A new lawsuit seeking class action status has accused Apple of neglecting a flaw in the MagSafe power connector for MacBooks that might not only cause a break but could trigger sparks, forcing customers to buy replacements and even creating a potential fire hazard.
All three at varying points have had to buy replacement MagSafe adapters for their systems that, in two cases, have already either needed a replacement or are showing signs of needing one. The plastic sheath on the cable in each circumstance was often melted away and exposed the bare wiring; Broad noted the heat was enough that it might have caused fire damage to his home if he hadn't been present to watch for the danger signs.
"It almost burned my hand when I brushed it accidentally," he says in the 27-page filing.
The trio also points to numerous examples of similar patterns online, including Apple's own online store, where the cables had frayed, melted or sparked and forced customers to get one or more replacements. Apple, meanwhile, only asks customers to visit a certified Apple service location if sparks occur anywhere other than at the power plug's metal prongs; many of these visits, however, only result in the customers buying another $80 adapter rather than receiving a free replacement.
As the problem is already known to affect "at least thousands" of users and may well include hundreds of thousands with the exact same issue, the plaintiffs want class action status to represent anyone who may have bought an affected MacBook and have charged Apple with violating California's business codes as well as breaching the implied and explicit warranties attached to the computers.
A MagSafe adapter cable whose sheath has melted, exposing the wire. | Image credits: Flickr user AriXr.
Broad, Kitagawa and Reisman want Apple to not only refund any of the associated costs with the known defective products but to warn the public and, if successful, pay punitive damages alongside the expected compensation.
As always, Apple hasn't commented on the lawsuit, but faces a large hurdle given the collective evidence. AppleInsider has also heard of Apple redesigning its adapters as early as October 2007 to try and resolve its cable issues, but many of the incidents reported in the new lawsuit have occurred well after the fix was supposed to have taken effect that year, surfacing as recently as March 2009.
106 Comments
At least that is what I understood, that is the power supplies would be either repaired or replaced no questions asked.
As to things wearing out, well if Apple can solve that problem they could very well own the world. There isn't a know way to make anything last forever. The closest we have come is the cast iron frying pan, everything else has limited durability.
It is funny that this should crop up because I just got back from my local Apple store where I had to replace the USB cable for my iPhone. Funny but it broke down in a similar manner, that is right at the connector that plugs into the dock socket. Now this was a warranty replacement but it didn't take more than ten minutes to get that taken care of. Probably would have been less than ten but there was a new guy involved.
As a side note if Apple focuses to much on making the environmentalist happy you can expect even more durability problems in the future. Not that I support pollution just that sometimes the environmentalist have ill advised policies.
Dave
If the magsafe is say %20 defective then it's certainly a problem but if it's only %5 defective them the risks are mitigated by the amount of laptops save from untimely death being yanked from where they are perched.
Perhaps Apple needs to redesign the magsafe connector and offer a model that locks onto the laptop and make the magnetic latch optional.
Punative damages should be levied when a company actually does something worthy of punishment. In this case the uncomfort of a few is usurped by the benefits to the extreme majority IMO.
Hmm...looks to me like these folks are trying to create their own "economic stimulus" at Apple's expense.
my iphone plug does that also...i tried covering it with tape but its still not great
I had this exact same problem with my Rev.A MacBook Pro about 6 months back. It seems to be pretty random. I was using my MBP at home and all of a sudden I smell smoke. It took me a minute to realize where it was coming from until I actually saw the white smoke pouring out of the cable. It actually looked worse than pictured, believe it or not.
I was pretty ticked off but the service I got from the Apple Store made up for it. No appointment; I just walked in with my heavily burnt MagSafe adapter and in less than 5 minutes I was walking out with a brand new one, right off the shelf.