Standardize Power Cables for Laptops

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28090

Standardize Power Cables for Laptops

28090 points posted to Accessories (Keyboards, etc.), Laptops by badblood 08/27/07 **UNDER REVIEW**

Nothing is more annoying than laptop power cables that are not interchangeable from one computer model to another or from one brand of computer to another. Power cables have been standardized on most electrical applicances, including desktop computers for decades.

Make an effort to promote and implement standard power cables for laptops.

Please see dawn_l's comments below.

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amri64 08/27/07	Agree. The computer, albeit multifunctional, is just another electrical appliance. I'm all for standardizing.
sophins 08/28/07	Most laptops and batteries use different power rating. You can't just plug a 24v cord to a 19v power laptop.
amri64 08/28/07	This idea can go hand-in-hand with another (elsewhere in the labyrinth of Dell IdeaStorm) i.e. standard batteries (perhaps off-the-shelf, even)
grinser 08/29/07	at least use magnetic power connectors like apple does!
limulus 08/29/07	sophins: Dell could standardize on a particular voltage for future computers or create standard plugs for specific voltages (e.g. a standardized rounded plug for 19V and a standardized square plug for 24V). No one is asking for reverse-compatibility. The engineers are the ones best suited to figure out the technical aspect of this sort of thing; getting the other major OEMs onboard would be good too. Everyone remember the bad-old-days before USB? I vote to promote this idea! :)
badblood 08/29/07	thank you limulus outstanding response!
james_g 08/29/07	As far as standardized ac ports, we design them to be unique to Dell for a couple reasons: 1. We want to sell them so we make the money, not a 3rd party 2. Safety (see reason below in the batteries) 3. Because we want only the exact amount of power going to the system as what should be regulated between our motherbooard and our AC adapter, some systems are very sensitive to irregularities in voltage and if a customer calls us with a fried board because they used a 3rd party AC adapter we have to tell them they're out of luck as the problem was caused by non dell standardized parts As far as standardized batteries goes, check out the incidents where people's laptops caught on fire. With the exception of one, the customer had bought a 3rd party battery instead of one from Dell directly and it caused an overheat/spark which set the system ablaze. The one that was a Dell battery had something else wrong with it and it should have been serviced long before the event occured to prevent the fire. James Gray Dell Resolution Expert Center
badblood 08/30/07	Hi James, To your points 1) Dell would still sell/manufacture/distribute standardized cables. So you would still make money. 2) Safety is not Dell's middle name - case of exploding computers. Anyway safety of such products are governed by the State not Dell 3) The problem with most of the cables is not the voltage which on almost all is the same, it is that the plugs simply are not interchangeable. So you could have two adapters with the exact same specs and you can't use them. There is nothing especially unique about Dell cables except that you can't use them on other computers. Ditto for all the other manufacturers. Anyway it's all pretty moot. There is nothing more than greed that prevents Dell from making this so..... Badblood Dell Ideastorm Expert Volunteer
grinser 08/30/07	@badblood: to be fair, not only dell has this policy...
badblood 08/30/07	You are absolutely correct grinser, but only Dell has Ideastorm in which to give them ideas.
james_g 08/30/07	LOL, I actually work for Dell so I have to add that. The admins might have something to say about you adding that to your name. James Gray Dell Resolution Expert Center
badblood 08/31/07	I want a union card. Do you have unions in Dell?
grinser 08/31/07	@james: we are in the internet - anyone can write anything under their names... but its great to see dell people here talking to us - now they only have to put the ideas into reality :P
peyre 09/06/07	Merged Idea originally posted 08/31/07 Standardize laptop power supplies It would be helpful if Dell would, as much as possible, standardize the power supplies for its laptops--so you could use one supply with many different models. If my wife and I had Dell laptops of different versions, and one of us left a power supply at home, we could swap back and forth while on the road, and use both computers simultaneously. Similarly, if my old laptop dies and I ordered a new one, I'd now have a backup power supply.
dell_admin1 09/06/07	Changed status to UNDER REVIEW.
jdelidc 09/06/07	cool
sophins 09/08/07	I think dell can design a power supply that is standard to dell but would also work with all dell laptop using a type of id system for the power supply. ex. if the power supply detect like a 100 ohm on the signal line it would give out 19v if it detect 1k resistor it would give out 24v. So, I think dell can make this work. I don't know how to change my choice to promote. I would like to promote this.
