Here’s the Censored Pics of Torched MacBook Power Connector

By

post-249-image-b9d8437b4e1afbe6bf1e87c539d94234-jpg

The Dutch MacNed website has copies of the controversial pictures of a magsafe power connector that were removed from Flickr on Thursday at the request of Apple.

The magnetic MagSafe power connector allegedly burned up. Its owner, Rogier Mulder, posted some pictures to Flickr, which immediately caught the attention of Apple. He was asked to remove the pictures while the company investigates. He writes on Flickr:

“Apple support responded very well (thanks Klaas) and fast. Before I called our local Apple support line, the dutch engineers were already contacted by their US collegues (who saw the pics) to inquire if I already called in. I’m getting a new Macbook asap and I will return my current one.”

magsafe002.jpg

magsafe.jpg

Newsletters

Daily round-ups or a weekly refresher, straight from Cult of Mac to your inbox.

  • The Weekender

    The week's best Apple news, reviews and how-tos from Cult of Mac, every Saturday morning. Our readers say: "Thank you guys for always posting cool stuff" -- Vaughn Nevins. "Very informative" -- Kenly Xavier.

62 responses to “Here’s the Censored Pics of Torched MacBook Power Connector”

  1. Paul Dunlop says:

    Great…. just as my Dad’s MacBookPro ships and is due to arrive in the next few days. Encouraging :S

  2. Nick says:

    Some magnet, eh? Must be strong enough to electri-fry itself.

  3. Miss_Lain says:

    It’s obvious Apple wants to err on the side of caution. Why create undue concern and a flood of support calls over an unverified claim? It’s very possible this is one of many or one of one incidents of a possible fire hazard on the MacBook Pro. To their credit, Apple asked Muldur to remove the photos until they have had time to investigate. They didn’t demand or slap a cease and desist on him. I doubt they threatened to withhold his replacement laptop unless he complied, either. However, if your MagSafe connector seems hotter to the touch than normal….

  4. SpaceMagic says:

    Ouch…

  5. Eric says:

    This is not true. This guy must have lit it on fire because that would not happen!

  6. Dean says:

    I find this difficult to believe. The connector on the machine I’m using right now is no warmer than the ambient temperature of the room. The pictures look more like he spilled hot chocolate on it or tried to permanently solder it onto the laptop.

    I could be wrong.

  7. snookie says:

    apparently, one of the guy’s cats peed on it.. thats why it fried.. apple should be responsible..

  8. snookie says:

    i mean, apple should NOT be responsible..

  9. Bob says:

    Looks to me like he got it wet and then plugged it in.

  10. abhishake says:

    Take physics into account here.. A magnetic field is dependent upon current. Neither one can exist without the other. In this case, it seems that the current was too much for the magnetic field. It just burned. It is COMPLETELY possible, physically at least.

    Apple should be responsible for this.. However, I highly doubt that this problem is a significant issue in several Macbooks.

  11. Sexymacs says:

    Hmmm. I guess I missed the recall from apple on this one lol. I really dont see this happening. . It kinda looks like some one took a lighter and started the connector on fire and plugged it in to the laptop to be honest but i like the snookies comment better… no problems here with my MBP

  12. Joe Bloggs says:

    Don’t you guys have anything better to do? Than slamming some poor guy because his laptop fried on him.

  13. Webtroll says:

    Well, it really might be possible that the power connctor caught fire. Before I had a Mac, I owned a PC whose power supply unit (from some no-name supplier) caused a spark when I first connected it and switched the PC on, and thus set it on fire. I was able to douse the fire and rescue the PC, but the power pack had gone bust and needed a replacement.
    Apple at least will have to do some testing whether it is a design error, a human error or just some one-in-a-million unlucky guy ;-)

  14. Michele says:

    From the last photo it seems that we are talking about a computer that’s been quite abused: the plastics are not alligned to the aluminium case and the case itselfs is quite scratched. Not to mention that the printing of the simbol is ruined as it was 2 years old. I think that this guy quite overestimated the robustness of it’s new computer…

  15. Mare says:

    Another potential source of the problem may have been a defective power controller in the portable…I mention this because I had a bizarre experience with an old system that I upgraded RAM in, where I plugged in the power cable and freaked when it produced a sparks show (the system wasn’t turned on). Luckily, THAT was the death of the power controller unit, and so no fire resulted. But what if that happened while the user was away? It was a REALLY old system (not one of MY group’s resources; I would have salvaged it 3 years earlier), and was overdue for its death throes. The power adapter, new RAM, and the hard drive came out of it without a problem (so the internal surge suppressor worked). But it certainly was a “shocking” show, and a bit traumatic to me since I got blamed for killing the ancient computer.

  16. blackout says:

    abhishake, your physics is wrong. Electromagnets use an electric current to work, but permament magnets do not. Last time I checked simple bar magnets don’t come with a power cord… All that would happen is the magnetic fields would interfere (from the permament magsafe mangnet and the current through the cord) and to the best of my knowledge the worst that could happen is the cord would disconnect. Magnetic fields cannot make things ‘just burn’… My bet is moisture was spilt on it

  17. Jeremy says:

    Why are the contacts on the plug itself burnt while the contacts on the laptop are nice and clean? Looks to me like there was some play with a lighter…

  18. Anarchist says:

    Clearly it is another apple conspiracy to have their shitty equipment burn down the world. Buy DELL everyone!

