Published by Robert Scoble
I give you a front-row seat on the future. Focusing most of my efforts now on next-generation augmented reality and artificial intelligence, AKA "mixed reality."
SUBSCRIBE TO MY NEWSLETTER: http://clevermoe.com/scobleizer-news/
BUY OUR NEW BOOK: https://www.amazon.com/Fourth-Transformation-Robert-Scoble/dp/1539894444 "The Fourth Transformation: How augmented reality and artificial intelligence will change everything."
WATCH MY LATEST SPEECHES:
State of VR with Philip Rosedale (done in VR itself, very cool): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2zAA1EVGUZU
At GEOINT, June 2017: http://trajectorymagazine.com/glimpse-new-world/
Augmented World Expo, June 2017: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4xHILvLD8E
At Leade.rs, April 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI
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BIO:
Scoble gives you a front-row seat on the future.
Literally. He had the first ride in the first Tesla. Siri was launched in his house. He's been the first to share all sorts of technologies and companies with you, from Flipboard to Pandora to Instagram.
Today he's focusing on mixed reality, AKA "next-generation augmented reality" which will include a new user interface for EVERYTHING in your life (IoT, Smart Cities, driverless cars, robots, drones, etc).
That's based on his view thanks to his past experience as futurist at Rackspace.
Best place to find Scoble? On his Facebook profile at https://www.facebook.com/RobertScoble
He has been a technology blogger since 2000, was one of five people who built Microsoft's Channel 9 video blog/community, worked at Fast Company Magazine running its TV efforts, and has been part of technology media businesses since 1993.
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SPEAKER PITCH:
Apple and Facebook now have revealed their Augmented Reality strategies, which means your business needs one too. Rely on Robert Scoble, the world's top authority on AR, to bring to your conference what businesses should do next.
SPEECH ABSTRACT #1:
TITLE: The Fourth Transformation: What's next in mixed reality (AR and AI) and the future of technology?
Here's an example of this talk at Leade.rs in Paris in April, 2017: https://youtu.be/52_0JshgjXI
Why "the Fourth Transformation?"
Soon we will have phones and glasses that do full on augmented reality. Everything you look at will potentially be augmented. This world is coming in late 2017 with a new iPhone from Apple, amongst other products. Microsoft is betting everything on its HoloLens glasses that do mixed reality and the industry is spending many billions of dollars in R&D and funding new companies like Magic Leap.
This future will be the user interface for IoT, Smart Cities, autonomous cars, robots, drones, and your TV.
This is a big deal and Robert will take you through what mixed reality is and how it will change every business.
Learn more about Robert's speaking style and contact his agent at http://odemanagement.com/robert-scoble/Robert-Scoble.html
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SPEECH ABSTRACT #2:
"The Next Two Clicks of Moore's Law."
Over the next four years, or two clicks of Moore's Law, a ton about our technology world will change. Scoble will bring you the best from his travels visiting R&D labs, startups, and innovators around the world.
He views the world through his rose-colored-mixed-reality glasses, which will be the new user interface for self driving cars, Smart Cities, IoT, and many other things in our world.
He'll send you off with some lessons for companies both large and small.
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SPEECH ABSTRACT #3:
"Personalized Meaning: What is Augmented Reality For?"
As we enter a far more technological world where even cars drive themselves, I predict we'll see a blowback toward the analog, more authentic world.
What role does augmented reality play in both worlds?
Get Scoble's insight into where augmented reality is going, see tons of real-world demos, and understand what he means by 'personalized meaning.'
CONTACT:
If you are looking to contact me, email is best: scobleizer@gmail.com.
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ENDORSEMENTS:
IZEA Top 25 Tech Influencers: https://izea.com/2017/07/07/25-top-tech-influencers/
Time: One of the top 140 Twitterers!
FT: One of the five most influential Twitterers!
Inc. Top 5 on list of Tech Power Players You Need to Know: http://www.inc.com/john-rampton/30-power-players-in-tech-you-need-to-know.html
Next Reality: #4 on top 50 AR influencer list: https://next.reality.news/news/nr50-next-realitys-50-people-watch-augmented-mixed-reality-0177454/
View all posts by Robert Scoble
Maybe it only works with Powerbooks…. ’cause I have pulled my Powerbook to the ground a couple times. However, it was never from a countertop. It was always off of my tv table.
btw — I just conducted a field test, and, yes, I can pull my Powerbook by the its powercord if pulled laterally.
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Robert, Spend $2,000.00 on one of them. A gust of wind will thow it right off the table.
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Maybe it only works with Powerbooks…. ’cause I have pulled my Powerbook to the ground a couple times. However, it was never from a countertop. It was always off of my tv table.
btw — I just conducted a field test, and, yes, I can pull my Powerbook by the its powercord if pulled laterally.
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Robert, Spend $2,000.00 on one of them. A gust of wind will thow it right off the table.
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You are so desperate to criticize Apple.
From the double mention of your son’s dislike for the name MacBook Pro (which I happen to agree with) to this entry — anything to sully the MacWorld buzz.
Yet you still haven’t commented on David Pogue’s preview of Vista on the NYTime or how Microsoft plans to use its patent victory in the FAT case to deter interoperability between OSes.
Although I’m often critical of you, I typically think you’re at your most interesting when talking about what Microsoft is doing…
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You are so desperate to criticize Apple.
From the double mention of your son’s dislike for the name MacBook Pro (which I happen to agree with) to this entry — anything to sully the MacWorld buzz.
Yet you still haven’t commented on David Pogue’s preview of Vista on the NYTime or how Microsoft plans to use its patent victory in the FAT case to deter interoperability between OSes.
Although I’m often critical of you, I typically think you’re at your most interesting when talking about what Microsoft is doing…
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Mujibur, I’d answer David Pogue’s points if Apple had a Tablet PC or a Media Center. I didn’t realize that they did.
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Mujibur, I’d answer David Pogue’s points if Apple had a Tablet PC or a Media Center. I didn’t realize that they did.
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There is no way it could just be marketing hype!
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There is no way it could just be marketing hype!
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Set the laptop on top of the cord. That will do it. It catches on the feet and doesn’t pull out when tripped on… at least not in time.
Let’s just say the wife has had an accident or two with her laptop…
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Set the laptop on top of the cord. That will do it. It catches on the feet and doesn’t pull out when tripped on… at least not in time.
Let’s just say the wife has had an accident or two with her laptop…
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Jon: will that pull out on the new magnetic cord? Ahh, lots of experiments ahead!
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Jon: will that pull out on the new magnetic cord? Ahh, lots of experiments ahead!
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Its and advancement I’d like to have.
About two weeks ago I’m sitting in the recliner in the living room with my powerbook in my lap, cord stretched across the floor. My wife wanders over and trips on it.
Laptop did not dive, however powercord is no longer functional. Busted connections in it somewhere. If the plug is popping out, try a right angle pull which is what happened to mine.
I would have loved it if the plug had popped out as the power supplies aren’t cheap. Sadly, now I’m down to one (had two). So to me, this looked like a great feature.
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Its and advancement I’d like to have.
About two weeks ago I’m sitting in the recliner in the living room with my powerbook in my lap, cord stretched across the floor. My wife wanders over and trips on it.
Laptop did not dive, however powercord is no longer functional. Busted connections in it somewhere. If the plug is popping out, try a right angle pull which is what happened to mine.
I would have loved it if the plug had popped out as the power supplies aren’t cheap. Sadly, now I’m down to one (had two). So to me, this looked like a great feature.
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You’ve tried pulling it directly out from the socket, and at a roughly 90 degree angle perpendicular to the socket, as is my understanding. have you tried a 180 degree inversion in which the power cord goes up and over the laptop? If you balance your pull correctly, it may work depending on the types of ports and sockets your laptops use. Just be wary of flipping it over 🙂
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You’ve tried pulling it directly out from the socket, and at a roughly 90 degree angle perpendicular to the socket, as is my understanding. have you tried a 180 degree inversion in which the power cord goes up and over the laptop? If you balance your pull correctly, it may work depending on the types of ports and sockets your laptops use. Just be wary of flipping it over 🙂
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Uh Scoble – Apple has a “Media Center”. But I think they call it “Front Row” and bundle it with iMacs.
MS: photos, music, TV, movies, home videos, radio, and a world of applications and services whether you’re sitting in front of your Windows desktop or across the room with a remote control. Media Center is your all-in-one PC and home entertainment center.
Apple: music, photos and videos from any seat in the house with the Front Row media experience and Apple Remote.
Looks pretty comparable to me.
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Uh Scoble – Apple has a “Media Center”. But I think they call it “Front Row” and bundle it with iMacs.
MS: photos, music, TV, movies, home videos, radio, and a world of applications and services whether you’re sitting in front of your Windows desktop or across the room with a remote control. Media Center is your all-in-one PC and home entertainment center.
Apple: music, photos and videos from any seat in the house with the Front Row media experience and Apple Remote.
Looks pretty comparable to me.
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Slackmaster: ahhh, yes, it does pull the laptop off if wrapped around the screen. That’s a configuration I don’t work in.
Innocent: my tablet has the power connector in the back, so if my wife tripped over it it’d just pop out. My new Lenovo is on the side, so that’d be a problem.
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Slackmaster: ahhh, yes, it does pull the laptop off if wrapped around the screen. That’s a configuration I don’t work in.
Innocent: my tablet has the power connector in the back, so if my wife tripped over it it’d just pop out. My new Lenovo is on the side, so that’d be a problem.
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Innocent: I didn’t realize you could buy a Mac with a TV tuner built into it that’d record TV and redistribute that through your house. I also didn’t realize they had a repeater known as an Xbox either.
I guess we copied those things from a future Mac. My bad.
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Innocent: I didn’t realize you could buy a Mac with a TV tuner built into it that’d record TV and redistribute that through your house. I also didn’t realize they had a repeater known as an Xbox either.
I guess we copied those things from a future Mac. My bad.
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Please. The Tablet PC is a failure scobleizer. Mac OS X doesn’t need a tablet version to be compared with Windows. Apple has kicked Microsoft’s ass over the last 5 years when it comes to OS innovation. Even you have admitted that Apple has a better product.
I wonder about your obsession with Apple. At least when you talk about Google or Yahoo!, your posts are substantive (even if I disagree with them on occasion).
