do people really hate apple that much?

This could actually be handy if, like me, you remove your battery when it's charged and the computer is plugged in. I can't tell you how many times the MagSafe connector has shifted a little bit and caused my computer to shut down.

I could see it being useful in a handful of situations.

Bitch about the MagSafe all you want, you won't need motherboard repair because too much force was put on the coaxial power connector. (Honestly, that's just bad design on the laptop-maker's fault, any coaxial connector that will receive strong tugs should be connected to the chassis, not just the motherboard)

Besides - MagSafe is a hell of a lot better than the stereo phono/RCA plug hybrid from the G4's. Any upwards motion, or slight tug to the side, and it would never charge for me.

@MFlick:

Yep.

I can't think of any better way to stick it to 'The Man' (aka Steve Jobs). Buy his toys, but then make the advantages irrelevant. It hurts, doesn't it, Steve?

It is really not that hard to keep the magsafe in there.

Yeash.

Weird prediction for the day: As long as PC people and Mac people hate each other, there won't be peace in the middle east. 2012, 2012, 2012......

@Out2gtcha: Why?

@dondiego87: I don't think you're supposed to do that.

Ohh yes because the magsafe is such a great perfect system in which never accidentally disconnects.

Yeah, take that Jobs. Then uninstall flash and pretend your Mac is an iPhone for more resentment.

@duckandcover: Um, Magsafe connectors are designed specifically for accidental disconnections, as it has zero wear and tear from accidental pulling, like tripping over the cable. It's NOT designed to keep the plug in the socket better, but rather make it safer for the hardware, since it can't be flung off of a table or bend/break something inside

1) How exactly does it affect Jobs? The Mac is already bought and your chances of needing a new machine increase as the power cable is even less likely to come detached than prior to the MagSafe, which makes it more likely to send your Mac on a trip.

2) This does not work for the MacBook as the connector to the right of the MagSafe plug is an Ethernet jack.

@MFlick: YES.

That is astonishingly... stupid. What the hell is the point of one of these? I accidentally pop the magsafe cable off my mac all the time and not once did I think, "Dammit! I wish it would just yank the computer from my grasp and fling it to the floor like in olden days!".

For some reason, the logic of one of these fits comfortably in my mind next to, "I don't wear a seat belt because I want to get thrown clear of the car accident".

@duckandcover: It's a laptop. They have batteries in them. How much do you care if it disconnects? Is it really going to be five hours before you notice?

* In all honesty, I VNC into my laptop from work (to bypass web filtering) and sometimes my cats unplug it. So something like this could actually be useful for me, but it doesn't happen often enough for me to want to shell out $12.

MagSafe has proven itself a needed addition to my laptop countless times. Had there been this attached, I'm certain this machine would be much more acquainted with the floor.

I don't understand any of this.

@dondiego87:

If you want to change the battery, put the laptop to sleep and do so. In the off-chance that the Magsafe connector pops off, you have nothing to worry because the laptop will be in deep sleep mode. Plug it back in, swap your battery, and boot it right back up. It'll take a little longer to wake up, but you're not losing anything.

Regarding fucktards that claim they hate Apple but can't help reading and commenting on every single Apple related post; whatever floats your boats, but it's pathetic nonetheless ;-p

I have broken two laptops by the smart procedure of pulling the wire with my leg and thus making the machine do a nice fly from the table onto the floor.

MagSafe has saved my MBP's life more than once.

Did I tell you some people call me Mr Bean?

@dondiego87: Just close the lid next time...you don't need to be plugged in to swap out a battery really fast. I love the mag safe: No matter how careful you are, other people can trip on your cord, etc. I've hardly found the current design to be a limitation either.

Some people struggle with irony...

"1) How exactly does it affect Jobs? The Mac is already bought and your chances of needing a new machine increase as the power cable is even less likely to come detached than prior to the MagSafe, which makes it more likely to send your Mac on a trip."

@MFlick:

I never really had an opinion either way; until I was forced to work with them.

Lets just suffice it to say when I want to build a piece of computing technology I don't want to HAVE to use an certain components, let alone being held hostage by the manufacture itself for repairs or replacements.

