Why do MacBook power cords fray so easily?

Despite the fact that it is reversible, my power cord split open and frayed. Really cheap. Wish I could post a photo!

Careful with your charger and its cable
Do not make any hard bends or folds in your charging cable, or wind it tightly, always make either circles or loose loops when winding your cord up for storage. Also do not, as many people have seen, unroll your charger block from the magsafe end by letting the charger drop and unroll itself like a yo-yo, this is both hard on the charger and its connection points at both ends.
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1630

Similar Messages

  • Macbook pro power cord frayed and not charging

    Ive just noticed I have the same power cord problem. I plugged in the cord into my macbook and noticed that the light did not turn on. Upon closer inspection I noticed the wire was frayed and was real hot. I have not moved my power adapter or have had something happen for it to be that bad. Im not sure if Im still under my 1 year warranty plan thing, but I was wondering if I took it into the apple store they would still replace it. So if anyone has been in this situation and knows the best option, besides spending the 80 bucks for a new one I would greatly appreciate it.

    Hope you feel better.
    I assume the OP bought it there and can certainly go back under the 1 year and show them another melted one as there have been enough melted ones for them to know this is a bit of a problem. He can call Applecare as well of course.
    Message was edited by: Host

  • MacBook power cord with MacBook Pro?

    Hi,
    I have a MacBook at home, and a MacBook Pro provided by my company for work. Can I use the power cord from my MacBook to charge the Pro??
    My understanding is that it will still work, but it will just charge the MBP battery slower. Is that correct?
    Thanks,
    SS

    Can I use the power cord from my MacBook to charge the Pro??
    Charge as in only charge the MBP (i.e., closed lid). There won't be enough juice for using and charging consistently at the same time, depending on what you would be doing, which may actually lead to the battery discharging while connected to the smaller power brick.

  • MacBook Power Adapter Fraying?

    Hi guys,
    I'm a little frustrated. My MacBook Pro's power adapter has been acting funny lately. Then I realized it's because my power adapter only works if you hold it a certain way. So I moved the clip that is near the magnet, and I saw the cord was a little deformed.
    Anyway, I'm at a loss for what to do--do I call AppleCare, just go out and buy a new power adapter... totally at a loss.
    Thanks,
    John

    the same exact thing happened to me, i took it into my applestore and they gave me a brand new one no questions asked. They said a lot of people expereience this. Don't buy a new one because 9 times out of 10 your covered!! hope this helped!!

  • Replacing a power cord in a different country from original purchase

    Hello,
    I bought my MacBook in Australia, but I have recently relocated to Germany. My MacBook is fine but the magsafe power cord is damaged and needs replacing.
    Is it possible to buy a power cord here in Germany and use it with my MacBook, or do I need to use only an Australian issued MacBook power cord?
    Thanks.

    The adapter provided with the MacBooks is universal. You'll receive a different "duckhead" (the portion that connects to the outlet) but the adapter itself is the same. Keep the original duckhead & extension cord if they are undamaged as you can use them in your home country once you return.
    ~Lyssa

  • New (3mo) macbook air screen goes black and sometimes won't come back on after I unplug it from the power cord.  Any ideas why it is doing this? Sometimes I have to hold power button for 10 seconds for it to shut off then back on.

    New (3mo) macbook air screen goes black and sometimes won't come back on after I unplug it from the power cord.  Any ideas why it is doing this? Sometimes I have to hold power button for 10 seconds for it to shut off then back on. Sometimes holding the power button for a second is enough for it to come back on.

    I took it to the Genius Bar, and they identified it as a hardware issue. Just got it back today. Parts replaced were:
    620-5629 Display Module — Symptom: Distored/blurred/focus video issue
    605-3284 Top Case with Keyboard — Symptom: specific key(s) do not work
    So far so good. I'd suggest taking it in and not trying to work around it — it's a rare hardware issue (given the number of threads about it) and should be replaced.

  • Why won't my MacBook run on battery and display on the monitor?      Runs fine if power cord is plugged in.                                                                                      I have to be plugged in to see the monitor display.  Any ideas

    Why won't my laptop run on battery and display on the monitor?  If it is plugged in to power it works fine but the monitor goes blank if the power cord is removed.  Any ideas?