sophins 09/08/07	Also, it would be nice to have a quick connect like mac power mag. Especially, small laptop(ex. XPS M1330) make wife always trip over my laptop power cord and my laptop would fly off the table.
madie 09/12/07	IMHO standards are always good, and having a laptop power supply standards body similar to USB-IF would be great. As far as making money is concerned, I would think that by promoting a standards body Dell would gain some invaluable publicity. BTW I also like the magnetic power connectors used by apple.
slateslate 09/18/07	So I received a new Vostro 1400....accepts both the PA-10 and PA-12. Thanks Dell. Happy that Dell didn't decide to use a PA-14 for the Vostro. Cheers.
kwifler 09/20/07	yay, do it dudes
james_g 09/20/07	I think several future systems are going to move forward with this type of idea, however we would ask that you please be patient as some of these system boards, etc would have to be redesigned to accomodate the same connector. If I get more info on this that's publicly available I will follow up with this post on where to see it. James Gray Dell Resolution Expert Center
jdelidc 09/20/07	where's your dell logo?
badblood 09/21/07	an impostor! dell_admin1, when you've finished stalking jorge, we have an impostor here! Mr. James Gray. Sounds like a Bollywood name to me.... Badblood Dell Expert Volunteer Ideastorm
dell_admin1 09/24/07	@jdelidc and badblood - James Gray is in fact a Dell employee. He is sharing his own opinion here, and that's why he doesn't have a Dell logo. Only those with Dell logos speak on behalf of the company, and you can be sure that their comments are factual and updated. But I hope you all will welcome James to the conversation, but remember that he is sharing his own opinion, not the company's plans or positions.
jdelidc 09/24/07	aahhh. i see. hi james, welcome to ideastorm
estero 09/25/07	Perhaps there is some merit to a USB concept for power adapters. There could be plug-and-play like communication between the computer and the power adapter to set the appropriate power settings.
limulus 09/25/07	estero: USB wouldn't be the right standard for supplying power to a laptop unless you could get it working with 5 volts and in less than 2.5 Watts, which is not at all likely :)
jdelidc 09/25/07	even if they could, you can never have ENOUGH usb ports. stuff already takes turns on my computer
stijepan 09/28/07	Maybe is a good idea, universal power supply. It's a lot of work, but users would be very happy to know that they can use any Ac adapter
badblood 10/01/07	Hello James. I've got my eye on you....keep it clean.
estero 10/02/07	limulus, you are right that the USB standard would not be right for suppling power to a laptop. And, I was not trying to make that a recommendation. All I was suggesting is the USB CONCEPT of plug-and-play could potentially be incorporated into the power adapter under a universal new standard. The concept I had in mind was a laptop with the capability to sense a power cord being plugged in and then sending a signal to the power adapter telling it how to set its power settings.
limulus 10/03/07	estero: Interesting! Though it might be better (in terms of hardware simplicity) to standardize on just a few voltages (or even a single one).
phil168 10/31/07	In general it would be good to know precisely which power supplies could be used with which laptops: For example I have a D830 and my wife has a 1420n---the voltages are the same but the power is different, so her power supply is much smaller. However it works with my computer (with a warning that the battery will take longer to charge)---for small trips its fantastic to be able to take the smaller (and lighter) power supply.
emil357 11/01/07	standardized laptop cables are my idea of heaven.
polyzelf 11/08/07	"The concept I had in mind was a laptop with the capability to sense a power cord being plugged in and then sending a signal to the power adapter telling it how to set its power settings. " AC Adapters are already expensive enough for customers to be angry when they have to purchase one.
zgamer 11/09/07	Bump. I have three different Dell laptops and three different styled power cords, does anyone know how annoying this is? In a business perspective streamlining to a single Power Adapter interface and wattage cuts down on costs. The downside is not in terms of connector style but the wattage, possibly make a slightly higher wattage power adapter and the laptop only uses what it needs, so the lower 65watt platform works on the same adapter as the 90watt platform.
rach 11/10/07	I like the power plug that is on the XPS M1330 i hope that they leave that alone.
badblood 11/11/07	this idea isn't really 'under review' is it....
dwood 11/11/07	i doubt it. its votes are probably all decayed......
karolina 11/27/07	I thing this idea is good, because the same power cables of personal computers, which was made by different producer, would faciliate work for all consumers. Maybe this is hardly realizable. It also would relief seller's work.
dwood 11/28/07	It would make life easirer for tone of people, no doubt
xivulon 11/29/07	Power connectors on Dell laptops are generally of poor quality, I had several laptops where the power connector desoldered from the motherboard. Please consider addressing this issue at the same time.