When you discuss Apple, you tend to get irrational (see Tablet/Media Center, Elton John arguments) and are quick to criticize. What is it about you and Apple? Why are you even going to MacWorld?
And by the way, I’ve had many close calls after tripping over power cords (or having friends trip over them). I certainly would appreciate the magnetic power adapter.
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Please. The Tablet PC is a failure scobleizer. Mac OS X doesn’t need a tablet version to be compared with Windows. Apple has kicked Microsoft’s ass over the last 5 years when it comes to OS innovation. Even you have admitted that Apple has a better product.
I wonder about your obsession with Apple. At least when you talk about Google or Yahoo!, your posts are substantive (even if I disagree with them on occasion).
When you discuss Apple, you tend to get irrational (see Tablet/Media Center, Elton John arguments) and are quick to criticize. What is it about you and Apple? Why are you even going to MacWorld?
And by the way, I’ve had many close calls after tripping over power cords (or having friends trip over them). I certainly would appreciate the magnetic power adapter.
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I’ve dumped one of my ibooks a couple of times. This one is a golden oldy (g3 700) that sits on the coffee table to satiate the bits of my brain that demand triva while watching tv. One more than one occasion I’ve jumped up to the the phone or the door and caught a foot on the power cable. This results in the tip being pulled straight back, spinning the ibook off the corner of the table, and dumping it on the floor.
Repeatable, unfortunately.
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I’ve dumped one of my ibooks a couple of times. This one is a golden oldy (g3 700) that sits on the coffee table to satiate the bits of my brain that demand triva while watching tv. One more than one occasion I’ve jumped up to the the phone or the door and caught a foot on the power cable. This results in the tip being pulled straight back, spinning the ibook off the corner of the table, and dumping it on the floor.
Repeatable, unfortunately.
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I’ve tripped over the cord and pulled mine off the table more than once, and my screen has the scratches to prove it. What can I say, either I’m just lucky that way or my power cord fits more snugly than yours. I’ve also bent the prongs that fit in the wall socket often enough that way to be glad that I can switch that bit out without having to invest in a new power brick.
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I’ve tripped over the cord and pulled mine off the table more than once, and my screen has the scratches to prove it. What can I say, either I’m just lucky that way or my power cord fits more snugly than yours. I’ve also bent the prongs that fit in the wall socket often enough that way to be glad that I can switch that bit out without having to invest in a new power brick.
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Mujibur: it’s a failure that’s sold more than a million (and the number is going up pretty rapidly).
I remember when people said Macs were failures for the same reason. Do you? (I was a Mac fan back then). Seems I’m always supporting the failures of this industry (that 15 years later turn out to be successes). That’s OK.
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Mujibur: it’s a failure that’s sold more than a million (and the number is going up pretty rapidly).
I remember when people said Macs were failures for the same reason. Do you? (I was a Mac fan back then). Seems I’m always supporting the failures of this industry (that 15 years later turn out to be successes). That’s OK.
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Alicia: all my power supplies split into two parts. The part that plugs in the wall and the part with the brick is separate.
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Alicia: all my power supplies split into two parts. The part that plugs in the wall and the part with the brick is separate.
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Dear Scoble,
While Microsoft has been busy plugging away at the monstrous consumer demand for a PC that records TV and redistributes it via a repeater, it has been ignoring basic concerns like, oh say, security.
Windows is a pain in the butt to manage (unless of course we bust out your 17-point plan on locking it down) and certainly does not represent the state of the art in OS functionality.
You are so honest and transparent when you talk about Google. For some reason, when it comes to Apple you are not willing to discuss advantages/shortcomings in a candid manner. Why?
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Dear Scoble,
While Microsoft has been busy plugging away at the monstrous consumer demand for a PC that records TV and redistributes it via a repeater, it has been ignoring basic concerns like, oh say, security.
Windows is a pain in the butt to manage (unless of course we bust out your 17-point plan on locking it down) and certainly does not represent the state of the art in OS functionality.
You are so honest and transparent when you talk about Google. For some reason, when it comes to Apple you are not willing to discuss advantages/shortcomings in a candid manner. Why?
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As Steve Jobs said, the Tablet PC is a failure even in terms of Apple’s own scale.
Apple sold more Macs this quarter than all the Tablet PCs sold since introduction.
For a company the size of Microsoft (and its OEMs), that has to be considered an absymmal failure.
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As Steve Jobs said, the Tablet PC is a failure even in terms of Apple’s own scale.
Apple sold more Macs this quarter than all the Tablet PCs sold since introduction.
For a company the size of Microsoft (and its OEMs), that has to be considered an absymmal failure.
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I’ve never had a laptop that didn’t hit the ground at least once. I do know some people that are partial to spills (and have even spilled in my machines), but I’m a dropper myself.
My drops usually end up in a harddrive upgrade and a dent or some weight reduction due to all the excess parts (the stickers aren’t just for looks). I prefer iBooks now because they’re cheap and the cracks are easier to fix/ignore. Dented/bent powerbooks are teh suck. When I was buying PCs, I learned that the Thinkpad is _the answer_ for the swift of foot and cord oblivious.
I do lust after the Itronix and Toughbooks, but I’ll wait until OSX86 is on the shelf before I plunk down the extra ducks.
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I’ve never had a laptop that didn’t hit the ground at least once. I do know some people that are partial to spills (and have even spilled in my machines), but I’m a dropper myself.
My drops usually end up in a harddrive upgrade and a dent or some weight reduction due to all the excess parts (the stickers aren’t just for looks). I prefer iBooks now because they’re cheap and the cracks are easier to fix/ignore. Dented/bent powerbooks are teh suck. When I was buying PCs, I learned that the Thinkpad is _the answer_ for the swift of foot and cord oblivious.
I do lust after the Itronix and Toughbooks, but I’ll wait until OSX86 is on the shelf before I plunk down the extra ducks.
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Mujibur: Steve Jobs also said he’d never do a video iPod. You still believe him?
Oh, and to say we aren’t doing anything on security or usability just makes you look like an Apple evangelist. Which you are.
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Mujibur: Steve Jobs also said he’d never do a video iPod. You still believe him?
Oh, and to say we aren’t doing anything on security or usability just makes you look like an Apple evangelist. Which you are.
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Translation: I’d like to have you come to campus someday to see just how deep an investment we’re making in usability and security. Oh, wait, I have already done that over on http://channel9.msdn.com
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Translation: I’d like to have you come to campus someday to see just how deep an investment we’re making in usability and security. Oh, wait, I have already done that over on http://channel9.msdn.com
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You’re saying the cord pulls out of the wall socket in your experiments?
Not all wall sockets have the same “grip” on the power plug; perhaps the ones you’re testing against are relatively loose.
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You’re saying the cord pulls out of the wall socket in your experiments?
Not all wall sockets have the same “grip” on the power plug; perhaps the ones you’re testing against are relatively loose.
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Heh, the great cable pull contest. You should do a video with Chris. It’ll be quite amusing to watch. 🙂
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Heh, the great cable pull contest. You should do a video with Chris. It’ll be quite amusing to watch. 🙂
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Considering I’m not using a Mac (as you can tell by your logs), I don’t really see myself as an Apple evangelist.
Also, don’t misquote me (or Steve). He didn’t say that Apple wouldn’t do a tablet. He said that the Tablet PC (as done by MS) was as failure, even at Apple’s scale.
Nice try though.
As for security, I know Microsoft is now making it priority. My point, however, is that instead of wasting so much time on Tablet/Media Center PC, Microsoft should have focused on delivering generally applicable features (ie Spotlight, Widgets, etc.) sooner. 5 years between OS updates?!
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Considering I’m not using a Mac (as you can tell by your logs), I don’t really see myself as an Apple evangelist.
Also, don’t misquote me (or Steve). He didn’t say that Apple wouldn’t do a tablet. He said that the Tablet PC (as done by MS) was as failure, even at Apple’s scale.
Nice try though.
As for security, I know Microsoft is now making it priority. My point, however, is that instead of wasting so much time on Tablet/Media Center PC, Microsoft should have focused on delivering generally applicable features (ie Spotlight, Widgets, etc.) sooner. 5 years between OS updates?!
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Oddly enough, on Tuesday I nearly had a disaster with mine. I had it on the desk, with the feet up, and the power cord going under, and then walked right into the power cord.
Luckily, for once, I was in a different office than usual, and the wireless wouldn’t hook up, so in a fit of stubbornness and retro I had an ethernet cable (remember those?) in it. The laptop ended up hanging off the side of the desk suspended just by the network cable. On a normal day, it would have been toast (it’s already got a crack in the cover, it’s just waiting for an excuse to explode in a million expensive little pieces anyway!)
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I welcome the Magsafe because I run an Apple Service Provider. The number of Aluminium Powerbooks we get in with one corner crushed and wrinkled because someone tripped over the cord is shocking. And if the powerbook itself doesn’t plummet to the ground, the DC-in board is usually ruined.
Try your experiment at a brisk walk. And the angle of the movement (perpendicular to the direction of the plug) will make a difference too.
This wasn’t a solution looking for a problem.
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Oddly enough, on Tuesday I nearly had a disaster with mine. I had it on the desk, with the feet up, and the power cord going under, and then walked right into the power cord.
Luckily, for once, I was in a different office than usual, and the wireless wouldn’t hook up, so in a fit of stubbornness and retro I had an ethernet cable (remember those?) in it. The laptop ended up hanging off the side of the desk suspended just by the network cable. On a normal day, it would have been toast (it’s already got a crack in the cover, it’s just waiting for an excuse to explode in a million expensive little pieces anyway!)
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I welcome the Magsafe because I run an Apple Service Provider. The number of Aluminium Powerbooks we get in with one corner crushed and wrinkled because someone tripped over the cord is shocking. And if the powerbook itself doesn’t plummet to the ground, the DC-in board is usually ruined.
Try your experiment at a brisk walk. And the angle of the movement (perpendicular to the direction of the plug) will make a difference too.
This wasn’t a solution looking for a problem.
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My child has accomplished the following in his two years of life:
– Trip over power cord and bend connector.
– Trip over power cord and pull $2000 laptop off table on to floor (lucky for me, floor is carpted).
I like the feature.
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My child has accomplished the following in his two years of life:
– Trip over power cord and bend connector.
