4 ms·

> I wont buy a laptop without a magsafe or similar connection What about wireless charging? I see magsafe as deprecated and only Macbook air has it now.

by mycall 10y ago

baobrain 10y ago
Wireless charging is horribly inefficient...IIRC there aren't even any that go over 10W. Magsafe may be deprecated by Apple, but that's a step backwards in functionality. One cannot deny that using USB C for charging is inferior in terms of protecting the device.
- elcritch 10y ago
  Thought the same thing, but then saw this: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/branchusb/magneo-first-true-usb-c-magnetic-adapter https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/branchusb/magneo-first-... Gotta say the idea of a single USB C adaptor carrying power, data, and having a general purpose mag-safe like adapter is pretty compelling.
  - OJFord 10y ago
    That looks massive though.
    - YSFEJ4SWJUVU6 10y ago
      Massive? .. there's no pleasing some folk.
      - OJFord 10y ago
        Given it's intended to be a permanent fixture in the side of your laptop, at the size of a (keyboard) key I'd say it's pretty big, yes. Add that to the one-and-a-half key-sized optionally permanent part (unless you're going to buy one for each cable, it's fixed until you need the safety feature) and it's a huge thing sticking out of the side! To be honest, I question the usefulness anyway - I've pulled my Macbook Air off a table (accidentally) by it's MagSafe power cable before, and trying it deliberately now it only works with vertical movement. Side-to-side or directly 'out' it just moves my laptop, even as short & and sharp as I can. If I stepped directly on the cable it would be such a directly-out movement; if I tripped, a side-to-side one. Unless my laptop was positioned perfectly such that the MagSafe hung over the edge of the table, and I trod directly down, I can't imagine how it would have its intended effect. I use it all the time for un/plugging deliberately, but I can live without that, and as above with this Kickstarter product without buying several I'd have to leave the whole dongle plugged in anyway, so any deliberate dis/connection would be a normal un/plug motion.
        bartvk 10y ago
        > intended to be a permanent fixture Are you sure about that? I've ordered two and I've never thought about leaving it in: for me, it's purely a normal connector except that it could "break" safely.
- jhoechtl 10y ago
  How many devices did you break because they did not have a magsafe like functionality? I did not break a single one. Magsafe is a differentiating feature of Apple with little to none daily life saving rationality for existance. Its there to be different not to be better.
  - jmcdiesel 10y ago
    3. 3 laptops, broken when I wasn't even there from a family member or child or pet running by snagging the valve and ripping t out. 2 were just rendered unchargable, the third shattered the screen. I'm far from alone in that, as well. It's rather presimptuous on your part, don't you think?
  - srssays 10y ago
    Those computers are like $3000. Even if it only saves 10% of MacBooks from an untimely end, it's still $300's worth of insurance.
    - chongli 10y ago
      10% is a really high guess. I would suggest less than 1%.
KingMob 10y ago
Wireless charging needs to be strangled in the crib. As long as we're burning carbons for power, we have no business charging wirelessly until it's as efficient as wired.

> I wont buy a laptop without a magsafe or similar connection What about wireless charging? I see magsafe as deprecated and only Macbook air has it now.

by mycall 10y ago

> I wont buy a laptop without a magsafe or similar connection What about wireless charging? I see magsafe as deprecated and only Macbook air has it now.

baobrain 10y ago

Wireless charging is horribly inefficient...IIRC there aren't even any that go over 10W. Magsafe may be deprecated by Apple, but that's a step backwards in functionality. One cannot deny that using USB C for charging is inferior in terms of protecting the device.

elcritch 10y ago
Thought the same thing, but then saw this: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/branchusb/magneo-first-true-usb-c-magnetic-adapter https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/branchusb/magneo-first-... Gotta say the idea of a single USB C adaptor carrying power, data, and having a general purpose mag-safe like adapter is pretty compelling.
- OJFord 10y ago
  That looks massive though.
  - YSFEJ4SWJUVU6 10y ago
    Massive? .. there's no pleasing some folk.
    - OJFord 10y ago
      Given it's intended to be a permanent fixture in the side of your laptop, at the size of a (keyboard) key I'd say it's pretty big, yes. Add that to the one-and-a-half key-sized optionally permanent part (unless you're going to buy one for each cable, it's fixed until you need the safety feature) and it's a huge thing sticking out of the side! To be honest, I question the usefulness anyway - I've pulled my Macbook Air off a table (accidentally) by it's MagSafe power cable before, and trying it deliberately now it only works with vertical movement. Side-to-side or directly 'out' it just moves my laptop, even as short & and sharp as I can. If I stepped directly on the cable it would be such a directly-out movement; if I tripped, a side-to-side one. Unless my laptop was positioned perfectly such that the MagSafe hung over the edge of the table, and I trod directly down, I can't imagine how it would have its intended effect. I use it all the time for un/plugging deliberately, but I can live without that, and as above with this Kickstarter product without buying several I'd have to leave the whole dongle plugged in anyway, so any deliberate dis/connection would be a normal un/plug motion.
      - bartvk 10y ago
        > intended to be a permanent fixture Are you sure about that? I've ordered two and I've never thought about leaving it in: for me, it's purely a normal connector except that it could "break" safely.
jhoechtl 10y ago
How many devices did you break because they did not have a magsafe like functionality? I did not break a single one. Magsafe is a differentiating feature of Apple with little to none daily life saving rationality for existance. Its there to be different not to be better.
- jmcdiesel 10y ago
  3. 3 laptops, broken when I wasn't even there from a family member or child or pet running by snagging the valve and ripping t out. 2 were just rendered unchargable, the third shattered the screen. I'm far from alone in that, as well. It's rather presimptuous on your part, don't you think?
- srssays 10y ago
  Those computers are like $3000. Even if it only saves 10% of MacBooks from an untimely end, it's still $300's worth of insurance.
  - chongli 10y ago
    10% is a really high guess. I would suggest less than 1%.

KingMob 10y ago

Wireless charging needs to be strangled in the crib. As long as we're burning carbons for power, we have no business charging wirelessly until it's as efficient as wired.