iPhone and its charging regulation circuitry adjusts the current flow to about an amp.
The bucket still takes just as long to fill up.
The battery still takes just as long to charge.
The faucet is not under additional strain since the pressure is still 80psi.
The iPhone's battery charging circuitry is not under additional strain since the supply voltage is still 5V.
I hope that I've clarified this for those who want to better understand the subject.

As far as the battery status, the tiny little icon in
the upper right corner of the screen is somewhat
helpful, but while it is connected it does not
actually indicate the level of the charge or that the
Iphone is charging. I was hoping to find a more
informative screen that would give better battery
details. When you first connect the iPhone sometimes
I get a large battery icon that shows the level
visually Is there a way to navigate to this screen?
1. Press the top button to turn the display off if it's not off already.
2. Connect to a power source.
3. The screen should display a large battery meter in the middle of the screen that actually shows the state of charge, even if charging.
If you don't see this plugged into your Mac try the AC adapter that came with the phone. If you still don't see it take it to an Apple store.
best,
Larry
Lenovo T-60 Windows XP Pro

Foreign power adapters on US MBP?

I'm planning on buying a MacBook Pro in a few months, but I'll be moving from the US to the UK in September and was wondering if a MacBook Pro power adapter bought from Apple UK would be safe to use with my American MBP. I know that the world travel adapter kit would work, but I don't necessarily want to add anymore bulk to the power brick, which I hear is quite large. I was looking at the manual online and it says to only use the power adapter that came with the MBP, but if that was true than why are extra power adapters sold at all?
Thanks.

I can tell you for a fact that you won't have any problems. I use the US power supply in Europe and all I need is the adaptor to make the US plug into the local socket. As an additional option, I am sure that there will be a UK power supply if you don't want the hasle of using an adaptor.

Power adapters and worldwide compatibility - a lesson

The standard fare today in power adapters is such that the brick itself is compatible around the world. Indeed, the input power on a Lenovo AC adapter is rated from 100-240V and 50 or 60Hz - capable of operating on any power standard. The only catch is of course the wall plug in various countries. Again, most adapters have a removable adapter-to-wall power cord and if the manufacturer has a worldwide presence, you can likely order a country-specific power cord. Lenovo is such a company and you can find power cords for most geographies, like here. I'm preparing for a trip to New Zealand, my first out of the country, and wanted to be prepared to have my lifeline (aka ThinkPad) ready for the new locale. I looked up the power cord FRU (Field Replaceable Unit) number, called up IBM parts to verify availability, and placed the order. I was also delivering a new T61 to my mother-in-law and the U.S. power cord would be a burden down there. At $2.80 each plus a flat shipping fee, it was a no-brainer.
Australia/NZ Cord
As a side note, I ordered the adapters Monday night and they arrived Tuesday morning
I open the box to find a goofy-looking wall-plug (no offense... ) and what's this - a three-prong adapter-plug???
Australia/NZ plug
It looks a heckuva lot like the old T4x 16V power adapters and I figured I got the wrong FRU, dangit! After having gloated to Matt Kohut, our resident globetrotter, about my adapter-ordering-savvy, I mentioned in passing my situation. No sooner did my lips stop flapping did Matt whisk me away to a seemingly endless drawer in his desk, filled with dozens of black rectangles. Out of it came a seemingly normal looking 65W adapter.
Two very similar power adapters
Do you see a difference in the two adapters? I didn't at first either. Ah, there it is -
U.S. adapter vs ANZ adapter
It turns out that some countries still require an extra grounding wire in AC adapters and do the three-prong plug must be used. There I was thinking in my smugness that I could get away with a new power cord alone, not so!
I hope this helps anyone shopping for power adapters or cords soon. Thanks to Mr. Kohut I have a couple power adapters perfect for my mother-in-law's new T61, so she can compute around New Zealand without needing a silly plug adapter like us Yankees will use down there.
For reference, here are the part numbers in question:
2-prong 65W AC adapter: 92P1214
3-prong 65W AC adapter: 92P1153
Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua, New Guinea power cord - 39M4960
65W AC adapter service parts page
Message Edited by Tim_Lenovo on 12-05-2007 12:50 PM
Tim Supples
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Got a question? Don't PM me, post it on the forum!
Lenovo Blogs
X60 Tablet SXGA+ primary, Z61p fully loaded workhorse

They are different because the two notebooks use a different power system. Your R51 uses the old 16V adapters and the T60 uses the newer 20V versions. Starting with the Z60 series, it was decided to upgrade our power delivery capabilities to meet the ever-increasing power demands of mobile computing.
You can read more information in a couple of our blog posts on the topic:
http://lenovoblogs.com/insidethebox/?p=51
http://lenovoblogs.com/designmatters/?p=23
Tim Supples
Lenovo Social Media
Got a question? Don't PM me, post it on the forum!
Lenovo Blogs
X60 Tablet SXGA+ primary, Z61p fully loaded workhorse

Why can not you thought of improving the design of power adapters for mac book pro from damage so easily?

why can not you thought of improving the design of power adapters for mac book pro from damage so easily?