– Trip over power cord and pull $2000 laptop off table on to floor (lucky for me, floor is carpted).
I like the feature.
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Ivy: no, the cable pulls out of the socket connecting into my laptop.
Mujibur: where do you get this five year crap?
My Tablet PCs have been updated several times since 2002 (and for free, no less).
I have desktop search through a variety of vendors (including Microsoft). I have Widgets through Konfabulator and Goowy (Apple copied Konfabulator).
I was demonstrating to you that Steve lies. You didn’t catch that, I guess.
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Ivy: no, the cable pulls out of the socket connecting into my laptop.
Mujibur: where do you get this five year crap?
My Tablet PCs have been updated several times since 2002 (and for free, no less).
I have desktop search through a variety of vendors (including Microsoft). I have Widgets through Konfabulator and Goowy (Apple copied Konfabulator).
I was demonstrating to you that Steve lies. You didn’t catch that, I guess.
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Nora: I like it too, actually. I just found it interesting that I couldn’t get mine to pull off of the table unless I did strange things.
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Nora: I like it too, actually. I just found it interesting that I couldn’t get mine to pull off of the table unless I did strange things.
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Nora: Patrick shoved a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into a VCR of ours. I sympathize!
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Nora: Patrick shoved a peanut butter and jelly sandwich into a VCR of ours. I sympathize!
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Well as I mentioned before, I gave you numbers that show that the Tablet PC is a failure, even at Apple’s scale. Like I said, Apple sold more Macs last quarter than all Tablet PCs sold since they were introduced.
Major updates, scobelizer old chap. Tiger was hardly an SP2 or security update. Correct me if I’m wrong but XP was released in 2001. Vista is expected to ship in 2006. If my math is correct, that is 5 solid years between major OS updates.
Now of course, you are going to raise your standard argument about Tablet PC and Media Center being major updates (that a TINY fraction of your userbase can take advantage of). Of course, you will argue SP2 constitutes a major update (to fix all the security holes that you’re responsible for)….
Why are you so unwilling to admit Microsoft screwed up with Vista? See, I can believe (and actually do believe) that Microsoft has righted the ship when it comes to Vista development. But why are you so unwilling to admit that Microsoft screwed up in the first place?
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Well as I mentioned before, I gave you numbers that show that the Tablet PC is a failure, even at Apple’s scale. Like I said, Apple sold more Macs last quarter than all Tablet PCs sold since they were introduced.
Major updates, scobelizer old chap. Tiger was hardly an SP2 or security update. Correct me if I’m wrong but XP was released in 2001. Vista is expected to ship in 2006. If my math is correct, that is 5 solid years between major OS updates.
Now of course, you are going to raise your standard argument about Tablet PC and Media Center being major updates (that a TINY fraction of your userbase can take advantage of). Of course, you will argue SP2 constitutes a major update (to fix all the security holes that you’re responsible for)….
Why are you so unwilling to admit Microsoft screwed up with Vista? See, I can believe (and actually do believe) that Microsoft has righted the ship when it comes to Vista development. But why are you so unwilling to admit that Microsoft screwed up in the first place?
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just seconding all the Mac owners here, Robert. A powerbook or iBook is very easy to pull with the Apple provided power cords… I think the power cord and the power receptacle just fit tightly enough together, and are big enough to have enough friction between them to make it easy to do. I agree, with my Thinkpad R51, it’s tough to do by kicking or pulling the cord quickly.
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just seconding all the Mac owners here, Robert. A powerbook or iBook is very easy to pull with the Apple provided power cords… I think the power cord and the power receptacle just fit tightly enough together, and are big enough to have enough friction between them to make it easy to do. I agree, with my Thinkpad R51, it’s tough to do by kicking or pulling the cord quickly.
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Jeez, with you and russel beatie dissin so hard- (he called his commenters morons) and you calling jobs a lier- I am wondering why all the bad vibes?
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Jeez, with you and russel beatie dissin so hard- (he called his commenters morons) and you calling jobs a lier- I am wondering why all the bad vibes?
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Mujibur: oh, now we’re talking about Vista’s screwups? Oh, i thought we were talking about Vista copying Apple. If that’s all we were doing I’d agree it’s a screwup.
And, Mac was a failure then. It didn’t sell a million copies in the first three years either.
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Mujibur: oh, now we’re talking about Vista’s screwups? Oh, i thought we were talking about Vista copying Apple. If that’s all we were doing I’d agree it’s a screwup.
And, Mac was a failure then. It didn’t sell a million copies in the first three years either.
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I’ve done it. Thinkpad T20 or might have been T30.
Someone else tripped over the cord which was sloped over the front of the table. So the cord was doing a 180 from where it went into the machine, then running along the side of the laptop. When pulled in that direction, the laptop swung a violent 180 while moving 18 inches or so, at which point it was off the table.
I caught it before it hit the ground (I have cat-like reflexes 🙂 but I can definitely see how it would happen.
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I’ve done it. Thinkpad T20 or might have been T30.
Someone else tripped over the cord which was sloped over the front of the table. So the cord was doing a 180 from where it went into the machine, then running along the side of the laptop. When pulled in that direction, the laptop swung a violent 180 while moving 18 inches or so, at which point it was off the table.
I caught it before it hit the ground (I have cat-like reflexes 🙂 but I can definitely see how it would happen.
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I gotta give you props — its good that you’re willing to mix it up. I suspect it’d be fun discussing this stuff with you over a beer.
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I gotta give you props — its good that you’re willing to mix it up. I suspect it’d be fun discussing this stuff with you over a beer.
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Mujibur: the actual product is 6-7 months from launch and you’re already declaring that it’s screwed up!
besides, the *cool* OSX features you talk about constantly, you can get them for free on Windows…see it’s a double-edged sword…you want Microsoft to bundle more things in the OS itself but then you chide it for bundling and being anti-competitive…
Scoble: I don’t agree with Mujibur’s tablet pc comments (that they suck and all) THOUGH I do think that Microsoft needs to do a lot more reference designs for OEMs AND it needs to market this product better as well…I showed 5 people down in Singapore your Channel 9 Tablet PC video and they were hooked…2 of them have already bought tablets and love em…I think Marketing is missing its mark here…
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Mujibur: the actual product is 6-7 months from launch and you’re already declaring that it’s screwed up!
besides, the *cool* OSX features you talk about constantly, you can get them for free on Windows…see it’s a double-edged sword…you want Microsoft to bundle more things in the OS itself but then you chide it for bundling and being anti-competitive…
Scoble: I don’t agree with Mujibur’s tablet pc comments (that they suck and all) THOUGH I do think that Microsoft needs to do a lot more reference designs for OEMs AND it needs to market this product better as well…I showed 5 people down in Singapore your Channel 9 Tablet PC video and they were hooked…2 of them have already bought tablets and love em…I think Marketing is missing its mark here…
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Farooq: I said the development of Vista was screwed up, not Vista itself.
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Farooq: I said the development of Vista was screwed up, not Vista itself.
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Well, the recent generations of powerbooks and ibooks have a circular connector that generally comes out first, and may open up the ring (so you have to squeeze it back into a circle to get a good connection). I have previously had Macs and PCs with longer connecters that plug in, and it is easy enough to snap the motherboard connector off with those so they no longer charge.
The iBooks and 12″ powerbooks are light enough to damage if you hit the cable obliquely.
Powerbooks are worse as they dent and can be hard to get back into shape. iBooks just bounce. Recent Powerbooks have accelerometers in so it can park the disk heads before it hits the ground.
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Well, the recent generations of powerbooks and ibooks have a circular connector that generally comes out first, and may open up the ring (so you have to squeeze it back into a circle to get a good connection). I have previously had Macs and PCs with longer connecters that plug in, and it is easy enough to snap the motherboard connector off with those so they no longer charge.
The iBooks and 12″ powerbooks are light enough to damage if you hit the cable obliquely.
Powerbooks are worse as they dent and can be hard to get back into shape. iBooks just bounce. Recent Powerbooks have accelerometers in so it can park the disk heads before it hits the ground.
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anyway, about Tablets: it would be nice to have an interactive site where you could move things around and check what’s the whole tablet deal…i was checking the website for Lenovo’s new tablet and while it had interactive components for all its other features, for Windows XP Tablet PC Edition it just showed the MS logo and a static image on screen…if you can’t give these previews in retail stores/shows, then do it online!
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anyway, about Tablets: it would be nice to have an interactive site where you could move things around and check what’s the whole tablet deal…i was checking the website for Lenovo’s new tablet and while it had interactive components for all its other features, for Windows XP Tablet PC Edition it just showed the MS logo and a static image on screen…if you can’t give these previews in retail stores/shows, then do it online!
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This is how I do it.
Place Compaq TC1100 tablet PC flat on smooth desk with power cord plugged in the top. Hook the other end of the cord around the foot of a 5-foot swivel chair. Sit at desk. Kick chair back to propel self to nearby table. Tablet quickly becomes airborne with a frisbee-like spin caused by the off-centre position of the power cord socket.
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This is how I do it.
Place Compaq TC1100 tablet PC flat on smooth desk with power cord plugged in the top. Hook the other end of the cord around the foot of a 5-foot swivel chair. Sit at desk. Kick chair back to propel self to nearby table. Tablet quickly becomes airborne with a frisbee-like spin caused by the off-centre position of the power cord socket.
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I was strongly considering buying an iCurve notebook stand for my Inspiron 6000d. In the end I decided it wouldn’t be stable enough. On an iCurve, yanking a traditional power cord from the side would be a disaster, I think. So, MagSafe would be useful in that situation.
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/icurve/
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Yep .. I tripped over the power cord to a Dell Inspiron 8200. The thing ended up on the floor. The plastic keyboard surround had popped out, but it went back in the laptop was fine.
I think it’s a great feature, Dell should either copy it or licence it!
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I was strongly considering buying an iCurve notebook stand for my Inspiron 6000d. In the end I decided it wouldn’t be stable enough. On an iCurve, yanking a traditional power cord from the side would be a disaster, I think. So, MagSafe would be useful in that situation.
http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/icurve/
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Yep .. I tripped over the power cord to a Dell Inspiron 8200. The thing ended up on the floor. The plastic keyboard surround had popped out, but it went back in the laptop was fine.
I think it’s a great feature, Dell should either copy it or licence it!
