3 ms·

And yet, late last year or early this year I was able to buy a replacement charger [edit to add: they sell the battery too] from Dell for my 2013-model-year Lat

And yet, late last year or early this year I was able to buy a replacement charger [edit to add: they sell the battery too] from Dell for my 2013-model-year Latitude laptop. Not the exact same model as was originally bundled, but it's still new from Dell, still officially documented as compatible with my laptop, and still works fine with it in practice. You described Apple as a consumer goods company and called this scenario satire if you just substitute a different company. Keep in mind the sale to OP was made by the much less consumerized Apple of 2014, not the "you can't touch /System without disabling important protections" Apple of 2021, and was from a Pro laptop line ostensibly targeted at business use cases, not a consumer model. The expectations of OP for a top-tier business laptop seem quite reasonable to me, both in the past and in the present. My laptop still meets my needs well enough after more than 6 years of use (yeah I bought it in 2014) that I haven't been able to justify the purchase of a replacement, even though I could afford one if needed. Dell's offering of guaranteed compatible new parts reinforced both that decision and my openness to Dell business laptops whenever I do upgrade, since it's not a planned obsolescence trap.

stu2b50 6y ago
You can still buy the Magsafe Macbook charger from Apple's website to this day. Like, Google it and it'll come up. A charger is completely different from a lithium-ion battery, which degrades over time.
- jkaplowitz 6y ago
  They still sell a battery for this model too: https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-45-whr-4-cell-primary-battery-e7240-customer-install/apd/451-bbfx/pc-accessories https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-45-whr-4-cell-primary-b... I focused more on the fact that they were still willing to provide this level of support for the repairs that such an old machine might need than on the particular part I chose to buy. My battery could use a replacement too, but I use it plugged in too much for me to want to spend on that. In a different lifestyle I'd buy that as well.
alpacaillama 6y ago
you just compared buying a charger to replacing the battery. Also, I am sure if OP wants to replace the battery at a 3rd party store, they could. It’s been 7 years.
- jkaplowitz 6y ago
  The point was that the manufacturer is still willing to produce and sell new replacement parts that are officially advertised and supported for that old of a model, instead of refusing to. I didn't have to guess that it would work, it was on the product page, and they would have treated it as a warranty issue (under the charger's warranty) if it didn't. They also still have a page on their website documenting current battery products that work with this exact model, including one battery model that can be installed inside the machine like the original one. It's a very different attitude than Apple's.
google234123 6y ago
That charger is probably the same one they have used in all models for like 20 years...
- jkaplowitz 6y ago
  No, they have several different models with different wattages and other characteristics. But, sure the fact that they switch chargers less often than Apple does is another plus.

stu2b50 6y ago

You can still buy the Magsafe Macbook charger from Apple's website to this day. Like, Google it and it'll come up. A charger is completely different from a lithium-ion battery, which degrades over time.

jkaplowitz 6y ago
They still sell a battery for this model too: https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-45-whr-4-cell-primary-battery-e7240-customer-install/apd/451-bbfx/pc-accessories https://www.dell.com/en-ca/shop/dell-45-whr-4-cell-primary-b... I focused more on the fact that they were still willing to provide this level of support for the repairs that such an old machine might need than on the particular part I chose to buy. My battery could use a replacement too, but I use it plugged in too much for me to want to spend on that. In a different lifestyle I'd buy that as well.

alpacaillama 6y ago

you just compared buying a charger to replacing the battery. Also, I am sure if OP wants to replace the battery at a 3rd party store, they could. It’s been 7 years.

jkaplowitz 6y ago
The point was that the manufacturer is still willing to produce and sell new replacement parts that are officially advertised and supported for that old of a model, instead of refusing to. I didn't have to guess that it would work, it was on the product page, and they would have treated it as a warranty issue (under the charger's warranty) if it didn't. They also still have a page on their website documenting current battery products that work with this exact model, including one battery model that can be installed inside the machine like the original one. It's a very different attitude than Apple's.

google234123 6y ago

That charger is probably the same one they have used in all models for like 20 years...

jkaplowitz 6y ago
No, they have several different models with different wattages and other characteristics. But, sure the fact that they switch chargers less often than Apple does is another plus.