jdelidc 11/29/07	yes. that would really suck
nsenman 12/02/07	I totally agree. I have a Dell D620 (Business) and my girlfriend has a Dell m710 two great laptops, and then I order the m1330 for entertaining usage. I find that the power cord on the m1330 is not the same type of connection as the the first two. It would be great if I could use all PCs with the same connector.
jasondunn 12/03/07	Great idea! I understand all the reasons why Dell wouldn't have an industry-wide power adapter, but there's no good reason why Dell shouldn't have a Dell Standard power adapter across all their laptops. I bought an M1330 recently and it's incredibly frustrating that neither of my external batteries will work with it because the M1330 uses a different adapter tip than other Dell laptops. One tip to rule them all I say!
james_g 12/11/07	I apologize for not having responded to the commments regarding me sooner. I ahve been neglecting talking on any forums for a while and was recently reminded that they exist, lol. Thank you for those that welcomed me to the conversation and @badblood: I think it wouldn't be prudent for me to say something that wasn't clean James Gray Dell Resolution Expert Center
amirmalek 12/15/07	i agree and i think companies can cooperate to have similar power cables which results in lower costs like what some cellphone manufacturers tried to do (have common chargers for all brands)
clarjon1 12/18/07	I agree with this. This would also probably reduce the number of incorrectly shipped replacement adapters, if they all used the same adapter, or at least the same adapter for the model series... Just my 2 cents worth :)
petzymathuram 12/18/07	"Just my 2 cents worth :) " this statement belongs to EpiC ERC...Explain with reference to context as in English Prose...;)
dwood 12/18/07	WTC. I hate Great Expectations shivers
petzymathuram 12/19/07	Hi dwood do you like Prose or poetry? or short stories?. ...;) I love "Secret Seven"....thrills....;), Shakespeare's .....Romantic, wordworth's.....poetic, Mark Twain's....short stories
soul Jan 3	Make the device and power supply universal, and besides that cuts down the cost.
davidp Jan 16	@all that support unified PSU Let's have a look at two customer outlooks shall we. One is the forever traveling guy who can't stand a brick in his laptop handbag, the lighter the better. He can survive without a CD/DVD drive, has a 3 inches mouse and a 13" screen to save weight. At the other hand of the spectrum you have the "me" type who own an XPS gen2 which has a 17" screen that weight in itself 5# and can't care less to get backaches as long he has the housepower to drive whatever application he has to drive when he needs them. Obviously an XPS gen2 requires more VAC than a lighter notebook (and the PSU is a brick in itself) while customer A won't stand such a heavy PSU. Ya the magical silver bullet would be nice but let's face it, it's not realistic.
vardanian Jan 19	What about power over usb ;-) yep, thanx
jdelidc Jan 19	eventually i think they will be able to. but 1500mA at 5 volts only comes out to like 7 watts. and i think i'm OVER estimating on something
badblood Feb 6	Lenovo today announced its new ThinkPad and IdeaPad 90W slim AC/DC combo adapter, the company's first all-in-one adapter designed to charge other electronic devices such as most cell phones and PDAs; and many mobile music devices (using optional connector tips.) At about a half-inch thick and 33 percent smaller than Lenovo's previous combo adapter, it's roughly the size of a deck of playing cards – small enough to easily fit into a shirt pocket. Match that Dell!
infinitelink Feb 14	Another point that could be considered here is to stop putting a "brick" in the middle of a cable...the cords begin to break and the weight messes with the cable at times. It would be better to shrink the bricks and put them near the plug (so I guess REALLY shrink).
laxboy10 Feb 24	Atleast all dells sould have the same power adapter. I know a lot of them are basiclly the same thing 90watts and fit in most laptops. Itshould be marketed as a universal dell charger for all systems made in 2008 and on.
getamac Feb 28	The Dell laptop power adapters are still relatively large for a portable device. If dell redesigns them they really should work on shrinking the size as much as possible. When you mostly on the road, every inch and pound counts. Something the size of Apples power adapters would be great.
bits Mar 3	two thoughts: 1. Assuming that a standard is adopted by most laptop manufacturers, stop offering bricks with every laptop sale (and optionally paint the bricks green or make them "neat" enough for people to want a non-knockoff). People will actually be able to reuse their bricks across brands, having a possible positive effect on landfills / trash. No need for an offset of global impact, actually do something... Marketing can step in here... 2. Here is an opportunity to standardize using quality components... Have a standard rating / quality factors that must be met to get the "seal of approval". This helps eliminate the problems caused by knockoffs. Promote it so that users are aware of the commitment by Dell and the proper safety for their product... Now it's an opportunity for Dell to sell their bricks to a larger market... Capitalism comes to mind...