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I’ve tripped over a power cord a number of times – it hasn’t yet cause my to lose a laptop (I’ve managed that plenty of other ways), but it has killed a power supply connector. If it saves me doing that again I’ll be happy.
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I’ve tripped over a power cord a number of times – it hasn’t yet cause my to lose a laptop (I’ve managed that plenty of other ways), but it has killed a power supply connector. If it saves me doing that again I’ll be happy.
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My wife has 2 times dropped my Sony notebook using powercord. Fortunatelly – table was not so high, so it still working almost fine
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My wife has 2 times dropped my Sony notebook using powercord. Fortunatelly – table was not so high, so it still working almost fine
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I welcome this unique innovation from Apple and yes I have been able to yank a laptop and/or Powerbook merely by acccidentally tripping over it. Especially in the wee small hours of the morning after a really loooong shift.
Apple should be commended for this move.
Scoble, you merely sound jealous. Freaking stop it. It’s immature, uncool, and very ungeeky.
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I welcome this unique innovation from Apple and yes I have been able to yank a laptop and/or Powerbook merely by acccidentally tripping over it. Especially in the wee small hours of the morning after a really loooong shift.
Apple should be commended for this move.
Scoble, you merely sound jealous. Freaking stop it. It’s immature, uncool, and very ungeeky.
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At Les Blogs 2.0, I saw Loic Le Meur trip over the power cord of Scott Rafer’s Powerbook – the cord itself was ripped out, but the end stayed in the machine!
That could well prove very expensive to repair …
Loic immediately offered to pay for the damage, of course, but I still think Scott reacted very calmly under the circumstances. I don’t think he even cursed, at least not out loud.
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At Les Blogs 2.0, I saw Loic Le Meur trip over the power cord of Scott Rafer’s Powerbook – the cord itself was ripped out, but the end stayed in the machine!
That could well prove very expensive to repair …
Loic immediately offered to pay for the damage, of course, but I still think Scott reacted very calmly under the circumstances. I don’t think he even cursed, at least not out loud.
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I’ve seen this done – and quite spectacularly! It was a few years ago, when I was doing my degree in Computer Science here in the UK.
One of our lecturers was pretty incompetent when it comes to technology – quite a feat when you bear in mind his field was cybernetics and artificial intelligence. Whilst trying to set up his laptop with projector ready for use, he caught the power cord with his leg and sent the hefty laptop crashing onto the floor in front of about 50 students. I’m sorry to say we laughed.
If I recall, he went back to using transparencies not long after that…
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I’ve seen this done – and quite spectacularly! It was a few years ago, when I was doing my degree in Computer Science here in the UK.
One of our lecturers was pretty incompetent when it comes to technology – quite a feat when you bear in mind his field was cybernetics and artificial intelligence. Whilst trying to set up his laptop with projector ready for use, he caught the power cord with his leg and sent the hefty laptop crashing onto the floor in front of about 50 students. I’m sorry to say we laughed.
If I recall, he went back to using transparencies not long after that…
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My my, a nifty innovation from Apple, and all Scoble can do is play Mr. Wizard at home, should come with a disclaimer: results not typical.
At a big Fortune 100 company where I used to work, this happened off and on, I saw it on the docket sheets. Conference tables, open spaces, factory areas. Heck, they even had a “recommended” policy that employees should charge laptops at their desks. Also mainly for security reasons, as people were charging up in conference rooms and then going to lunch, leaving the laptop a cooking up. Of course, they had bios-installed tracking software, so anyone stealing a laptop was the biggest fool ever, but it still happened, human nature being what it is. But during those charging sessions, lots of ‘knock-offs’ too.
And sometimes, if at right angle, it sticks like a fish-hook, and drags it off. As laptops got lighter, it started happening more frequently, Vaio’s in particular, but then at the same time battery life got better and Centrinos hit, less needing power charge zaps. And people became more hip to laptops, and it started happening less and less. Also some of those stick-on rubber bumper pads helped prevent some problems.
Sure it’s on the wane now, but to say never a problem, is not dealing with a full-deck. Dell laptops weren’t as much a problem, as the chord came out quickly, but then Dell laptops after a few of those jiggles had trouble maintaining power. Like cheap headphones, turn a little bit, sound goes off. So the problem manifested itself in many other ways. But I have heard of this issue for eons. Not sure what sort of bubble you live in as to miss it.
Now for consumers, calling up tech support, maybe they aren’t going to admit what happened.
Now, the proper thing for a real professional Evangelist to do, would have been to praise the innovation. As such, now, you just look shrill and a meanie.
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My my, a nifty innovation from Apple, and all Scoble can do is play Mr. Wizard at home, should come with a disclaimer: results not typical.
At a big Fortune 100 company where I used to work, this happened off and on, I saw it on the docket sheets. Conference tables, open spaces, factory areas. Heck, they even had a “recommended” policy that employees should charge laptops at their desks. Also mainly for security reasons, as people were charging up in conference rooms and then going to lunch, leaving the laptop a cooking up. Of course, they had bios-installed tracking software, so anyone stealing a laptop was the biggest fool ever, but it still happened, human nature being what it is. But during those charging sessions, lots of ‘knock-offs’ too.
And sometimes, if at right angle, it sticks like a fish-hook, and drags it off. As laptops got lighter, it started happening more frequently, Vaio’s in particular, but then at the same time battery life got better and Centrinos hit, less needing power charge zaps. And people became more hip to laptops, and it started happening less and less. Also some of those stick-on rubber bumper pads helped prevent some problems.
Sure it’s on the wane now, but to say never a problem, is not dealing with a full-deck. Dell laptops weren’t as much a problem, as the chord came out quickly, but then Dell laptops after a few of those jiggles had trouble maintaining power. Like cheap headphones, turn a little bit, sound goes off. So the problem manifested itself in many other ways. But I have heard of this issue for eons. Not sure what sort of bubble you live in as to miss it.
Now for consumers, calling up tech support, maybe they aren’t going to admit what happened.
Now, the proper thing for a real professional Evangelist to do, would have been to praise the innovation. As such, now, you just look shrill and a meanie.
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Coolest Contest Ever
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Coolest Contest Ever
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Try tripping over the cable when it’s perpendicular to the insertion angle of the connector.
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Try tripping over the cable when it’s perpendicular to the insertion angle of the connector.
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Done it a half a dozen times myself and when I was in the PC repair biz I saw it all the time. Most of the time it doesn’t yank the powerbook off the table it just kills the computer over time by loosening the connection to the logic board where the power supply plugs in. From then on the powerbooks don’t charge unless the plug is in just right.
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Done it a half a dozen times myself and when I was in the PC repair biz I saw it all the time. Most of the time it doesn’t yank the powerbook off the table it just kills the computer over time by loosening the connection to the logic board where the power supply plugs in. From then on the powerbooks don’t charge unless the plug is in just right.
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The anti-Apple aspect of Scoble is so deep that this feature is not even a Microsoft issue at all. It talks to the HPs, Toshibas, Dells, and Lenovas of the world (I guess NEC, too, though the last time I saw an NEC in the office it was next to a Digital laptop).
Send 5 consultants to a client site. Sit them around a 4 foot round huddle table in a 10 foot room, 5 chairs, two outlets, phone in the middle of the table, coffee cups, notebooks, and laptops. The cords will get tripped on or wrapped up in a chair and a Thinkpad or Toshiba – already too close to the edge of the table – will fall to the floor.
It will be the one with the unsaved final proposal on it, too.
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The anti-Apple aspect of Scoble is so deep that this feature is not even a Microsoft issue at all. It talks to the HPs, Toshibas, Dells, and Lenovas of the world (I guess NEC, too, though the last time I saw an NEC in the office it was next to a Digital laptop).
Send 5 consultants to a client site. Sit them around a 4 foot round huddle table in a 10 foot room, 5 chairs, two outlets, phone in the middle of the table, coffee cups, notebooks, and laptops. The cords will get tripped on or wrapped up in a chair and a Thinkpad or Toshiba – already too close to the edge of the table – will fall to the floor.
It will be the one with the unsaved final proposal on it, too.
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Rob, I’ve done it, man.
When my advisor walked in (this was back in Boston), I spun my chair around to speak with him, and caught the power cable by the chair’s arm. The laptop was a Sony Vaio. It flew off the desk and landed on its PCMCIA WiFi antenna, which caused the PCMCIA card to mash itself into the motherboard. The damage was phenomenal, the laptop wasn’t back from repairs for almost a month… and hearing it thud felt not unlike getting kicked in the nether-regions 🙂
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Rob, I’ve done it, man.
When my advisor walked in (this was back in Boston), I spun my chair around to speak with him, and caught the power cable by the chair’s arm. The laptop was a Sony Vaio. It flew off the desk and landed on its PCMCIA WiFi antenna, which caused the PCMCIA card to mash itself into the motherboard. The damage was phenomenal, the laptop wasn’t back from repairs for almost a month… and hearing it thud felt not unlike getting kicked in the nether-regions 🙂
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Scoble, want to buy my 17″ Powerbook? It has a small bump/damage on the side. I tripped over the cable, and the whole PB fell on the floor, damaging the corner.
You really, REALLY went too far this time. How hard is it to acknowledge that Apple keeps thinking of USEFUL things to add to their products and not merely copying what others do, like your company does?
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Scoble, want to buy my 17″ Powerbook? It has a small bump/damage on the side. I tripped over the cable, and the whole PB fell on the floor, damaging the corner.
You really, REALLY went too far this time. How hard is it to acknowledge that Apple keeps thinking of USEFUL things to add to their products and not merely copying what others do, like your company does?
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The way the PowerBook power connector is constructed, its really well seated in the laptop. Thats why its more likely for a PowerBook to get pulled off the table, and its happened to me.
But one of the other side effects of pulling on the cord is the connector has a thin metal tube that can get bent and loosened and then the connection between the computer and the cord gets worse and jittery. This is a very welcomed enhancement, I am surprised its taken computer makers this long…its really nothing new. Look at the power cords for cooking oil friers…
Can’t wait to get a MacBook!
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The way the PowerBook power connector is constructed, its really well seated in the laptop. Thats why its more likely for a PowerBook to get pulled off the table, and its happened to me.