    Nothing is wrong.  what your're seeing is by design.

  • Mag Safe power cord sparks when connected or disconnected--whereupon the MacBook Pro 13'' dumps date and time, and all passwords, plus any/all unsaved information.

    I purchased my MacBook Pro 13" from the Apple Store in Tucson, AZ, in mid-January. Since then, every time the Mag-Safe cord is jostled, not even disconnected, sparks fly from the power terminal on the computer, the computer shuts down, and dumps its passwords, as well as the date and time.
    Any work in progress is also lost.
    I work overseas, and Apple's advice was to give them my credit card number, await shipment of a new power supply and cord, and then, when I return the old power supply and cord, i'd receive a credit. That won't work, as packages from the US to my location take weeks if they arrive at all. There is no Apple Store within a reasonable distance. Or, Apple suggests, when I'm home on leave in mid-June, I should bring the computer to the Apple Store for repair--I have only days in which to do that, but I suppose I'll need to try. My concern is that I'll need to return overseas without my computer and won't be able to retrieve it for months, until my next leave.
    This issue shows up elsewhere online. Is there a short in the power terminal in the computer, or on the Mag-Safe power cord, or within the computer itself? It's a known issue, thus I wonder why it hasn't been fixed.

    Odd, but here's a copy of Page 1 of the links I got:
    Apple Portables: Troubleshooting MagSafe adapters26 May 2011 ... If the spark comes from somewhere other than the blades of the plug, .... Apple Portables: Reducing cable strain on your MagSafe power ...
    support.apple.com › Support - Cached
    Apple - Support - Discussions - Magsafe sparked when plugging into ... 
    2 posts - 2 authors - Last post: 22 FebI plugged my magsafe adapter into my macbook pro (mid 2010 model i think ...
    discussions.apple.com › ... › Power and Batteries on a MacBook Pro - Cached 
    Mag Safe power cord sparks when...: Apple Support Communities6 Jun 2011 ... Mag Safe power cord sparks when connected or disconnected ...
    https://discussions.apple.com/message/15350172
    Show more results from apple.com
    Apple power brick sparks lawsuit • The  Register
    - 4:52am6 May 2009 ... Apple power brick sparks lawsuit ... Apple, for its part, made the MagSafe one of the featured, um, features of the MacBook Pro when it ...
    www.theregister.co.uk/2009/05/06/apple_magsafe_lawsuit/ - Cached - Similar
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    3 posts - 3 authors - Last post: 19 Aug 2008Info.: "This one concerns faulty Magsafe power adaptors that shipped with MacBook (13-inch Late 2006), MacBook (13-inch), ...
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  • I can't wake up my MacBook without power cord since firmware update

    Even though my battery charges fine and it's on 99% full
    it won't wake up without a power cord.
    when I walk away from the computer and close the lid, when I open it again and hit the space bar nothing happens. I have to hit the power up button and still nothing happens. then I plug in the cord and I get the grayed out screen and see the energy coming back with the white stripes loading across the screen.
    Now I just pulled out the cord with it on and sat there for 1 minute to see what happened. The computer shut down! My MacBook effectively can't get the energy off my battery. What is going on??
    This just started 2 days ago right after it asked me to load new firmware. I don't even know why I needed to update the firm ware but all I know now is my Macbook can't live without the power cord now and I was fine before. HOW DO I UNINSTALL that FIRMWARE UPDATE?? or HOW do I fix this??
    please help me

    My macbook is presenting the same problem after firmware update. Resetting the smc didn't work, as well as resetting the pram and repairing permissions in safe boot mode. Help, please... my mac suddently turned to be a PC.... simply not working!!!!
    I tried to clean the battery plate, as well, but i am able to wake my mac up only with power cord plugged in... after restarting the computer, by pressing the power key for 10 seconds, the battery works pretty good...

  • If a power cord shorts out, can it affect my Macbook Pro?