mal2000 Apr 3	I vote to demote this one.......If you plug a IBM power cable into a Dell or visa versa, and the system fries, you just voided your service contract. when I travel I only carry one laptop, I also have all dells, which all use the same adapter.
lukemcurley Apr 13	The power bricks are also huge, I mean massive. Look at Apple MacBook and MacBook Pro laptops and how compact their power bricks are. Not only small, they also include a very innovative cable wrap system, not the silly rubber band that comes with Dell laptops (although better then the velcrow). Main thing is the size of the Dell laptop power bricks. Also the length of the flex, currently on an Inspiron 1520 (Ireland/UK) I have a three pin plug attached to a 3ft flex, then the power brick, then 6ft flex to the laptop. This results in the brick often hanging from the wall, or not reaching a table and the brick is left hanging off the table, or similar instances, I am sure other user have similar stories. So the solution, gives us 9ft of flex and place the power brick onto the plug directly. For international users the plugs should be able to click on and off the brick directly.
tad1214 Apr 19	I say merge this with the mag cord connector. Make it a standardized mag connector. Have maybe 3 variants? A low profile low power for the ultra slims. Mid power, mid size for the typical consumer laptops. and a large power larger connector for the Ultra Performance laptops. Even a regular and a high out put would be just fine, skipping the ultra slims. No point in carrying a larger converter capable of supporting ~130+ watts for a little stripped down m1330. But having it completely universal would stop the M1730 from being able to run at 130 watts or whatever it currently uses.
hencoffee Apr 24	Sony will say no way!
jdelidc Apr 24	so. dell is allowed to discontinue a boat load of their power cables
sin Apr 28	This would save my next laptop from what happened to my former laptop.
gordonmcdowell Apr 28	estero's mention of USB matched my original desire, although I can certainly appreciate the mini not supplying enough power. Is there any other emerging standard that is being overlooked? I honestly don't care WHAT the standard is, just so long as I can use various sized dell laptops and not need to transport power supplies with the laptop every time. I'd like to populate my work and home with 1 type of supply. Then take any dell home (just the laptop itself). This experience is possible with PDAs, the mini-usb making it possible for me to never again worry about finding a charger... there's one everywhere I could possibly take my mobile. I don't see how Dell can achieve this experience given varying power requirements, but it is the experience I'd like to have. (Given that my office owns tons of Dells and I myself own a Dell).
diggaddict Apr 30	Better yet - do away with all that and adopt the GreenPlug standard ( www.greenplug.us ) - ONE plug standard to rule them all. GreenPlug uses a microprocessor in its power supply to ASK the device how much power it needs and supply that, and when its not needing power - turn OFF the power! www.greenplug.us !!
thamlyn May 10	I agree with diggadict. Engadget has a good overview of GreenPlug and it' challenges/hopes. (http://www.engadget.com/2008/05/10/swtched-on-green-plug-tries-to-replace-the...)
scott31337 May 20	90% of Del'ls Portables - the Adapter/Power Supply is based on the size of the LCD screen.. 65, 90, 130, 150 watt, etc.. Why burn more electricity then you need?
deskpilot May 21	COPY OF COMMENT FOR DETACHABLE CORD fm Deskpilot If both the OUTLET and LAPTOP cables were replaceable, HUGE Customer savings. With respect to common cables across the system, could a power pack be enabled with a circuit that received a signature from the laptop to which it was plugged in to in order for it to provide the correct pwr to LAPTOP. Essentially, DC cord is two way comm cord W A (AC PWR)>OIOIOI(60Hz)OIOIO [PROGRAMMABLE PACK] <><>(DC PWR)<>[LAPTOP] L ______________________________________________> DC PWR L ______________________________________________< LAPTOP SIGNATURE _______^ DELL COMMON CORD___^COMMON PACK ______^ COMMON CORD
oscar478 Jun 4	Why stop at laptops? I've thought about this a lot lately. I think the whole world of electronic gadgetry could get by with about 3 or 4 AC adapters.... a small one for cell phones, mp3 players, and cameras. A medium voltage one for laptops, camcorders, etc, and a large one for power tools, portable tv's etc. How much environmental waste could we save if people didn't have all these extra adapters around everywhere. And if you really want to take it a step forward, have buildings wired for DC voltage with outlets beside the AC outlets, where people could just plug in with a cord and get the juice they need.