But one of the other side effects of pulling on the cord is the connector has a thin metal tube that can get bent and loosened and then the connection between the computer and the cord gets worse and jittery. This is a very welcomed enhancement, I am surprised its taken computer makers this long…its really nothing new. Look at the power cords for cooking oil friers…
Can’t wait to get a MacBook!
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My boss once managed to do this with his Powerbook. I think one of the reasons for this is if you look at the feet on Apple laptops / keyboards. Instead of using the rubber feet that all PC’s seem to have Apple instead use hard plastic feet that look as though they were purposefully designed to slide on a desk. I have to work with Apples at work and it is a minor annoyance. The problem does tend to diminish as the glue apple uses is very poor and they tend to fall off after a couple of months. Apple will then sell you replacement feet and glue for you to stick back on!
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My boss once managed to do this with his Powerbook. I think one of the reasons for this is if you look at the feet on Apple laptops / keyboards. Instead of using the rubber feet that all PC’s seem to have Apple instead use hard plastic feet that look as though they were purposefully designed to slide on a desk. I have to work with Apples at work and it is a minor annoyance. The problem does tend to diminish as the glue apple uses is very poor and they tend to fall off after a couple of months. Apple will then sell you replacement feet and glue for you to stick back on!
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This is definitely a Good Thing. It’s not innovation, though, as several consumer electronics (including the Xbox) had similar gadgets. Still, a Good Thing is a Good Thing. Well done Apple, hopefully more PC manufacturers will catch on 🙂
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This is definitely a Good Thing. It’s not innovation, though, as several consumer electronics (including the Xbox) had similar gadgets. Still, a Good Thing is a Good Thing. Well done Apple, hopefully more PC manufacturers will catch on 🙂
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As a quick note, I’d say it’s also to save the power adapter itself – after having had to replace even 2 power adapters, well, that’s expensive when adapters themselves are $100 a piece on average. SO, it doesn’t hurt to have this – in the past 3 years, I’ve tripped on the cord only once or twice. My roommates tripping over the cord is a bit more regular (welcome to college age!), so even though it might not be used by many nor often, it’s still a VERY nice feature when you need it.
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Robert,
The reason those PC laptops aren’t falling to the ground when you yank em is quite simple. They weigh about 50 pounds! With that much weight on a laptop, I’m surprised you don’t need a forklift to carry them around. Now take the sexy slim Power – ‘errrr MacBook, and it’s light weight factor, and it’s quite easy to yank that pupy off of just about any surface but carpet. The powercord plug on those Apple laptops is also quite sturdy and tight. With such a snug fit, it’s pretty easy for the laptop to go along for the ride. In my experience with the PC laptops I have owned, most had a goofy plug that after extended use (especially that square plug on Dell laptops), needed a little something to just keep them from falling out of the socket.
I wonder what your stance will be when the rest of the industry inevitably says “DOH”, slaps themselves in the head, and says “Why didn’t WE think of that?” and all of a sudden, PC laptops will come with this new innovation they will call their own. What will they call it…PowerMag? Hmmmmm……either way, I bet you’ll think it’s cool then!
Just my $.02 on the million dollar blog… 🙂
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As a quick note, I’d say it’s also to save the power adapter itself – after having had to replace even 2 power adapters, well, that’s expensive when adapters themselves are $100 a piece on average. SO, it doesn’t hurt to have this – in the past 3 years, I’ve tripped on the cord only once or twice. My roommates tripping over the cord is a bit more regular (welcome to college age!), so even though it might not be used by many nor often, it’s still a VERY nice feature when you need it.
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Robert,
The reason those PC laptops aren’t falling to the ground when you yank em is quite simple. They weigh about 50 pounds! With that much weight on a laptop, I’m surprised you don’t need a forklift to carry them around. Now take the sexy slim Power – ‘errrr MacBook, and it’s light weight factor, and it’s quite easy to yank that pupy off of just about any surface but carpet. The powercord plug on those Apple laptops is also quite sturdy and tight. With such a snug fit, it’s pretty easy for the laptop to go along for the ride. In my experience with the PC laptops I have owned, most had a goofy plug that after extended use (especially that square plug on Dell laptops), needed a little something to just keep them from falling out of the socket.
I wonder what your stance will be when the rest of the industry inevitably says “DOH”, slaps themselves in the head, and says “Why didn’t WE think of that?” and all of a sudden, PC laptops will come with this new innovation they will call their own. What will they call it…PowerMag? Hmmmmm……either way, I bet you’ll think it’s cool then!
Just my $.02 on the million dollar blog… 🙂
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Is there some magical land where all you users are stringing your powercords across treacherous passageways, hallways and roads?
I don’t know about you, but my laptop power supply isn’t stretching across the room when I use it. At most it’s like 2 feet from my actual feet, and the cord is tucked behind or underneath something, to prevent exactly what we’re talking about.
The magnetic plug is overkill in my mind, and I’m sure that it costs more to manufacture than a typical power jack. But hey, if you’re buying Apple, you probably don’t care about the price anyhow.
So, you Apple users, enjoy your magnetized power plug. I’m doing just fine without it, thank you very much!
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Is there some magical land where all you users are stringing your powercords across treacherous passageways, hallways and roads?
I don’t know about you, but my laptop power supply isn’t stretching across the room when I use it. At most it’s like 2 feet from my actual feet, and the cord is tucked behind or underneath something, to prevent exactly what we’re talking about.
The magnetic plug is overkill in my mind, and I’m sure that it costs more to manufacture than a typical power jack. But hey, if you’re buying Apple, you probably don’t care about the price anyhow.
So, you Apple users, enjoy your magnetized power plug. I’m doing just fine without it, thank you very much!
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Hey Robert,
I have been in meetings a couple of times where someone has tripped over my cord and pulled my TabletPC. One time I caught it before it fell over. The other time it luckily landed on my jacket that was on top of my backback beside the coffee table it was on.
In both cases it was someone just walking by and not seeing the cord. At full walking speed its amazing the amount of movement that tripping the power cord can have. You would think that the rubber on the bottom would be a good protector. However in one case while at a Starbucks I ended up suspending the tablet and putting it on top of a newspaper on the coffee table while we talked. That combination is what made it so easy to ‘fall’.
Steve’s magnetic power cord has interesting possibilities. I can see how it could protect my investment in my device. I hope Acer comes up with something similar when its time to buy the next one.
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Hey Robert,
I have been in meetings a couple of times where someone has tripped over my cord and pulled my TabletPC. One time I caught it before it fell over. The other time it luckily landed on my jacket that was on top of my backback beside the coffee table it was on.
In both cases it was someone just walking by and not seeing the cord. At full walking speed its amazing the amount of movement that tripping the power cord can have. You would think that the rubber on the bottom would be a good protector. However in one case while at a Starbucks I ended up suspending the tablet and putting it on top of a newspaper on the coffee table while we talked. That combination is what made it so easy to ‘fall’.
Steve’s magnetic power cord has interesting possibilities. I can see how it could protect my investment in my device. I hope Acer comes up with something similar when its time to buy the next one.
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“And, Mac was a failure then. It didn’t sell a million copies in the first three years either.”
Are you really honestly trying to make that comparison? A product coming out in this decade compared to 30 years ago? The Apple I’s launch price is the equivalent of $2286.50 today. But if you specifically meant the first computer referred to as Macintosh, that launched with a price equivalent of $4618.17. So now, not only are we talking about a TREMENDOUSLY different potential userbase (billions use computers today, maybe a few million then, mostly in schools and government), but you’re also talking about a huge price difference. Show me a Tablet PC that retails for $4500 that has sold a million copies.
I’m not saying Tablets aren’t cool and some people find great use out of them, but don’t make irrelevant comparisons.
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“And, Mac was a failure then. It didn’t sell a million copies in the first three years either.”
Are you really honestly trying to make that comparison? A product coming out in this decade compared to 30 years ago? The Apple I’s launch price is the equivalent of $2286.50 today. But if you specifically meant the first computer referred to as Macintosh, that launched with a price equivalent of $4618.17. So now, not only are we talking about a TREMENDOUSLY different potential userbase (billions use computers today, maybe a few million then, mostly in schools and government), but you’re also talking about a huge price difference. Show me a Tablet PC that retails for $4500 that has sold a million copies.
I’m not saying Tablets aren’t cool and some people find great use out of them, but don’t make irrelevant comparisons.
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I’ve had various laptops. My little VAIO could easily be pulled to the ground from the cords. My Apple has come very close to being pulled off a table. It’s a problem with little light laptops, you know. But, even if the laptop doesn’t get yanked to the ground, it still gets hanked, and that’s not good.
Mostly, I can attribute the cord yanking to my cats running through the cords as they try to leap on each other. However, I’ve certainly caught cables as I walk by them.
With wireless everything, the only thing laptops are tied down by, really are the power cords.
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I’ve had various laptops. My little VAIO could easily be pulled to the ground from the cords. My Apple has come very close to being pulled off a table. It’s a problem with little light laptops, you know. But, even if the laptop doesn’t get yanked to the ground, it still gets hanked, and that’s not good.
Mostly, I can attribute the cord yanking to my cats running through the cords as they try to leap on each other. However, I’ve certainly caught cables as I walk by them.
With wireless everything, the only thing laptops are tied down by, really are the power cords.
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Never a power cord, but my wife ruined a laptop by tripping over the bright orange phone cord. Managed to yank the built in modem out of the body, then pull the laptop to the ground where it sustained heavy damage.
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Never a power cord, but my wife ruined a laptop by tripping over the bright orange phone cord. Managed to yank the built in modem out of the body, then pull the laptop to the ground where it sustained heavy damage.
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This happened to me luckily i grabbed the laptop (It was literally three inces from the ground it broke the connector led to my laptop so it no longer ‘lights up.’ I was ina class with the PB plugges in to a connector in the aisle Someone came running by even though the cord was up to their waste they plowed through it.
i’m interested to see how firm the new connector is.
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This happened to me luckily i grabbed the laptop (It was literally three inces from the ground it broke the connector led to my laptop so it no longer ‘lights up.’ I was ina class with the PB plugges in to a connector in the aisle Someone came running by even though the cord was up to their waste they plowed through it.
i’m interested to see how firm the new connector is.
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Let’s see…: Fujitsu, Compaq, Fujitsu, Dell, Apple… of the five the Apple has had the best “let go of the power cord” ability, but I like the connector on the second Fujitsu the best for not wearing out under normal use (the Dell sucks in that regard).
