
Therefore it must say something like this on the package: USB-C Output: 5V⎓3A, 9V⎓3A, 12V⎓3A, 15V⎓3A, 20V⎓3A/Max 60W For example, in my case I was looking for a 60W USB-C adapter. One note though: when buying a PD 2.0 adapter, make sure it can supply all the required power at 20V from a single port.

After losing the adapter two weeks ago, I bought a PD2.0 adapter for 60W output from a Taiwanese company Acer for half the price of the original, and it works just fine so far! It charges the laptop quick and smooth, no sudden jumps and overheating as reported by Moreover, it's slightly lighter than the original adapter.

Restoring YCombinator's Xerox Alto day 6: Fixed a.Restoring YC's Xerox Alto: how our boot disk was t.
#Cost of apple macbook charger how to
How to run C programs on the BeagleBone's PRU micr.Restoring a Xerox Alto day 7: experiments with dis.Sonicare toothbrush teardown: microcontroller, H b.Restoring a vintage Xerox Alto day 8: it boots!.The electrolytic capacitors are from HKLCON. The output diode is a MBRF20100C 10 amp Schottky diode pair. The voltage reference is an AZ431, similar to the ubiquitous TL431. The switching transistor is a 2N601 2 amp, 600 volt N-channel MOSFET. The IC datasheet has the approximate schematic for the charger. The PWM control IC is a SiFirst 1560, a basic control IC for a flyback converter. If you're interested in the components inside the cheap charger, I have some details. I've written a bunch of articles before about chargers, so if this article seems familiar, you're probably thinking of an earlier article, such as:įollow me on Twitter to find out about my new articles. But if you have any metal objects on your desk, a random contact could yield a surprisingly large spark. Maybe you think these safety issues don't matter because you don't poke your charger with a paperclip. While buying a cheap charger saves a lot of money, these chargers omit many safety features and can be hazardous to you and your computer.ĭon't buy a cheap knockoff charger if you don't want to pay for a genuine Apple charger, at least buy a charger from a name-brand manufacturer.
#Cost of apple macbook charger full
The cheap MacBook charger (left) uses very simple circuits compared to the genuine Apple charger (right), which is crammed full of components. This may seem like an excessively complicated way to generate 20 volts, but switching power supplies like this are very compact, lightweight and efficient compared to simpler power supplies. A control IC (see photo below) controls the system to regulate the voltage. The output is converted to DC by diodes (black component, upper right), and filtered by capacitors (cylinders), to produce the 20 volt output (wires at bottom). The pulses create a changing magnetic field in the flyback transformer (large blue box), generating a high-current, low-voltage output. The AC power comes in the red wires at the top and is converted to high-voltage DC (170V or 340V, depending on if you're in the US or Europe).Ī transistor (black component on left) chops the power into high-frequency pulses.


I've written in detail before about how chargers work, but I'll give a quick explanation here. The genuine charger includes more filtering, power factor correction (left), and a powerful microcontroller (board in upper right). The cheap MacBook charger (left) omits most of the components found in a genuine Apple charger (right). The Apple charger also includes power factor correction, making the charger more efficient. Many of these components filter the power to provide higher-quality power to your laptop. On the other hand, the genuine Apple charger (right) is crammed full of components. Since this processor increases the cost of the charger, knockoff chargers omit it, even though this makes the charger more dangerous.Īs the photos below show, the cheap charger (left) omits as much as possible. (more powerful than the microprocessor in the original Macintosh by some measures). To manage this, the genuine charger includes a powerful microcontroller Until it is properly connected ( details), it outputs a tiny amount of power (0.6 volts at 100♚) that can't produce a spark. On the other hand, the genuine charger doesn't power up until it has been securely connected to the laptop for a full second. The fake charger constantly outputs 20 volts, so if any metal shorts the connector, it produces a big spark with all its 85 watts of power. Why does a fake charger produce sparks, while a genuine one doesn't? Unlike most cheap chargers, this one doesn't claim to be an Apple charger, but just a "Replacement AC Adapter".
