A week ago, the power adapter for my MacBook Pro died. Sitting just outside of warranty, this came as a bit of an annoyance. Still, I wasn’t bothered too terribly by it. After all, I could just go out and buy a new power adapter for my laptop, right?
Wrong.
Recently, Apple decided to rebuild the 85W power adapter for the MacBook Pro, making it roughly the same size as the 65W adapter for the standard MacBook. While this sounds totally awesome in that my new adapter will be considerably smaller, and therefore more portable, it also means that stores have neither adapter in stock.
In anticipation of a new replacement product, retail stores-understandably-don’t typically order in the old, clearance stock after it sells out. Uncertainties in the logistics of producing these new adapters and sending them out to authorized resellers coupled with changing what goes in the box with the new laptops leads to ordinary people like myself looking to replace a defective power adapter shit out of luck.
Oh, but wait! Apple has an online store. You just have to wait 2-3 weeks for the item to ship, followed by 8-12 business days before delivery. Awesome! I’m super stoked to get my new adapter by sometime after midterms!
That’s still not the worst of it. According to several recent reviews on Apple.com, many people are experiencing serious problems with the new product, ranging from melted wires to the cord fraying around the MagSafe head. One person even claims to have now purchased three of these defective adapters. I can’t help but wonder if perhaps at least part of the problem here stems from Apple’s tendency to favour aesthetics over functionality.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m a strong supporter of Apple and their products. Steve Jobs is a relatively social-savvy guy for someone running a multi-billion-dollar business. I just really hope someone gets fired over this.