And, yes, all have been pulled off of resting places by their power cords.
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Let’s see…: Fujitsu, Compaq, Fujitsu, Dell, Apple… of the five the Apple has had the best “let go of the power cord” ability, but I like the connector on the second Fujitsu the best for not wearing out under normal use (the Dell sucks in that regard).
And, yes, all have been pulled off of resting places by their power cords.
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Having worked at the HP-laptop helpdesk here in the Netherlands a few years ago, I can say: yes it happens quite frequently.
The most frequent seen damage however was the internal connector bending. On one model it would actually brak off and drop on the motherboard, thereby taling the entire board out. (HP Omnibook XE2)
I tripped over an USB cable of my desktop this morning and that ruined the internal connector.
So, Aples idea seems a good one.
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Having worked at the HP-laptop helpdesk here in the Netherlands a few years ago, I can say: yes it happens quite frequently.
The most frequent seen damage however was the internal connector bending. On one model it would actually brak off and drop on the motherboard, thereby taling the entire board out. (HP Omnibook XE2)
I tripped over an USB cable of my desktop this morning and that ruined the internal connector.
So, Aples idea seems a good one.
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So are we going to do the same for all of the other cords if people are this dim? Or are we saying that people only ever plug the power cord in and everything else is wireless – if only that were true all of the time.
It’s amazing though how many comments you got for talking about a power cord. It’s great diversionary marketing. Minimise the discussion down to one of minutia and you’ve won as much a victory as to have killed the story altogether 🙂
It’s also great to see the “How dare you criticise Apple” zealots are still around. Wonder if they will carry on being zealots of Apple manages to become really mainstream again. Familiarity breeds contempt after-all :-]
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So are we going to do the same for all of the other cords if people are this dim? Or are we saying that people only ever plug the power cord in and everything else is wireless – if only that were true all of the time.
It’s amazing though how many comments you got for talking about a power cord. It’s great diversionary marketing. Minimise the discussion down to one of minutia and you’ve won as much a victory as to have killed the story altogether 🙂
It’s also great to see the “How dare you criticise Apple” zealots are still around. Wonder if they will carry on being zealots of Apple manages to become really mainstream again. Familiarity breeds contempt after-all :-]
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I used to have an iBook, and the power cord is actually a pretty snug fit in the notebook. It would constantly be knocked off from cord trips. The MagSafe Connector is a good thing for the new MacBook Pro. The old power connectors were just way too stiff of a fit to easily pull out.
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I used to have an iBook, and the power cord is actually a pretty snug fit in the notebook. It would constantly be knocked off from cord trips. The MagSafe Connector is a good thing for the new MacBook Pro. The old power connectors were just way too stiff of a fit to easily pull out.
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I know on my 17″, I can easily carry it by the power cord. Those plugs are quite snug. As well, even if it isn’t a snug fit, a violent disconnect can, over multiple iterations, cause damage. So it’s a case of doing something that many people may not need, but if it comes up, it’s great to have.
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I know on my 17″, I can easily carry it by the power cord. Those plugs are quite snug. As well, even if it isn’t a snug fit, a violent disconnect can, over multiple iterations, cause damage. So it’s a case of doing something that many people may not need, but if it comes up, it’s great to have.
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I have a dell laptop (abt 3 years old), since replaced, that was pulled off a wooden tv tray by the powercord. the cord stays connected when pulled at an oblique angle at relative speed. It was accomplished by my daughter tangling the cord between her legs when walking by, I think she even stepped on the cord with one foot and kicked the cord with the other. The laptop survived the drop, but the ethernet connector did not.
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I have a dell laptop (abt 3 years old), since replaced, that was pulled off a wooden tv tray by the powercord. the cord stays connected when pulled at an oblique angle at relative speed. It was accomplished by my daughter tangling the cord between her legs when walking by, I think she even stepped on the cord with one foot and kicked the cord with the other. The laptop survived the drop, but the ethernet connector did not.
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I am the NetAdmin at a K-12 school which has all 7-12 with laptops (more than 50% M200 tablets now). Let me tell you it is very easy to pull laptops of desks via power cord. Most often the cord is at an opposing angle so it won’t pull out. Also it helps if all or some of the rubber feet have been peeled off.
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I am the NetAdmin at a K-12 school which has all 7-12 with laptops (more than 50% M200 tablets now). Let me tell you it is very easy to pull laptops of desks via power cord. Most often the cord is at an opposing angle so it won’t pull out. Also it helps if all or some of the rubber feet have been peeled off.
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I’ve lost count over the times I have tripped because the cord did not pull out and the laptop did not fall off the desk. I really want one of those new cords.
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I’ve lost count over the times I have tripped because the cord did not pull out and the laptop did not fall off the desk. I really want one of those new cords.
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My daughter has pulled both my T40 and my wife’s machine (same model). At 11 months, she has mastered the process.
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My daughter has pulled both my T40 and my wife’s machine (same model). At 11 months, she has mastered the process.
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On my Dell laptop, my power connection is a little wobbly and sometimes won’t stay connected. It’s the most worn part of the laptop. A new powercord connection sounds like a good idea to me.
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On my Dell laptop, my power connection is a little wobbly and sometimes won’t stay connected. It’s the most worn part of the laptop. A new powercord connection sounds like a good idea to me.
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Just lost an old IBM 600E three weeks ago. The computer was on the dining room table when my 86lb dog ran after one of the kids and took the cord and 600E off the table. Screen is kaput.
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Just lost an old IBM 600E three weeks ago. The computer was on the dining room table when my 86lb dog ran after one of the kids and took the cord and 600E off the table. Screen is kaput.
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I’ve had my laptops (PowerBook and Dell) ripped off my lap several times and off something else once or twice. Also, one time the rip damaged the socket.
Seems like a nice advancement to me.
As was lighted keyboards, which other notebook manufacturers have yet to copy.
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I’ve had my laptops (PowerBook and Dell) ripped off my lap several times and off something else once or twice. Also, one time the rip damaged the socket.
Seems like a nice advancement to me.
As was lighted keyboards, which other notebook manufacturers have yet to copy.
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pwb: My Acer and Vaio have lighted keyboards 😉 (also a great idea btw)
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pwb: My Acer and Vaio have lighted keyboards 😉 (also a great idea btw)
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Person 1 is using the laptop on the bed. Laptop is plugged in across to the wall not behind the bed (because that would require moving the bed) but on the wall to the side. There is a place to walk in between the bed, over or under the cord, and to the wall.
Person 2 steps on the cord or trips over it. Person 1 grabs the laptop so it doesn’t crash to the ground. The tension of this wails on the power socket and then pulls the plug.
This wailing causes the power cord failure. I know because this is happening to me right now due to this exact thing happening 100x over the past 3 years.
Also, your other tests would be different if the little feet fell off… which they always do…
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Person 1 is using the laptop on the bed. Laptop is plugged in across to the wall not behind the bed (because that would require moving the bed) but on the wall to the side. There is a place to walk in between the bed, over or under the cord, and to the wall.
Person 2 steps on the cord or trips over it. Person 1 grabs the laptop so it doesn’t crash to the ground. The tension of this wails on the power socket and then pulls the plug.
This wailing causes the power cord failure. I know because this is happening to me right now due to this exact thing happening 100x over the past 3 years.
Also, your other tests would be different if the little feet fell off… which they always do…
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Hey, I think this is a great innovation–and not because of the “trip on the cord, the laptop falls.” It’s a great innovation because the Powerbook’s old power cord had such a ridiculously brittle connector!
I used to travel a lot with my Powerbook, and inevitably the connector on the power cord would stop connecting–the slightest tweaks and the connection would break, and I’d end up buying a new cord.
Heck, I had to replace my power cord nearly as often as I had to buy an upgrade to the operating system!
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Hey, I think this is a great innovation–and not because of the “trip on the cord, the laptop falls.” It’s a great innovation because the Powerbook’s old power cord had such a ridiculously brittle connector!
I used to travel a lot with my Powerbook, and inevitably the connector on the power cord would stop connecting–the slightest tweaks and the connection would break, and I’d end up buying a new cord.
Heck, I had to replace my power cord nearly as often as I had to buy an upgrade to the operating system!
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I think, you can do this, if there are no rubber stoppers beneath laptop.
I’ve Dell 8600 and one of Toshibas laptops. Somehow, I always manage to loose rubber stoppers beneath laptops. After that, if my laptop is at the edge of a table, a little pull to the power cable can win your contest. 🙂
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I think, you can do this, if there are no rubber stoppers beneath laptop.
I’ve Dell 8600 and one of Toshibas laptops. Somehow, I always manage to loose rubber stoppers beneath laptops. After that, if my laptop is at the edge of a table, a little pull to the power cable can win your contest. 🙂
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While I’ve never pulled the laptop off the table by tripping over the cable, i have broken the tip of the cable that plugs into my powerbook by tripping over it. Luckily applecare covered it and the apple store just gave me a new cable.
Oh and you’re always talking about how the tablet is Windows greatest achievement and Apple has nothing that compares to it. Check out the iTab, an iBook converted into a tablet ( http://www.itablet.theplaceforitall.com/ ). They’re selling them one-by-one on ebay until they’ve sold 100. I’m sure you could get microsoft to cover a $1500 “tablet research expense” to get one 🙂
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While I’ve never pulled the laptop off the table by tripping over the cable, i have broken the tip of the cable that plugs into my powerbook by tripping over it. Luckily applecare covered it and the apple store just gave me a new cable.
Oh and you’re always talking about how the tablet is Windows greatest achievement and Apple has nothing that compares to it. Check out the iTab, an iBook converted into a tablet ( http://www.itablet.theplaceforitall.com/ ). They’re selling them one-by-one on ebay until they’ve sold 100. I’m sure you could get microsoft to cover a $1500 “tablet research expense” to get one 🙂
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Robert, even when you are right, you get it wrong.
The magnetic power cord, as has been pointed out in several other places, is not truly innovative. It already exists on common kitchen appliances. That would have been a more appropriate “attack” on the Apple hype, if that was your intent. Like Microsoft, Apple often gets credit for innovation by simply adopting someone else’s idea.
But it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that laptops get pulled to the ground, whether from a desk, coffee table or an unstable TV-dinner tray on a regular basis. As Jobs mentioned, they get them regularly back for repairs. The existing Apple power cord is in fact better that that on most laptops in that once disconnected from the laptop it’s use of electricity stops (or at least goes way down.)
