[z2amiller]

With some of the first magsafe-based macs, I was buying a new power adapter every three months or so. The cord would fray at the end of the way-too-small strain relief between the magsafe connector and the cord. I had one nearly catch on fire (melted a bunch of the plastic covering) when it wore enough that it shorted. I figured that this was the recurring part of the 'Apple tax'.

To be fair though, in the last couple years the connectors have gotten much better - I think they extended the strain relief collar so that it does not get bent at as sharp of an angle. Also the new unibody macs have a 90-degree magsafe connector which eliminates a lot of the strain. (Unfortunately I think it is also a less safe design - it takes much more force to disengage the magnets at most angles where the cord would actually get pulled)