  19. Mehmet says:

    You guys are ridiculous. Especially you michele. Seriously, can you really be that silly to not realize that the cracks and the warp are FROM THE FREAKING BURN? Do you not realize that when something goes up in flames, it damages the things around it? Please tell me you are smarter than that.

    You all are so quick to point the finger on the user when the all mighty apple just might’ve made a mistake (Even if it is one in a million). If this isn’t the definition of mac fanboydom then I don’t know what is. You all make me sick.

  20. Jason says:

    I agree with Michele and all of the people who think that this is a fake. If you look at the close-up of the connector, you can see a little bit of white stuff sticking out from under the stuff that looks a lot like solder, because if it was burned, solder turns the same color, remains shiny, and gets that brown stuff on it. Plus, as Michele said, the computer looks abused. I have a PBG4 from November, and there is not even a scratch on it. Besides, don’t you think Apple QC would have tested this type of thing? Especially since they called it MagSafe, it should be safe under all conditions, unless it was sabotaged by the owner. Lastly, neither plastic nor metal – the two main components of the connector and the computer – burn. They melt, but metal only melts under very intense heat. Those look strangely like scorch marks on the connector.

  21. Jason says:

    Oh, and one more thing – is that dirt inside of the laptop’s receptacle? Around the plastic peice that hasn’t melted and the contacts that are really shiny?

  22. Jason says:

    To me, it looks like the guy threw his laptop down in mud and then tried to plug it in.

  23. e says:

    thats hot.

  24. Sean says:

    Jason, you say you have a powerbook from november, and it doesn’t have a scratch on it. Did it catch on fire? Apples and oranges.

  25. Mac Guy says:

    What is I find odd, is the fact that the brass terminals on the Macbook are nice and sparkling, while the plug terminals, brass coated as well, are toasted. Why the difference? I have a feeling that the plug might have got wet, while not connected to the Macbook, and fried independently. Then the charred remains were plugged into the computer in a desperate attempt to find out if it still functioned. At which point it sputtered and sparked the surrounding area, but the melted terminals never made good enough contact for any length of time with the computer terminals to fry them as well. Only enough to make a mess. … Just an idea?

  26. Jason says:

    Mac Guy is right, that is kind of what it looks like. However, not meaning to contradict myself, but if it was fake, would Apple have censored the pics? Maybe they couldn’t tell or something. It does look fake, but Apple isn’t stupid.

  27. Captain N says:

    The burn deformation looks contrary to what I would expect… but that’s why I believe it. Unless there is a similar case to study, you really can’t say “oh, it wouldn’t do that” or “it wouldn’t burn like that,” especially when talking about (what seems to be) a random occurance with (relatively) new technology.

    Even if it isn’t a fake, do you really expect ANY product to have 0% fault rate? Almost any company dealing with electricity has most likely had a similar issue where something caught fire for no discernable reason. Personally, I’m just glad no one was hurt and that Apple is investigating the situation… fake or not.

  28. Shig says:

    Okay, so assuming that someone has the TIME to fake something as pointless as this…

    Power connectors are always being recalled for some reason or other, and Apple are not exempt from this (how many powerbook and iBook chargers have they recalled now? I know one of mine had to go back 2 years ago).

    It is possible, nay probable that this is real… whether moisture was involved or otherwise it still represents a risk to the consumer and MUST be addressed.

    I love Apple too guys, but they are not exempt from making mistakes… in the past they’ve been downright sloppy with some of their designs… it’s mindless to defend any company unquestionably.

  29. Evan says:

    This is 100% legit and readily apparent from the pics what happened. Somehow a short developed in the plug and the excessive current passing through it heated the plastic to the point of smoldering. The socket only shows discoloration from the smoldering plastic because a short in the plug would shunt all current to ground before reaching the terminals in the socket hence no damage to the socket itself. Moisture is not a factor because it could not carry the currents involved without boiling off, and by the way, carrying off the excess heat in that process. The whole thing indicates a flaw in the plug and will certainly result in a recall of the power adaptor assembly.

  30. macboy pro says:

    gosh….guys..enough..
    Hopefully you guys feel the same. I still love the new Magsafe feature.
    This rumour wont stop me from buying the new macbook pro.
    Cheers…

  31. Snarky says:

    Sorry folks, but if you google MAGSAFE POWER CORD BURNS, you’ll get plenty of info. My cord looked “odd” and I read where a guy thought his cat had chewed the cord…but his cord looked like mine. Mine BURNED. Fortunately, I was at home. I smelled “the burning” smell and realized it was my computer connection and got it apart. I spoke with Apple today and they’re sending a replacement. I have to wonder what kind of issues might be ahead since it was plugged into my PBP and was charging. The machine shut itself down when I unplugged the burning cord. Hopefully there was no damage…but that is left to be seen. As an aside, Apple said they’d send another right away. When I asked if this has been a problem, the rep said, “she hadn’t heard anything about it.” After my google search, I found that very hard to believe. The pictures posted here are not the only ones out there, so be CAREFUL! Don’t leave those cords plugged in unattended! Typically, I have done that (overnight, while I’m outside or not using the computer), but I certainly won’t anymore!