I congratulate you. you are very lucky because I hurt my less than two years taking all possible care. and have found that this has happened to many people more

MacBook and MacBook Pro power adapters cross compatible?

Greetings~!
I have a MBP, and I just bought my girlfriend a MacBook for her B-Day.
I realize there is a wattage difference between the two power adapters. The MBP is 85watts and the MB is 60watts.
So... to me, I could use the 85watt power adapter to charge the MacBook... but not the other way around.
Has anyone experienced using any other power adapter with the MacBook?

I'm sorry I can't find the reference article for this but I remember reading that as long as the batteries are present you are fine either way, noting that the MBP hooked to a 60 W supply will take a little longer to charge than you are used to with the 85. However, I'm pretty sure it also said you could see problems in the unlikely scenario that you had the 60 W connected to a MBP with no battery present. In that case the MBP would be asking for up to 85 but only getting 60. I don't know enough about it to be able to say that would actually be a problem.

Is it ok to use the other macbook power adapters with the mb air?

I have a few extra power adapters for the Macbook Pro and Macbook. Does anyone know what Apple officially says about plugging one of those into the Macbook Air? I've heard rumors that it's risky and might void the warranty, but I would like to see a direct quote if there is one.
I know those other magsafe plugs are impossible to use if you keep the MBAir on a flat surface, but it's definitely convenient to use a spare Macbook Pro / Macbook power adapter if you put your Air on a laptop stand, or even on a book.

I think we are mixing terms here.
I believe the Macbook Air, Macbook and Macbook Pro power adapters are 45W, 60W and 85W respectively. The power adapters don't push power to the notebooks, the notebooks draw power from the power adapters, Consequently you can always use a higher wattage adapter.
The Macbook and Macbook Pro use different voltages but all the power adapters seem to be able to use each. The Macbook Pro uses 4.6A (amps) and the Macbook uses 3.65A and the Macbook Air 3.1A. Pushing to many amps to a device would ruin the unit, but it seems like this has been planned as you can mix and match all the magsafe adapters today and they all function properly.
I have read that the notebook knows whether it can draw enough power to recharge the battery or only enough to run the computer while it is on and that in the latter case it will charge the battery when the notebook turns off. Whether this is bad for the charger or the notebook is unclear, but since the notebooks seem to respond intelligently in those different situations I think that the apple engineers have planned accordingly. If you draw too much power from the airline adapter for example, the airline adapter will simply stop providing power temporarily and the light will go off for a moment.

Alternative power adapters for the X220

As posted in other threads, there are problems using the "native" Lenovo power adapters with the X220:
- The 65W adapter does not supply enough power, which causes reduced performance.
- The 90W adapter is big and heavy.
- The Ultraslim 90W adapter causes erratic touchpad behaviour.
bender957 recommended the FSP NB L90 90W adapter that, according to his experience, does not suffer from any of the issues listed above.
Unfortunately, that post and others discussing that adapter were removed from the thread they were posted to as off topic, so I created this one to host the discussion.

The SNA 95 has arrived. It's about the same size as the new 90W Dell adapters, so maybe not as small as I was hoping. The Dell adapters struggle to put out 90W without getting dangerously hot though.
The output voltage is 19.5V with no load, so only 0.5V below the rated input voltage of the x220. I've yet to encounter a laptop that can't deal with ±1V. I just can't see anyway they could design a DC-DC converter so badly that it could only take 20V.

Difference in Power Adapters

I recently upgraded from my 40 Gig iPod to the 60Gig Photo.
I'm concerned about the power adapters that came with both units as well as my car charger...
The 40Gig came with an AC power adapter that has the USB connector on it. The label on this adapter says the output is 5 volts at 1Amp.
The 60Gig came with an AC power adapter that has the Firwire connector on it. The label on this adapter syas the output is 13 volts at 0.62 amps.
So - The 60Gig Ipod has different charging requirements than the 'others'?
What happens if I take my cable that has the 'docking' connector on one end and the USB-2 on the other end and plug this into my PC? Will it charge properly?
What happens if I use the charger from my 40Gig on my 60Gig?
What happens if I take my car charger that I had for my 40Gig and plug it into my 60 Gig iPod?
I'm really confused that Apple would have a 5V charger for 'other' versions and a 13V charger for the 60Gig version

Yes - The difference is in the voltage...
The USB charger puts out 5V @ 1Amp while the Firewire charger puts out 13V @ .62Amp.
What I'm not understanding is how they can be interchangeable. True, there's nothing stopping me from plugging any/either of them into my 60Gig iPod -
But where I'm stuck is how can I charge my iPod with 5Volts one time and then 13Volts another... Having a basic understanding of electronics, batteries and such - This is not making sence to me...

Are power adapters interchangeable?

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