I thought couldn’t framework maybe make a module that adds a magnetic port with pins for charging and then a cable that is USB c to match the magnetic module?
I saw 2 people here made their own, but would be cool if framework maybe could make their official one and sell it as parts on web store
That way we can buy module and cable and use our 160-240W charger that we already got and that people who want the feel of magsafe version on a framework can get it, instead of using USB C that could rip the laptop down on floor if some 1 accidentaly walk into the cable or trip over it.
With magnetic one it will just disconnect and fall down to floor, while laptop stays on the table.
The history around magnet cables and usb power has generally resulted in fried laptops, when the 240W power accidentally shorts across to one of the data lines.
I think the safest way to solve this would be an adapter that converts the usb-c to a barrel connector, fixed at 48V, thus removing any data lines from the connection. Then have a barrel to magnetic adapter.
But it would be very complex, converting usb-c to 48V barrel and then back to usb-c.
Alternatively, convert all the data lines to optical, but that would be expensive.
Caveat: I don’t have a volta max cable and have not seen any actual evidence that magnetic cables actually can cause damage.
I’m not sure there is/can be a definitive answer as James has noted that his comments aren’t based on personal experience.
I’ve used the older (lower power) Volta magnetic cables without any issue - they are good quality. I also have several of their chargers and am more than happy with these too. If you are concerned, I’d suggest you contact the Volta support team and ask for their advice?
If there have been cases of fried laptops from the use of magnetic cables, then I would suspect these are from people using any number of the no-brand cables from sources like China…there are numerous examples on Amazon that I would totally avoid!
This question of magnetic connectors comes up from time to time.
Don’t do it guys!
There are countless reports of magnetic USB cables killing devices or causing the ports to malfunction. No brand is different.
They just don’t.
Volta has not shown even an attempt at protection.
Volta is exactly the same. They just charge you more, for the privilege of killing your expensive hardware.
For a dead device, and Volta ghosting you, look no further than our own forum here:
What it comes down to, is that USB was not made for this.
People see that Apple had magnetic charging, and think it should be safe with USB too. But internally, Apple’s system is not USB at the connectors. Also, it does not pass data, never has, because it’s just too risky. It’s charging only. And it detects connection and disconnection, something none of the USB magnetic cables do. This helps Apple avoid arcing.
Get a very short USB-C extension cable.
When someone trips over your cable or otherwise jerks it quickly, it pulls out at the connection between main cable & the short one.
You plug the short extension cable into your laptop. So when the whole cable setup is pulled, the short cable is able to bend and allow it’s cable-to-cable connection to be in-line to the pulling force, able to be pulled out. This is what I’ve used for many years. No expensive devices damaged or killed by those magnetic plugs.
Like @MJ1 said and others have pointed out. The idea on paper is vastly different than in practice. If it were much lower power then maybe, but the risk of electrically damaging the USBC ports are too much to risk for the average user.
Simply using a straight connector makes it quite disconnectable if yanked hard enough to move the laptop. The safest scenario is to use it without a tether to an outlet. While that may not be preferred the beauty of Framework’s design is a USBC PD Charger can recharge the battery.
Using a portable power bank takes the risk of the device being yanked off a desk and it doesn’t risk damaging one of the ports on a quite expensive mainboard.
Once the portable power bank is empty; plug that into the wall somewhere and let it recharge instead of risking the $X,XXX laptop because it was tethered to an outlet.
You could do it, with (at least) a few hundred thousand dollars in engineering and manufacturing setup, but nobody has done it so far. No company offering “magnetic usb-c” on Amazon has created anything like Magsafe-3. They don’t have big pogo pins for power, they’re not “power and PD negotiation only”, and I’m guessing Magsafe-3 also has smarter/faster cut-off logic.
Microsoft Surface Pro also have a magnetic power connector, but I think it’s more like Magsafe-2 (permanently attached to the brick, rather than usb-c on the other end). Anyway, there’s a reason that you don’t see this kind of product (for USB-C) from Belkin, Anker, Samsung, or another major brand, it’s because it’s too much safety and damage liability for such a brand. Unless they invest in the Apple Magsafe 3 type of product. But then the laptop side of the adapter will be too bulky, so it won’t be commercially popular enough, unless you integrate that into the laptop, like Apple. Hey, you could easily fit it in a Framework input module - but that market is too small. I guess Samsung could do it for their laptops, but they haven’t. Microsoft did it … but I guess it’s natural to skip generic USB-C PD compatibility to save complexity and cost.
I said that the simple magnetic USB cables and connectors which are already available, are not safe. They kill devices.
In order to do it with some measure of safety, one should follow Apple’s magsafe3 example. Power only, no USB data. Use a wide connector, to spread the pins out. Don’t aim for 240W. Apple currently does 140W, so they’re only dealing with 28v. Ideally, cut power when the connector begins to lift off, but before the power pins break contact. Keep power pins de-energized until it’s properly connected.