    I have my 2009 macbook pro 13" plugged in, then suddenly it turns itself off and needs to be restarted using the power button, and when it shuts down, the power cord seems to 'die' too. I think the power cord might be shorting out. Could this be? Could it possibly be a completely unrelated occurrence, where the cord dies and the computer separately spontaneously shuts off (perhaps the battery is dying)? No warning pops up or anything, there is just a tiny 'pop' sound and the screen goes black. I must then use the power button to turn it back on. When I turn the computer back on, the clock is set back to some time in 2000 and wifi is knocked out. But if I put the computer in sleep mode, close the lid, then open it, it reconnects to airport with no problem, and sometimes the light on the power cord will turn back on. I haven't been able to find a similar issue anywhere.
    Some more background: the computer, when turned on and for example using Google Chrome and TextEdit, and these 2 applications only, the battery power quickly deteriorates. In addition, whereas the battery used to deteriorate down to the single digit percentages, it now tends to die at about anywhere from 10-30% battery life reading. This is where I am getting the idea my battery may be going bad. This is my 3rd or 4th power cord in 5 years.

    This cord has not been wrapped or stored in damaging ways, I always circle it up, never use the little ears to wind the thinner cord on the A/C adaptor block because this has been shown to have problems, plus the cord gets all kinked up. I am as delicate as possible with my cords now because my previous ones have been damaged from wrapping/other technical issues (the first, which came with my Mac in '09, was the old 't' style and frayed from factory defect, the second stopped working after about 2 years so I was told it was probably due to age, the third stopped working spontaneously back in July of this year due to unknown causes, and this newly purchased one has been treated as described above, very delicately, wrapped in loose circles and placed in a padded carrying case). The cord was plugged into a surge protector when the issue occurred, at the home of a friend (not in my own home), when the issue began to occur.
    Apple charges $80 for a subpar product that has time and time again failed for various and differing reasons, but they don't change anything because it makes them money when you have to keep buying new power supply cords every 6 months to a year or shorter. I have never had this particular problem where the cord overheats and shuts down my computer. I purchase from Best Buy because I can't afford to wait for 6 weeks while Apple ships new product, nor can I afford to pay extra for shipping. The nearest Apple store is an hour from my house, otherwise I'd go straight there and have my computer and cord diagnosed.
    I am pretty sure the computer battery itself is dying, as well, as the unit is 5 years old.
    I found it strange that no one else I could find had ever documented this same problem occurring.
    Thanks for your time and advice.

  • Partial power cord for MacBook Pro?

    I have a broken power cord on a MacBook Pro 13-inch early 2011 model. Is there a way to buy the part of the cord that attaches to the computer without shelling out $79 for the whole thing with the power block?

    They are for sale on eBay.
    But how do you propose to connect it? The connections are inside the power block, which is glued shut. There is no simple plug, these cords require soldering.
    Is the cord at the computer-end frayed? it might be replaced as a safety issue if frayed.

  • One Macbook, two power cords?

    The two-pronged power cord fits the "magnetic" part of the cable nicely. It sparks with wall connections, though.
    But my new Macbook also came with another cable; it has a three-way "male" connection on one end, with what looks like a small, tubular barrel on the other. How exactly does this second cable fit? Do I still use my "magnetic" cable? Why bother having a thick, three-way cable when my two-way "magnetic" one is thinner and smaller?
    I can't figure how the second cable would fit anything. I've not yet seen any pictures.
    Thanks!

    Poikkeus wrote:
    Why bother having a thick, three-way cable when my two-way "magnetic" one is thinner and smaller?
    The extension adapter has two purposes. It gives you more reach when you aren't close enough to a wall outlet using the two prong adapter. It also gives you a good ground that you don't have with the two prong adapter.

