Has anyone tried this unit?
https://www.zapals.com/85w-18-5v-4-6a-magsafe-ac-power-adapt…
I've had bad experiences with non-Apple power supplies, but it's hard to fork out $100+ for the Apple version.
Thanks.
Magsafe 85W Power Supply from Zapals. Any Good?
Dalton on 02/03/2018 - 13:28
Last edited 02/03/2018 - 13:29
Last edited 02/03/2018 - 13:29
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I haven't bought that one from Zapals but I have bought several generic 85w magsafe adapters from aliexpress, ebay and a couple other china sites.
basically, they are not worth it. everyone I have bought has died.
the fakes also lack the power sensor thing. i.e. the LED in the connector of an apple charger will immediate turn off when disconnected. the fakes will continue to glow for a few seconds as they discharge.
also a genuine one will sense being connected to a macbook and will then allow current to flow- whilst the fake won't sense and will be wanting to pump 85w and therefore will arc/spark.
there is also the matter of grounding on the fake ones.
ultimately, the fake ones will work for a short while but will die. AND - they will damage your macbook. My macbook has scorch marks on the magsafe connection, and after 6 months of using different fake magsafe power supplies (which did work initially) it will now not power up.
TL: DR - fake magsafe power supplies will break and damage your macbook
Thanks altomic,
Good points. I didn't realise that the cheap power supplies lacked power sensing.
The magsafe power supply is the old Macbooks' Achilles heal. Given its fallibility, it irks me that Apple never came out with a cheap replacement. But then, why would they?
I just bought this refurbished one from ebay for ~$34.85 delivered (using pick5).
when it arrives I'll let you know what it is like i.e. genuine or not.
the one I bought the other day arrived today.
it looks genuine.
its build is very precise (fakes have gaps, unevenness, etc - i.e. lesser quality)
it is considerably heavier than the fake ones (either filled with some lead or crammed with components).most importantly, my macbook fired up and I'm typing this on it.
so far, so good.
3 weeks on and still going well.
You spend 2k+ on a device and want to skimp on a part that has huge potential to damage it? You loco ese.
I guess my problem is that we all know what a power supply can cost and it hurts to pay more.
The Apple magsafe power supply is the ultimate grudge purchase: you're buying it because the old one broke and you're paying top dollar for a new one that will probably break too.
And I'm not alone in feeling disgruntled: the 85w magsafe 2 power supply has over a thousand 1 star reviews on Apple's webstore and an overall rating of one and half stars.
https://www.apple.com/au/shop/product/MD506X/A/apple-85w-mag…
What broke about the last one? If it's the cable then you can buy one as a spare part from fleabay and get someone who knows electricity to fit it for you. (It's basically just a small number of screws, but make sure you know what you're doing first).
Thanks Helmuth,
Yes, I've replaced the cable before. You need to crack the power supply open. My first replacement cable developed a short in the plug but the second worked well (until the power supply failed).
This is a good option though. If anyone has a power supply that's died because of a failure in the cable, hold on to it! The repair is not pretty but it's cheap.
@holdenmg: The sensor will be in the brick. The cable just contains two wires, so not a lot of soldering required.
You can sometimes cut the damaged portion from your cable and solder it back in to the brick. You'll almost certainly lose the seal between the cable and the brick if you do this.
Have heard only bad things about the compatible chargers (burn marks, trackpad interference, dying…). Can occasionally find genuine (used) adapters cheap on eBay/GT (picked up an 85W for $10 not long ago and 2 spares more recently as they were quite cheap).
I'm going in to bat for the cheapies.
I have had a fake magsafe2 for 3years, and it works identically to the real thing (one at home, one at work).The only issue I had was with a generic magsafe1 power supply I bought for an old white powerbook.
It had the magsafe v1 pin configuration in the T shape magsafe2 connector, and I carelessly went to connect it to my MacBook air one day and got a spark.
Very lucky no damage. It has red electrical tape around it now to tell it apart.
Hi,
I order'd a 60W MagSafe 2 Power Adapter for MacBook Pro with 13 Inch Retina Display just the other day from Zapals, not rec'd as yet.
I also noticed http://www.dx.com/p/replacement-magsafe-adapter-dc-5pin-cabl… if that is of any interest.