I just bought a “Fry-Daddy” deep fryer with a magnetic plug. First time I’ve ever seen one. Good idea though, for a deep fryer.
I thought the advantage to the tip/sleeve type power connector was the sleeve (ground) makes contact first, discharging any possible static build up.
I thought this was going to be about the giant brick (transformer) in the middle of the cord. Why does my “portable” device require an adaptor that takes up nearly as much space in my backpack?
Although used for guitar cords for a long time, the 1/4" phone plug originated as a plug for old telephone switchboard cables. It was adapted to musical instruments probably to avoid reinventing the wheel, not necessarily because it is the best possible solution.
This was a famous complaint about iPods when consumers discovered that at the end of the service life of the battery, it was impossible (or at least very difficult) to replace it. Someone made a video rant about this some years ago to try to shame Apple into changing the design or offering battery replacement service. In contrast, my Galaxy S3 has an easily replaceable battery. I never understood why Apple insists on an integrated battery that is not consumer serviceable.
The complaint isn’t about the battery per se but that it’s not designed to be replaceable.
You have to convert the power, no way around it, unless you carry a battery that’s even bigger than the adapter. The “brick” in a desktop is inside the case. Would you rather have the brick built into your laptop? And these things have batteries–people often use them without lugging the adapter around everywhere.
There was supposed to be a questionmark in (transformer) in that post because I don’t know what you actually call them.
What I mean is, “why does it have to be so large?” My microwave uses DC power and doesn’t require a whacking great brick to convert power. So do my TV and all sorts of other gadgets. The only other devices I have with mid-cord converters are my computer speakers and my Wii.
A design patent has to be non-functional.
And for some reason the latest Apple power cords are the stick out straight kind. The right angle cord had been phased out.
I have an old Gateway laptop that has a 90 degree bend in the male connector of the cord. I think it was made in about 2003.
What makes you think they don’t need a great big brick? Microwaves and TVs do indeed have big transformers. The question is not whether you’re going to have a big brick transformer; it’s whether you’re going to make the brick easily removable. Laptops are often used unplugged, so they made the bricks removable for them. Microwaves are not, so they didn’t bother.
The right angle cord had a lot of torsional stress, which caused a lot of them to sort of unwrap the cable at the connector end. I had two of them die that way, and Apple replaced both of them immediately, which tells you how common that was (if you know Apple’s policies on warranty replacements!).
I suppose that makes sense - but why does my Wii (and every other game system I’ve owned) have a brick?
Does KR actually use a cord? I thought wireless was the norm.
For the Wii, it’s to give the console the appearance of being smaller than it actually is. For some reason, Nintendo loves to make its consoles as tiny as possible. The power brick on my Nintendo GameCube was only slightly smaller than the GameCube itself.
For a big honker like the Xbox One, it’s probably to prevent the console from being any huger than it already is. 
It takes about 5 minutes to replace an iPhone battery. You can buy the screwdriver for $6 on the internet, and a battery for $25 or so.
I’m happy to take a few extra minutes and pay a few extra dollars once every few years in exchange for not having a bulky door on my phone. And most people won’t ever need to switch it out.
It’s all about design tradeoffs.
I don’t know about Keith Specifically. I know some professional musicians prefer cords. Heres a discussion on that. Companding is an interesting topic.
Heck, vintage tube amps are still very highly prized.
A lot of the electric water kettles out here in Japan also have a magnetic plug, as another bit of anecdata.