Apple to Provide Refunds for Faulty Powerbook, iBook Adapters

By Michael Santo
Editor-in-Chief, RealTechNews

Another lawsuit, more cash out of Apple’s pockets. I wrote earlier about the credit being offered to Canadian owners of older iPods. This case involves faulty power adapters for Powerbooks and iBooks.

A class-action suit, filed in 2006, alleged that Apple misrepresented problems with the power adapters. In 2001, Apple recalled about 570,000 adapters sold with PowerBooks after reports of overheating and sparking.

In court filings, plaintiffs said “the adapter dangerously frays, sparks and prematurely fails to work.”

Apple will pay customers who bought replacements made by Apple or a 3rd party $25 - $79 depending on the cost of the item. It’s unclear as to whether or not you’ll need a receipt, and since it’s been some time since this all happened, it’s unclear if that would truly be fair anyway.

The settlement, which was granted preliminary approval by U.S. District Court Judge James Ware on March 24th, still requires final approval. A hearing on final approval is scheduled for September 8th.