MacBook & Empower?
 

I just bought a new 13" MacBook and am planning on taking it with me to Japan next month. I've not, however, had any luck finding an adapter that will allow me to use EmPower during the flight, and the woman I spoke with at Igo had no ETA of when a tip for MacBook might be available. Am I just out of luck for my trip next month, or is this available somewhere I haven't looked?

my understanding is that currently there is no 3rd party adaptor at all for the macbooks and macbook pros....
I have heard you can get a power inverter hower...a device that plugs into the seat and basically gives you a regular 3 pronged outlet and you plug the MB's adaptor into that

Hmm. I had never heard of a power inverter, but did a little searching online and found that the Kensington Ultra Portable Power Inverter 150 is listed on apple.com as being compatible with the MacBook, and there are a few reviews from people who have successfully used it with them on planes - I think I will give it a shot. Thanks!

pretty cludgy I know...but might just work :)

I use an inverter for my macbook pro, and it works with one caveat: The laptop must be fully charged before startup. Apparently none of the inverters have the necessary juice to power a pro while charging the battery.

I think I read that this isn't an issue with the regular macbook.

Alas I do not have a macbook or a pro :(
But from what I hear....
you can use a MacBook (regular) charger with the pro...and it knows not to try and charge the battery, just provide power...then if you sleep it, it will charge the battery.
However, if you use the regular pro adaptor it will try and do both, which doesnt work and the battery actually drains. So you have to remove the battery when using the inverter.

I have a MacBook Pro 17in. There are currently no 3rd party adapters available for the MacBook line yet. You can use an inverter that will sometimes work depending on the wattage allowance. Your best best is to actually remove the battery and then plug in using only the aircrafts power. With the battery in, it will usually trip the circuit and not allow usage.

I have a MacBook Pro 17", and it does not work on Empower with the Kensington Power Inverter.

I have been battling Kensington's alleged customer service in downtown Bangalore for a week now, trying to get them to (1) undertstand it does not work, and (2) explain why.

Examples of answer:

"I wish to inform you that, the Ultra Portable Power Inverter 150 (33362) is compatible with the empowered socket."

"I wish to inform you that, the Ultra Portable Power Inverter 150 (33362) is compatible with the MacBook Pro 17."

Well, thank you very much.

There's only one solution currently available for the MacBook:

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL....8.25.7.11.0.3

The Kensington 150-watt power inverter?

(available under Apple Store - Mac Accessories - Portable Gear)

http://store.apple.com/1-800-MY-APPL...lm=TH995LL%2FA

We actually use our Targus PAPWR005U (about $60) with our Macbook and it works just fine. Doesn't work at all with my Macbook Pro though.

That's because there is a 10-15 watt difference between the two machines. You have to turn everything off (bluetooth, airport) on the MacBook Pro and probably remove the battery. It might work then.

Amazing to me that Apple releases a "pro" level laptop with this obvious issue and limitation. I'll be holding onto my current 15" PB until this gets resolved.

For those interested, this guy is building custom adapters:
http://www.mikegyver.com/ideas/gyverisms/index.html

Yes, I know why it doesn't work and those suggestions didn't work for me. I'm just going to trade up when the newer low power models come out maybe next month.