[Ti] hot power adaptor (square white ones) for TiBook

[Kynan Shook]

I agree that it is fairly normal for these things to run quite warm, 
especially while charging.  I would recommend keeping it in a position 
where airflow around it isn't restricted.  However, that said, I have 3 
square adapters (a 45W with silver DC-in plug, and a 45 and 65 W each 
with white plugs), and none of them have ever had problems.  I've had 
the 45W silver one for about 5 months, the 65W one for a little over a 
year, and the other one for around 2 years.  I also have about 4 of 
them at work (I do computer repair), and none of them have failed, 
either.

It wouldn't surprise me if some of you are not actually seeing them 
fail, but rather seeing the over voltage protection kicking in.  
Especially if you have your PowerBook connected to the same electrical 
circuit as a large-draw device such as a refrigerator or something 
similar that draws a lot of electricity right as it starts up, you may 
see this frequently.  The power adapter detects fluctuations in the 
power coming out of the wall, and shuts itself off to protect itself 
and the computer, turning off the green/amber status light and leaving 
your computer running on battery.  It wouldn't surprise me if that's 
what some of you have interpreted as failing (or John Pariseau as 
turning off due to overheating); that's what I thought initially too.  
Anyway, if you just unplug the power adapter from the wall, or the duck 
head adapter from the power adapter, and then plug it back in, the 
power adapter will work again.

Obviously, not all of you were seeing this; a charred cable isn't 
exactly a good sign.  I'm not surprised to hear of cords breaking in 
the power adapters, at least if you tend to frequently carry around 
your power adapter.  I think it's easier to just buy two power 
adapters, leave one at work, and one at home.  I'm hardly ever away 
from either of those places for long enough to drain my battery.  As 
long as you take good care of the cord and try not to flex it back and 
forth a different way each time you wrap it (or, worse, not wrap it up 
at all), I would expect the cable to last a very long time.

Anyway, for a more detailed description of the over voltage protection, 
see:
http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=32155


Justin R. Miller <incanus at codesorcery.net> writes:
> In my opinion they generally run pretty hot.  I am on my third adapter
> since buying my PowerBook in late 2002.  They generally last about six
> months in my experience... and at $80US a pop they aren't cheap :-/  I
> am being cautious, biding my time, and hoping someone initiates a class
> action suit at some point in the future.  They should have lasted
> longer, and we should be reimbursed.  Fortunately my first replacement
> was within my one year warranty.
>
> Out of curiousity, who has had one of these boxes fail in this manner?
> Please reply (and with how many)... I'm curious.