Your inability to reproduce the problem only speaks to your unfitness as a product tester (but I think we already knew that). There is plenty to criticize Apple for, I can’t imagine why you picked this one. Their hardware IS overpriced and for those who think they are going to go head to head with Dell on hardware, or Microsoft on software I’m afraid they are in a “you can’t get there from here” situation, because Microsoft won’t be able to reproduce their own success in software, and Dell won’t be able to reproduce their own success in hardware. Apple is aiming for targets that no longer exists. Dell and MS were both in the right place at the right time to do what they did, but those places and times are gone.
To say that Apple makes laptops even now isn’t much different than saying that Microsoft “makes” the Xbox 360. IBM makes the CPU, ATI makes the video, some company in China makes all the rest of it, and Microsoft sells the thing at a loss (something most companies can’t afford to do). Other than a big bucket-o-money derived from a monopoly situation more of IBM’s making than MS’s, Microsoft now has the luxury of searching for the next big thing. If they ever find it, maybe that stock price will take off again. Copying good ideas from Google, Apple and dozens of other companies doesn’t make Microsoft look like a good investment, and sniping at fairly inconsequential “innovations” from other companies makes the oohing and ahhing you do over every new thing MS does seem even sillier than it otherwise would.
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Robert, even when you are right, you get it wrong.
The magnetic power cord, as has been pointed out in several other places, is not truly innovative. It already exists on common kitchen appliances. That would have been a more appropriate “attack” on the Apple hype, if that was your intent. Like Microsoft, Apple often gets credit for innovation by simply adopting someone else’s idea.
But it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to know that laptops get pulled to the ground, whether from a desk, coffee table or an unstable TV-dinner tray on a regular basis. As Jobs mentioned, they get them regularly back for repairs. The existing Apple power cord is in fact better that that on most laptops in that once disconnected from the laptop it’s use of electricity stops (or at least goes way down.)
Your inability to reproduce the problem only speaks to your unfitness as a product tester (but I think we already knew that). There is plenty to criticize Apple for, I can’t imagine why you picked this one. Their hardware IS overpriced and for those who think they are going to go head to head with Dell on hardware, or Microsoft on software I’m afraid they are in a “you can’t get there from here” situation, because Microsoft won’t be able to reproduce their own success in software, and Dell won’t be able to reproduce their own success in hardware. Apple is aiming for targets that no longer exists. Dell and MS were both in the right place at the right time to do what they did, but those places and times are gone.
To say that Apple makes laptops even now isn’t much different than saying that Microsoft “makes” the Xbox 360. IBM makes the CPU, ATI makes the video, some company in China makes all the rest of it, and Microsoft sells the thing at a loss (something most companies can’t afford to do). Other than a big bucket-o-money derived from a monopoly situation more of IBM’s making than MS’s, Microsoft now has the luxury of searching for the next big thing. If they ever find it, maybe that stock price will take off again. Copying good ideas from Google, Apple and dozens of other companies doesn’t make Microsoft look like a good investment, and sniping at fairly inconsequential “innovations” from other companies makes the oohing and ahhing you do over every new thing MS does seem even sillier than it otherwise would.
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My wife has broke two laptops due to her tripping over the power cord. They were Dell’s maybe your toshiba pulls out easier. Frankly, I think you were not trying very hard or have a bias you can’t admit to…
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My wife has broke two laptops due to her tripping over the power cord. They were Dell’s maybe your toshiba pulls out easier. Frankly, I think you were not trying very hard or have a bias you can’t admit to…
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Here’s how I’ve done it: Travel. Preferably to a place that is more than 2 time zones, so your body clock is off. You find the one outlet that works that you can plug the computer into, that still lets you sit on the bed. (Because there is no desk or the desk is too small or the chair is too high or whatever.) You start writing email, making sure to drink water to stay hydrated because you just got off a plane and you’re not recovered. Sure enough, the water takes effect, so you carefully put the laptop down on the bed, and walk past the power cord, but you’re so tired you can’t see it, so you trip over the power cord. If you’re like me, you see this happening in slow motion and rescue the computer, swearing at yourself because you’ve done it too many times.
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Here’s how I’ve done it: Travel. Preferably to a place that is more than 2 time zones, so your body clock is off. You find the one outlet that works that you can plug the computer into, that still lets you sit on the bed. (Because there is no desk or the desk is too small or the chair is too high or whatever.) You start writing email, making sure to drink water to stay hydrated because you just got off a plane and you’re not recovered. Sure enough, the water takes effect, so you carefully put the laptop down on the bed, and walk past the power cord, but you’re so tired you can’t see it, so you trip over the power cord. If you’re like me, you see this happening in slow motion and rescue the computer, swearing at yourself because you’ve done it too many times.
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How you managed to get 94 comments on a post asking people to try and rip their power cords out of their laptops, throwing their laptops on the ground, escapes me.
Side note: The comment above me says #94, but the bold text at the top of the comment list says there are 93 comments. Weird number mojo?
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How you managed to get 94 comments on a post asking people to try and rip their power cords out of their laptops, throwing their laptops on the ground, escapes me.
Side note: The comment above me says #94, but the bold text at the top of the comment list says there are 93 comments. Weird number mojo?
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you too can knock off ANY laptop in 5 easy steps!
1) plug in power adapter.
2) lay attached cord across the keyboard snugged to the base of the screen.
3) close the lid.
4) rotate the laptop to a 90 degree perpendicular to the edge of any table.
5) yank like you mean it!
m3mnoch.
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you too can knock off ANY laptop in 5 easy steps!
1) plug in power adapter.
2) lay attached cord across the keyboard snugged to the base of the screen.
3) close the lid.
4) rotate the laptop to a 90 degree perpendicular to the edge of any table.
5) yank like you mean it!
m3mnoch.
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The newer laptops don’t have sticky power plugs. I have a 486 from the 90s that you could suspend mid-air by its power cord.
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The newer laptops don’t have sticky power plugs. I have a 486 from the 90s that you could suspend mid-air by its power cord.
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Maybe it’s a Powerbook thing. I’ll second some of the other posts here…
I have a 12″ Powerbook and I keep it on a wood top TV tray. The cord goes over the side of the tray, down to the floor and across the front of the couch to the plug.
If you pull on the cable perpendicular to the socket on the Powerook, it doesn’t let go. My dog gets tangled in it sometimes, but usually I’m close enough to pull the cable out before she drags it off the tray. The laptop’s light and the socket does hold on…it’s kinda deep seated. The Windows laptop I have for work (A Dell Inspiron 800) s heavier and the power socket doesn’t have as much to geab onto.
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Maybe it’s a Powerbook thing. I’ll second some of the other posts here…
I have a 12″ Powerbook and I keep it on a wood top TV tray. The cord goes over the side of the tray, down to the floor and across the front of the couch to the plug.
If you pull on the cable perpendicular to the socket on the Powerook, it doesn’t let go. My dog gets tangled in it sometimes, but usually I’m close enough to pull the cable out before she drags it off the tray. The laptop’s light and the socket does hold on…it’s kinda deep seated. The Windows laptop I have for work (A Dell Inspiron 800) s heavier and the power socket doesn’t have as much to geab onto.
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Hmmm this sound like you’re trying too hard to pick at Apple. 🙂
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Hmmm this sound like you’re trying too hard to pick at Apple. 🙂
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Diego: well, what this ended up doing is just publicizing the new plug in the new Mac. Apple should pay me! 🙂
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Diego: well, what this ended up doing is just publicizing the new plug in the new Mac. Apple should pay me! 🙂
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Robert: I’ll let Steve know. 🙂
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Robert: I’ll let Steve know. 🙂
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Maybe it’s a Powerbook thing. I’ll second some of the other posts here…
Maybe it’s a thing of Microsoft planting shills to promote its monopoly thingie.
How else can one compare and contrast Robert Scoble’s cheerleading over every tiny little Windows CE-based thing at CES with his dishonest attack at Apple’s switching to an entire new architecture.
From Robert’s wikipedia entry: “Although Scoble often promotes Microsoft products like Tablet PCs and Windows Vista, at the same time he criticises his own employer and praises its competitors (like Apple and Google).”
Yeah right.
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Maybe it’s a Powerbook thing. I’ll second some of the other posts here…
Maybe it’s a thing of Microsoft planting shills to promote its monopoly thingie.
How else can one compare and contrast Robert Scoble’s cheerleading over every tiny little Windows CE-based thing at CES with his dishonest attack at Apple’s switching to an entire new architecture.
From Robert’s wikipedia entry: “Although Scoble often promotes Microsoft products like Tablet PCs and Windows Vista, at the same time he criticises his own employer and praises its competitors (like Apple and Google).”
Yeah right.
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Here’s how I’ve done it:
1) Set the laptop down with the power-cord edge hanging about 30% off the edge of the coffee table. (This is easy to dumbly do… I sometimes temporarily set my laptop on the corner of the coffee table with 2 edges overhanging about 30% because there’s no flat space anywhere else.)
2) Accidentally step on the cord when you’re getting up.
3) Cord pulls down on the overhanging edge of the laptop, tipping and sliding it so that it’s more than 50% off the table.
4) Laptop tips off the table.
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Here’s how I’ve done it:
1) Set the laptop down with the power-cord edge hanging about 30% off the edge of the coffee table. (This is easy to dumbly do… I sometimes temporarily set my laptop on the corner of the coffee table with 2 edges overhanging about 30% because there’s no flat space anywhere else.)
2) Accidentally step on the cord when you’re getting up.
3) Cord pulls down on the overhanging edge of the laptop, tipping and sliding it so that it’s more than 50% off the table.
4) Laptop tips off the table.
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More than likely, your issue is with the wall socket. Try a newer socket that’s still a little “stiff.” I’ve managed to pull my laptop off my coffee table a few times. Once, the wireless card (which sticks out about 1″ from the PCMCIA slot) got jammed in all the way. Lucky me, the HP accidental damage warranty didn’t expire until two days later!
Apple vs. MS war: I don’t really care. I made an honest effort to get in to Mac programming once. The experience was traumatic. I couldn’t find a serious developer community to help get me started. The best (free) resource I found was an 8 year old book at the public library with examples in Pascal. I never even found a compiler. Scoble and his friends are the main reason I stick with MS. btw- I don’t like your “evangelist” title either.