  • POWER CORD DISASTERS FOR MACBOOK PRO'S AND MACBOOKS

    What is going on with the power cords and the MacBooks? I have noticed more and more questions about them and now I am mad enough to put my words out there! I have been a faithful Mac user and this is my second. This is, however, not my first problem with their cords. I have been told by a professional that the shafts for the wiring are far too stiff and that is why they keep malfunctioning. This is why many of you have exoposed wiring (very dangerous) and why the wiring is pulling away from both the wall outlet and the plug for the machine. I am now, furious, as I am in the middle of a huge design project and my local dealer (only 1 in a city of 1 million) tells me that Apple is "reconfiguring" the cord and they don't know when it will be available. So where does that leave me or you? I have no power to my MacBook Pro that I spent over $5,000.00 for and no way to get it!! Does anyone out there have any secrets or can you offer any help at all? The next thing you know we will be talking about Apple the way most of us talk about Dell. I mean, c'mon, such a simple problem but not one of the multi-millionaires has done anything to correct it? Any help or suggestion would be greatly appreciated!!

    Broken Keys? Really? On a Macbook? How hard do you type?
    I have owned an iBook (5 years), a 17" PowerBook (4 years), a 15" MacBook Pro (3 months), and a 24" iMac (1 year). So far, the ONLY problem I have had is a bad airport card in the MacBook Pro, which apple promptly replaced at no charge.
    If you are not getting good service from your apple store, call apple directly. I find they always resolve the problem. If you get an answer you do not like, talk to a supervisor, and keep going up.
    My brother-in-law, whom is much younger than I, owned an iBook and severely (and I mean severely) abused it over a two year period. Broke the screen twice (repaired at no charge), shattered the keyboard (replaced, no charge), cracked the case (replaced, no charge), tore the power cord in half (replaced, no charge), and finally, on the next case break, Apple gave him a brand new MacBook at, again, no charge.
    As my company provides me with laptops from other manufacturers (HP, Dell), I can say without reserve that the Mac is by far one of the best built machines (maybe not as tough as a Panasonic ToughBook...) on the market today. The problems I have had with my Dell Latitude over the past four months (bad mouse, keyboard, fan, hard drive, in that order) makes my macs all that much more wonderful.
    Also, what computer comes with free word processing software, besides perhaps a Linux Box? You pay for it somewhere...

  • My Macbook pro keeps shutting down right after I log in. The power cord seems to be fine, so I think the computer has enough power. Right after logging in, it shows a grey background with a loading bar that loads only 1/4. Then it shuts down.

    I have had my Macbook Pro since 2011 and it has been great until now. Suddenly, I can no longer get past the grey screen just after I log in. The grey screen appears with a loading bar, and the bar get 1/4 of the way complete, then the computer shuts off. My power cord seems to be working fine because this problem still occurred after using another power cord (from another Macbook). Keyboard does not light up, and the small green lights on the left side of the computer do not light up (this is an older version and these light indicate how charged the computer is). It is using the OS X Yosemite and recently had total clearing of the hard drive as it was transferring from one owner to another, so the hard drive isn't nearly full enough to be causing this problem. I've never run into this problem before with other Macbooks.
    Help!

    Hi. When you were in the recovery drive doing permissions, did you try and run a repair of the boot drive? Did you try single user mode? Try these first and then go back and try to reinstall the operating system.When I say repair boot drive I don't mean permissions. There are both options in disk utilities.When you open disk utilities ,you will see in the left column  two drives plus possibly  a boot partition that look like an external driv. click on the second drive and in first aid use repair disk. If you still can't boot and it will not let you restore, you may have to do a clean install.   http://support.apple.com/kb/PH18869?viewlocale=en_US  

  • Macbook Pro: both external screens go off when unplugging power cord

    Hello!
    I have my Macbook Pro set up with two external screens one connected thru HDMI and the other with Thunderbolt, I keep the lid always closed. I always have the power cord plugged in but when I for whatever reason unplug the cord both screens go dark and don't seem to "wake up" anymore. When I plug back in the cord I have to open the lid first to make the login window appear but after login my screens are switched. When I close the lid again it goes back to my original set up. The same when I turn on the Macbook and don't close the lid after it right away, the screens are switched until I close it.
    Any idea on this?

    As this article points out, there are very stringent requirements for using a MacBook in "closed clamshell" mode. #1 is to have the power adapter plugged in:
    How to use your Mac notebook computer in closed-clamshell (display closed) mode with an external display - Apple Suppor…

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