dawn_l Jun 6	All- I spoke with Rocco from our product team and he shared with me more about the power adaptors we use at Dell. I had no idea that we have been using the same power cables (a round barrel-connector) on the vast majority of our notebooks since 2001. In consumer products, we still currently ship approximately 80% of our adapters with these round barrel-connectors. The exceptions, as rach noted, are the XPS M1330 and XPS M1530 adapters. However, virtually all of our current products will accept round barrel-connector adapters. We make an effort to be as “common” as possible with our power solutions while being cost-effective, and will continue to do so in the future, though we expect that products at different ends of the expanding consumer spectrum will need to be evaluated on an individual basis. @badblood As far as "matching" the IdeaPad 90W adapter you mention, there are already other solutions out on the market that support Dell products and many other mobile and computer products. No need to match it, it’s already there. Let me know if there are additional questions. Dawn
dawn_l Jun 6	Changed status to ALREADY OFFERED.
dhart Jun 6	@dawn_l: it's NOT "already there". http://www.allianceforuniversalpower.org. Please reconsider the status change.
badblood Jun 7	well no it's not already offered because a large part of the idea was that Dell would become a beacon of light and make an effort to create industry standards, and standardize across OEMs..... And even you admit there are exceptions in your own product line, so it is quite definately not 'already offered'. I refuse to be victimized by self fulfilling marketing tactics.
thamlyn Jun 8	@dawn_I: this is not already offered. You're looking at from the physical connector. This is BIGGER than that. The idea is everything from the outlet to the female plug in the laptop is standardized. Look at what GreenPlug is doing. That is where we want Dell to go.
dawn_l Jun 9	Changed status to UNDER REVIEW.
dawn_l Jun 9	All- Ok, points taken. Status is changed and I will absolutely share the additional feeback and let you know the response! Dawn
badblood Jun 9	BOING! NOW THAT'S A NEW KINDA DELL.
badblood Jun 9	but it still says 'already offered' in orange.................................................
jackie_c Jun 9	@badblood: Now the tag says under review.
badblood Jun 10	SPOOKY!
rittera4 Jun 10	Standardized cables will be nice, but you cannot forget the fact that different laptops require different amounts of power. For example, a DELL Inspiron 1501 requires 60 watts of power while the new DELL Inspiron 1520 requires 90 watts of power. It would be more challenging to standardize power cords for EVERY laptop because every one is used differently and require different power settings.
badblood Jun 11	I think the only thing that really needs standardization is the plug that goes in the computer.
thamlyn Jun 11	@badblood: The plug that goes into the computer is just part of it. You can have the same plug deliver different power, potentially damaging the computer. That's why GreenPlug's idea is awesome. It takes into account the plug going into the device, the adapter, and the power and standardizes them all.
badblood Jun 12	I cut the plug off a think pad charger and swapped it with a HP plug. Both computers run on the same voltage so no problem there. Now I have a nice power supply for my HP. The HP brick was about the same size as the computer.
jurijt Jun 15	I highly recomend that you consider skipping this step and make your chargers universal for all devices with Green Plug! http://www.greenplug.us/ This would make much more sense in the long run.
danialgibson Jun 16	Greenplug would be great. if not that, then have a few different bricks for the different laptop voltages and color code them. If I buy a laptop with a blue brick and you've got a blue brick, then I could use yours. If you've got a red brick then I can't use it. Different color brick and a different plug. Then make it super easy - all inspirons use a blue brick, all latitudes use a red brick, for example.
jvin248 Jun 24	Yeah! made promotion number 24,000 on this topic! While I can appreciate the engineering problems of trying to shrink everything all the time to add more stuff in the box and the resulting mad dash of non-standard bits, laptops overall need to be more standardized. Cables are the most annoying for end-users (this is what they see). I do some refurbishment/repair and the lack of common parts is absurd. Wasn't Intel working on making laptop motherboards and systems with more standardization, or promoting a standardization proposal? And hasn't Dell prided itself on Lean Manufacturing (consulting work that I do) - which is often served by making common sub-systems. This would fit with power cords! How many laptop cable part number/SKUs does Dell have in its parts database? Talk with your Purchasing department and have them calculate the number of dollars tied up in production and service inventory of laptop cables, then calculate warehouse space allocated to all of them, and how many Quality events deal with each variety of cable (launch debug, general defect resolution, etc)?. Even if Dell is purchasing these parts "just as they leave the factory floor" your vendors are carrying this inventory (all the way back to China) and Dell and the end users are paying for it. One of the things to help sell within the Engineering group at Dell is to physically take all the active unique power cables and zip-tie them to a peg board or two or three and carry these boards into your next meeting. Armed with the visual display and the cost numbers someone will take note and help resolve (even for retrofitting older models - like a self-sensing voltage adjustment that might cost a bit more each but system-wide is a huge savings). Good luck!
