One thing they never mention when they tout the weight of a laptop computer is the heft added by the power adapter brick. In the case of my Dell Inspiron 9300, the power adapter adds a full pound!
I mean look at this monster, and it doesn’t even include the cable that connects from the brick to the wall.
The weight of a computer when it’s sitting on your lap isn’t really the problem. The problem is when you’ve got that bag on your shoulder and your flight lands at Atlanta’s Terminal E and your connection in 20 minutes is taking off from Terminal B. Every accessory you throw in that bag with the computer counts.
The new Apple MagSafe power adapter is nicely portable, as I remember my old iBook adapters were (also missing the part that plugs into the wall in this picture).
But there appears to be a widely reported problem of these light and cute things flaming up bigtime. Here. Here. I hope this is a problem Apple fixed since then.
I’m also curious what the real battery life is on the MacBook Pro…sure if I keep it really dark and never connect to the Internet, I can theoretically get 5 hours. But what about real-world? My Dell got 90 minutes under regular use, tops.
Judi Sohn 
4 responses to “Apple MagSafe power adapter – Should I be nervous?”
Not to be nitpicky, but are those little prongy things the part that plug into the wall? 🙂
yes, but the Macs also come with a longer power cord that you don’t necessarily have to use but is often essential around crowded plugs or for longer distances. That’s the part that’s not pictured.
I don’t think there are widespread problems with MagSafe power adapters going up in flames. It’s apparently happened to a few of them, but it happens to normal power adapters all the time too. I’ve had no trouble at all with four of them, and I’m sure the same is true for an overwhelming proportion of MacBook and MacBook Pro users.
I doubt you’ll get five hours of battery life from the MacBook Pro, but you should get more than three hours easily, and definitely more than that if you’re careful about how you use it (dimming the screen, don’t leave things chewing up CPU in the background, etc.).
I have a new MBP too, and I can get over three hours on the battery!
I do hope the adapter on mine doesn’t burst into flames :}