The thing the fanbois don't get why some people hate apple so much (for me anyway) is this:

I'm no fan of IBM.
I'm no fan of Dell.
I'm not really into Sony or HP and hate Gateway. The thing is if you want a PC (not talking LTs here) you don't HAVE to go with any of these manufacturers. You can go almost anywhere including the net and choose every single component from case to GPU to pwr supply, and build the whole thing; EVERYTHING yourself from components you choose, without being held hostage by any one company, AND you can replace or upgrade any of those components yourself at any time with a wide variety of manufacturers, prices, and performance.

You want an apple? You're not just going to go traversing the net or walk into some computer store and start picking up a variety of apple components to build your own imac.
Yeah, you can change some of the stuff in G series apples but that is still limited and no one that I know that uses apples (even the G users) modifies their stuff to much of a degree.

Tons of people buy & use apples. I get it. That's their right, people can use whatever crap they want. Personally I don't ever want to have to go to one manufacturer to get everything, all the while, for my usage, having to sacrifice usability, functionality, and customizability for image and the typical "Fisher-Price" feel that to me, all apples seem to have in common, lap top, desk top or otherwise.

*END RANT* Sorry, you asked.

I LOVE Apple, and I've been using one of these for over a year now. The MagSafe disconnects all the time without this gadget, and with it, only sometimes. MagSafe is a great idea, it is just that (1) the magnets aren't strong enough, and (2) the cord, after it comes out of the transformer brick, is just too short. Either one or both would make this gizmo unnecessary. But it has nothing to do with hating Apple or Steve.

@Out2gtcha: I'm not a fan of Macs either (I need to go change my name back to "Original Asus Fanboy"), but I have to say that that particular jibe at Apple products doesn't have so much strength when the topic is laptops. There isn't a particularly large amount of leeway for laptop customizability...

Ohh it has zero wear and tear... that's interesting. That part of the cord has become separated from the main part thus ruining the cord numerous times, sweet.(ohh and apparently cat hair also does not go well) My problem with the magsafe isn't the idea, it's just not strong enough. Yes I realize if you make it too strong If you look at it funny from an underneath or above it will not hold. It's simply preference, I can see why someone would want this.

5 hours? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. 3 hours, maybe.

@Reilaos, Man of Destiny: Yeah I noe; kinda OT.

He asked, and I felt compelled to answer.
Not really in the mood for a crapple fanboi battle so.....

Apologies all around.
I succumb; I'm going out for my MBA tomorrow.

"Don't flame be bro!"

After reading the article and the accompanying comments, I *still* have no idea what this device does, or what the thing is on the Apple computer that this device is supposedly helping/hindering.

wtf are you geeks talking about? no one has ever, in the history of mankind, come up with a viable argument in favor of MS over Apple.

"Theres more software available for MS boxes'. nope, doesnt hold water anymore.

"Too expensive!" nope, Minis only cost $500. and they kick ass.

"Theres no drivers for Mac!" like there are for Vista?

"Steve Jobs is an ass!" oh, and Bill Gates is a sweet guy.

tell me one thing a PC does better (other than simply being ubiquitous) and ill shut up. just dont use the 'its the standard in corporate America." my mac worlks fine right here in my cube.

@Out2gtcha: So, uh, tell us how do you really feel. It's OK to admit you're angry that you're not able to afford the latest/greatest Jobsian ascendency gear. We get it. ;)

Some people find the value in macs, some people don't. I don't believe that me owning a mac in any way makes me superior (I already know I'm superior!) to PC owners.

At the time I purchased my mbp, it was the same price as a comparably equipped dell, was lighter, thinner, and more durable. Oh, and I could now dual boot. It made sense to not have a dedicated PC anymore at that point.

@dondiego87: Just what I thought. I predict a growing need for new batteries since the MagSafe was introduced.

Hey! That pic makes me wonder... are there any USB plugin adapters that are sleek and sexy enough to plug into an MBA slot... so that I can have moe than one peripheral running at one time?

@hanswurst0815: Eh, my laptop is at about 147 charges, and is now getting flakier by the charge. I get maybe an hour out of it when it's unplugged.

WHat I love now is that my charger light comes on, turns green, and unless the battery is charging it goes out even though it's powering the laptop.

I am not a big fan of apple's software, but I do like most of their hardware including magsafe, I have no idea why you would want to remove this feature.

Man... why would I want this thing... the magsafe has saved my clumsy butt on more occasions than I care to remember (and in the process saved my investment.) Stupid pointless product!