penguinsa Jun 27	I thought this topic was for something completely different.... Let me tell you a story about a Dell Experience. I bought a Dell laptop overseas- Thailand. This was the ONLY way I could get a Dell with Thai characters on the keyboard (another sore point, but I digress). Anyway, I got the machine back Australia and of course the power plug was now wrong. No problem, called Dell, they offered a FREE Replacement. Nice touch ! BUT- the replacement power cord didn't fit the adapter module (power brick) ! There's an international standard for power connectors, called IEC. However, the Thai power module (and cable) had a totally different configuration. It took 3 tries before Dell sent me NOT JUST a power cable, but an ADAPTER MODULE (Brick) AS WELL, before I was back up and running. Major kudos to Dell for fixing the problem, but a Big Raspberry for non-standardised adapter cabling ON THE MAINS SIDE.
rotthund Jul 2	If power utilization of a laptop was low enough, recharge using USB.
wern0122 Jul 12	Some larger laptops require a big fat brick because they pull so much power. I use a small, low-power, efficient laptop. I like the fact that I only need to carry around a tiny power supply. I wouldn't want to have to carry around a "standard" power supply capable of powering much larger laptops. (Think of the Eee PC - the power supply is as small as a cell-phone charger!)
arhere Jul 16	I hate to be a "nay-sayer" here, but I think this is a bad idea. I am an electrical design engineer and to standardize something like the main input power connector on a market that is pushing for less/more efficient power use, is a bad idea. If you standardize the cable, connector, or pin type/count, you restrict the input voltage, pin-count, and current available to the charging circuit and this can impede improved designs. Without getting into a huge technical discussion here, by voting to standardize power cables you might make it more convenient to charge your laptop, but might be restricting an engineer from designing a charger that can charge that laptop quicker in a newer model. ALSO there is a BIG safety concern there, different charging circuits used different input ratings, such as input voltage. At a different job, a system admin blew up (literally) a nice gateway-switch because he plugged in a 24V AC adapter into a device that required 9V DC, all because the connectors were the same. I would vote that a compromise be made that all chargers DELL uses of the same ratings, (voltage, pins, current capacity) use the same connector, but NEVER make two different power bricks with the same connector, or expect lawsuits!!! -AR
enflorence Jul 23	I like this idea a lot.
hollyberry Jul 27	I don't really see why you have to have a standardized cable. You can't charge more than one laptop at one time anyway, and you probably won't be carrying more than one laptop at a time. The power cords aren't exactly huge either, so even if you are carrying more than one at a time, it isn't really a huge weight on you.
nehal413 Jul 27	Great idea
badblood Jul 30	I am not an electrical engineer and am not interested in problems but solutions.
arhere Aug 1	@badblood Ok, I can understand that. If you where my boss and told me to make this happen, this is how I would do it. I would find a really good connector with a minimal of two power conductors capable of at least 15 amps with 4 separate signal lines. I would then standardize some sort of signal produced by all laptops at a minimal input voltage, say 3 volts. The power adapter would be able to produce 3 to 30 volts DC that defaults to 3 volts initially until it receives a signal back from the laptop telling the brick the desired voltage. The brick then adjusts the output voltage to match requesting signal. This would allow a single power adapter to be used for multiple laptops. @Badblood, as your engineer I would STRONGLY advice against this idea, NOT becasue of engineering challenges but becasue of basic business and manager problems. 1. This adapter would be expensive, and most people probably only own one laptop. 2. A VERY robust standardized signal standard must be developed that is resistant to drift due to age. This is LOTS of R&D because everything degrades with age. It would be horrible for an old laptop to produce a signal that requested the wrong voltage. #1 rule of engineering is don't kill anyone for a fancy blinking light! 3. With #1 and #2, is there a large enough consumer market that actually wants this solution to justify the engineering costs involved? You have to understand as engineers, we have moral as well as technical responsibilities, especially when we start messing with power. -AR

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