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More than likely, your issue is with the wall socket. Try a newer socket that’s still a little “stiff.” I’ve managed to pull my laptop off my coffee table a few times. Once, the wireless card (which sticks out about 1″ from the PCMCIA slot) got jammed in all the way. Lucky me, the HP accidental damage warranty didn’t expire until two days later!
Apple vs. MS war: I don’t really care. I made an honest effort to get in to Mac programming once. The experience was traumatic. I couldn’t find a serious developer community to help get me started. The best (free) resource I found was an 8 year old book at the public library with examples in Pascal. I never even found a compiler. Scoble and his friends are the main reason I stick with MS. btw- I don’t like your “evangelist” title either.
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Wow lots of comments. In 10 years of corporate IT I have seen a lot of people tripping over power cords, but it has never resulting in flying notebooks.
What does happen: Bent connector pins, out-of-alignment power sockets and such. All of which require (expensive if out of warranty) repairs.
Still, the apple connector looks neat. The entire notebook looks neat. And who cares about the name? ‘Lenovo’ doesn’t sound all that great either.
What would really make me happy if all the notebook manufacturers would get together and settle on a universal adapter design. Hell, if just one manufacturer would be so gracious to design one adapter for their entire range of notebooks instead of 6 or 7 different ones I would be happy.
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Wow lots of comments. In 10 years of corporate IT I have seen a lot of people tripping over power cords, but it has never resulting in flying notebooks.
What does happen: Bent connector pins, out-of-alignment power sockets and such. All of which require (expensive if out of warranty) repairs.
Still, the apple connector looks neat. The entire notebook looks neat. And who cares about the name? ‘Lenovo’ doesn’t sound all that great either.
What would really make me happy if all the notebook manufacturers would get together and settle on a universal adapter design. Hell, if just one manufacturer would be so gracious to design one adapter for their entire range of notebooks instead of 6 or 7 different ones I would be happy.
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Michiel, my experince of apple power adaptors is that since 2001 they all pretty much work on any laptop (granted the older ones are 45 watts I think and the newer on is more). But when working in a place with several macs sharing power adaptors is the norm.
Also I have pulled several laptops off desks because of power cables. And the result tended to be bent pins and such. I dont think the power connector is THE feature that would swing me but I think its a nice evolution of the old one which I knew they were going to change because the old one is to bulky for a slimmer laptop.
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Michiel, my experince of apple power adaptors is that since 2001 they all pretty much work on any laptop (granted the older ones are 45 watts I think and the newer on is more). But when working in a place with several macs sharing power adaptors is the norm.
Also I have pulled several laptops off desks because of power cables. And the result tended to be bent pins and such. I dont think the power connector is THE feature that would swing me but I think its a nice evolution of the old one which I knew they were going to change because the old one is to bulky for a slimmer laptop.
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I have “successfully” pulled my Motion Computing M1400 PC Tablet off of a coffee table, when my wife tripped on the cord. It ripped out the USB connector between the hardtop keyboard and the tablet. The power connector has a 90 degree angle connector at the PC side, which apparently helped snag the laptop to the floor.
I have also accidentally pulled a Toshiba 700CDT laptop off of a desk by catching the cord in a desk chair, if my memory serves me. This cord was one of those “figure 8” cords that connected directly to the power supply inside of the laptop.
I have also accidentally pulled a Sony VAIO of recent vintage whose model number I do not recall on to the floor off of a couch when a guest tripped across the cord going to the wall. This AC adapter tip was straight, but relativevly snug in fit.
I use my laptops 40 to 60 hours a week and am not particularly hard on my gear, but do not find Steve Job’s notion that a quick release powercord is of potential value, to be a far fetched marketing claim.
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I have “successfully” pulled my Motion Computing M1400 PC Tablet off of a coffee table, when my wife tripped on the cord. It ripped out the USB connector between the hardtop keyboard and the tablet. The power connector has a 90 degree angle connector at the PC side, which apparently helped snag the laptop to the floor.
I have also accidentally pulled a Toshiba 700CDT laptop off of a desk by catching the cord in a desk chair, if my memory serves me. This cord was one of those “figure 8” cords that connected directly to the power supply inside of the laptop.
I have also accidentally pulled a Sony VAIO of recent vintage whose model number I do not recall on to the floor off of a couch when a guest tripped across the cord going to the wall. This AC adapter tip was straight, but relativevly snug in fit.
I use my laptops 40 to 60 hours a week and am not particularly hard on my gear, but do not find Steve Job’s notion that a quick release powercord is of potential value, to be a far fetched marketing claim.
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My Dell was pulled off the couch by the cord by my sweet baby (6 mos at the time). It broke the connection to the motherboard and now it’s held together by solder and hot glue. It happens…
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My Dell was pulled off the couch by the cord by my sweet baby (6 mos at the time). It broke the connection to the motherboard and now it’s held together by solder and hot glue. It happens…
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It’s not “Has anyone pulled a laptop off of a countertop by its powercord?” it’s “How many times has the cord been kicked or pulled out and/or pulled the laptop to the ground?”
Too many times…
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It’s not “Has anyone pulled a laptop off of a countertop by its powercord?” it’s “How many times has the cord been kicked or pulled out and/or pulled the laptop to the ground?”
Too many times…
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Scoble, I’ve learned a very important lesson from this post; if you want lots of blog visits and comments, insult Mac or Mac users.
As usual, you’re brilliant. Maybe not intentionally, but even so… 😀
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Scoble, I’ve learned a very important lesson from this post; if you want lots of blog visits and comments, insult Mac or Mac users.
As usual, you’re brilliant. Maybe not intentionally, but even so… 😀
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At least twice. One of those times it was the fault of the sysadmin of a company I was consulting at.
Laptops: Sony Vaios (two different models)
Damage caused:
1) Harddisk issues eventually leading to a completely dead HD.
2) Cracked and damage case
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At least twice. One of those times it was the fault of the sysadmin of a company I was consulting at.
Laptops: Sony Vaios (two different models)
Damage caused:
1) Harddisk issues eventually leading to a completely dead HD.
2) Cracked and damage case
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Too all those thinking Apple is somehow being very creative and inventive with this idea, most new small kitchen appliances come with this kind of power cord these days, so Apple just stole the idea from someone else (same as everything else you all think is so inovative from them :->)
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Too all those thinking Apple is somehow being very creative and inventive with this idea, most new small kitchen appliances come with this kind of power cord these days, so Apple just stole the idea from someone else (same as everything else you all think is so inovative from them :->)
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Hello
this murphy cole i will like to no if u are carry tennis racket and tennis shoes with clothing that i can buy. And with pay ment do u accept. And i will like the items to be send to nigeria and i will pay for the shipping cost and the tax fees .
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Hello
this murphy cole i will like to no if u are carry tennis racket and tennis shoes with clothing that i can buy. And with pay ment do u accept. And i will like the items to be send to nigeria and i will pay for the shipping cost and the tax fees .
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Sony VAIO more than twice. Rubber feet on most laptops come off when unit gets hot leaving unit very slippery. VAIO power cord on side results in unplug tripping one direction and a dump to the floor tripping the other direction.
Luckily no damage except I can’t find those little rubber feet (six on the VAIO).
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Sony VAIO more than twice. Rubber feet on most laptops come off when unit gets hot leaving unit very slippery. VAIO power cord on side results in unplug tripping one direction and a dump to the floor tripping the other direction.
Luckily no damage except I can’t find those little rubber feet (six on the VAIO).
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What feed service is best to use for this blog’s feed?
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What feed service is best to use for this blog’s feed?
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Hi, this actually happens a lot. The T41 already has a nice smart jack built into it that is a separate peice from the motherboard- IBM started that w/ the T40s back in 2002. =) Toshibas, HP/Compaq, Gateway, Sony, etc, etc, usually break fairly easily though- the tiny power jack is usually held in place on the motherboard with just a few tiny pins. A good yank to the side will snap the plug. Where I work we fix these every day- a pagee of our website is dedicated to info on power jacks- I’ll leave the link here.
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Hi, this actually happens a lot. The T41 already has a nice smart jack built into it that is a separate peice from the motherboard- IBM started that w/ the T40s back in 2002. =) Toshibas, HP/Compaq, Gateway, Sony, etc, etc, usually break fairly easily though- the tiny power jack is usually held in place on the motherboard with just a few tiny pins. A good yank to the side will snap the plug. Where I work we fix these every day- a pagee of our website is dedicated to info on power jacks- I’ll leave the link here.
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I am in the process of trying to convert my vaio into the magnet DC power, since my dog tore the cord out (braking the DC jack) and the computer fell to the ground as well. Sony laptops are horribly made. There is no critique you could make of apple which could come close to the opinion i hold of vaio’s pile of s*@t.
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I am in the process of trying to convert my vaio into the magnet DC power, since my dog tore the cord out (braking the DC jack) and the computer fell to the ground as well. Sony laptops are horribly made. There is no critique you could make of apple which could come close to the opinion i hold of vaio’s pile of s*@t.
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It could be that you can’t do it with a PC because many PC laptops are heavier than a PowerBook or iBook. In my experience, it happens quite often with Apple’s super-light portables.
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It could be that you can’t do it with a PC because many PC laptops are heavier than a PowerBook or iBook. In my experience, it happens quite often with Apple’s super-light portables.
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Nice. After smashing my wife’s dell to the floor I google similar situations to try to estimate the damage. First result? Douchebag trying to say it doesn’t happen to score points against Apple. You rock asshat!
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Nice. After smashing my wife’s dell to the floor I google similar situations to try to estimate the damage. First result? Douchebag trying to say it doesn’t happen to score points against Apple. You rock asshat!
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i have an acer aspire 4520 and had it sitting on a kitchen table my nephew ran by tripped on the cord it rapped around his leg and he pulled my laptop off the tbale it landed in the chair. I had to have the hard drive replace afterwards for some reason it wiped everything out the laptop wouldnt even power up.
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i have an acer aspire 4520 and had it sitting on a kitchen table my nephew ran by tripped on the cord it rapped around his leg and he pulled my laptop off the tbale it landed in the chair. I had to have the hard drive replace afterwards for some reason it wiped everything out the laptop wouldnt even power up.
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