@kipmartin: There are no good GPS planning/mapping or moving map packages thta work. Project Bobcat is getting close to Mapsource for Garmin products, Route Buddy is a piece of shite. That is a limitaion of Macs. Is it Jobs/Apples' fault? not really, if they don't want to get into GPS, I understand. Just an offtopic example. (Shut Up now ;-)

When I can do everything I need on a Mac, I'll replace the desktop too. Right now, I'm happy with my Powerbook as a secondary device.

@kipmartin: I like to be able to build my computers for a fraction of the cost of a big company and be able to play games on them without having to boot into another OS.

I love any Giz article that brings up Apple, 'cause then all of the "I hate Apple" children come out and play and it takes me right back to 1981 when I was on my Atari 800XL and XM301 300bps modem, watching all of the Commodore-tards and Apple-tards and IBM-tards and Atari-tards fighting amongst themselves for the right to claim the first pubic hair or something.

Good times.

@Xavoc:

I'm not rich, no doubt. But I'm single and manage to pay all my own bills, have a house, 2 cars, a motorcycle, and some other assorted toys like R/C stuff a carbon fiber road bike and what-not, so affording some out of the box apple is not the issue.

Microsoft is not the issue either; I hate Microsoft. My argument has nothing to do with Microsoft what-so-ever. I use Red Hat mostly.

Again, fanbois can own whatever POS they want, just don't try to get me to own one, especially after actually having to work with apple products.

For me it's not JUST the inability to customize, it's the FEEL that all apples have to me, lap top or desktop;
Over simplification; minimalistic to the end; like a Fisher Price computer you have to use in out-of-the-box form, or not at all.

@kipmartin:
Works fine in your cube eh? I bet the server you connect to every day is an apple product too right?
Because everyone knows apple is the standard for servers and business roll-outs right? Right?

Ah, yes, America. Where people whine and complain about every safety feature engineered into things to make your life easier. Seatbelts, airbags, park/brake interlocks, improved gas mileage standards ... and now magsafe.

I'd like to see this thing used on the Air, taking up the only USB port.

@johnnyabnormal: The nice about OSX that Windows can't do very well is that Mac notebooks use the Sleep and Hibernation at the same time and in a very efficient and effective way.

After going to sleep the contents of RAM will automatically be copied to the HDD (providing there is enough space) so if the battery does completely run out or is pulled out you can add power and it comes back to where you at with in a minute.

@kipmartin: I am a longtime Mac user, and owna plethora of other Apple products. I have spent of working years working on windows machines of all kinds in the enterprise so when I get home I do wnat something that "just works", but I disagree with your comments.

'"Theres more software available for MS boxes'. nope, doesnt hold water anymore.'
While it was true pre-OS X, and OS X has closed the gap significantly, there are still some things that are made Windows only purely because they have such a large marketshare. Most would be hard pressed to find an app that wasn't cheaper, and more refined on a Mac than on a Windows machine, but it's still possible. Especially with in-house company apps.

'"Too expensive!" nope, Minis only cost $500. and they kick ass.'
• With the change to Intel it's much easier to do a direct comparison and there are many examples that Macs are cheper when comparing the exact processor config. But Apple's lowest priced machine compared to other OEMs cheapest machiens shows the Mac is not a budget PC.

The Mini isn't a good example for a desktop computer.. While it's relatively inexpensive, it does a 2.5" HDD and other components that are more expensive and most often found in a notebook

"Theres no drivers for Mac!" like there are for Vista?
• Usually not an issue but there are still plenty of perhipeals that don't officially support OS X but fully support XP. As Mac marketshare rises this will slowly change.

@Out2gtcha: Inability to customize HW or SW? Since moving to Unix, OS X can be tweaked in more ways that Windows ever could. And usually by a simple edit of text file. There are many free apps have added a simple GUI to help facilitate this process.

If you mean HW, then you are correct. To make the machines as thin, sturdy and optimized as they are, you can't have interchangeable components. It's a tradeoff and always will be. If you are serious gamer then Macs aren't for you, even if you do install Windows. ATI and NVIDIA just don't offer the same HW as they do for Windows.

@Leonard Nimrod:
You are correct. HW. I generally use RH at home and am forced to use XP at work and some older mac os systems for our clients. We generally don't have too many clients on leopard yet.

Although I am a gamer, I have found so many other instances at work where none of the apple products will work (hardware wise and a few SW) that I have had to give up on some of our customers who don't want to change HW or duel boot.

The not-so-surprising thing is most of t