Apple makes some of the best power adapters in the world – they are compact, convenient and for the most part incredibly durable. I’ve had the displeasure of dealing with the power supplies of other computer manufacturers too (seriously HP, what are you thinking!) and it only reaffirms my belief that Apple has created something almost perfect.
The convenience of being able to disconnect the long power cord and plug the power brick directly into the wall is pure genius and saves a ton of space in your laptop bag when travelling. The only issue I have is that the power brick sticks out so far from the wall that it’s precarious at best, plus it can become loose and disconnect if the outlet doesn’t have a firm hold on the prongs of the adapter.a
Thankfully the Blockhead from Ten One Design solves this problem in an incredibly elegant and simple way. For $19.95 you get a new dongle design that allows your MacBook, MacBook Pro or iPad power adapter to plug-in flush against any surface. Instead of being nearly 4″ thick you can plug-in your computer with as little as 1.2″ of space. Super convenient if you have an outlet behind a piece of furniture or other inaccessible area.
The only downside I see, and I’m 100% sure why Apple designed their dongle the way they did, is that the prongs can’t be slid back into the adapter when not in use. This is a small price to pay for the extra convenience that the Blockhead dongle brings, plus Apple’s original dongle still works if you want to use it.
The Blockhead should work with older models of Apple’s power adapter too since the design of the power brick itself hasn’t changed much since the dual USB iBook in 2001.
This isn’t a paid review (because we don’t do those), nor is it an endorsement, and we’re not making any money off this article. We just think it’s a pretty awesome idea. It looks pretty cool too.
