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Show HN: Building a Military Spec MacBook Air Case with Long Life Battery

10 points by jrobertfox 13y ago

thuuuomas 13y ago
"Military Spec MacBook Air" is my new favorite oxymoron.
- Samuel_Michon 13y ago
  Military Spec MacBook Air case. During use, it’s the external battery and power supply that are very well protected, not the computer itself. The MacBook Air is hardly a Toughbook (of course, a Toughbook is also 3 times as heavy).
  - johnbellone 13y ago
    I had trouble seeing where it actually houses the MacBook Air? In the first photo it looks like the battery and custom power-charging cable. There does not seem to be much clearance for the lid of the Pelican case if you put the MacBook on top.
    - jrobertfox 13y ago
      there is a very slim slot above the battery and charger, that holds the closed laptop. When it's all close everything is quite well protected.
    - Samuel_Michon 13y ago
      It looks to me that the biggest cut-out is exactly the size of a 13" MBA. The computer also isn’t very deep, 0.4" on average.
- stackcollision 13y ago
  This is exactly what i thought. Really cool build, but if you're going mil-spec, shouldn't you have chosen a more rugged-looking computer? With the macbook air it kind of reminds me of a Volkswagen on a jacked up monster truck chassis. My T61 would look badass in this, though.
Samuel_Michon 13y ago
> My [MacBook] Air usually lasts about 4 or 5 hours with full brightness and the wifi turned on What are you doing that depletes the battery so fast? I have a 2012 13" MacBook Air which lasts 8-9 hours. My typical use is: display set to 50% brightness, WiFi turned on, mostly using Adobe CC apps.
- jrobertfox 13y ago
  I think those numbers are full brightness. Maybe 2012 is better, this was mid 2011.
  - Samuel_Michon 13y ago
    Ah yes, that does matter. My 2012 MBA has a better battery life than the 2011 MBA, and this year’s MBAs in turn have way better battery life than my MBA. It also matters a great deal whether you have the 11" or the 13" model (which has way better battery life). http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook-air/macbook-air-faq/macbook-air-mid-2011-real-world-battery-life-core-i5-core-i7.html http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook-air/macbook-ai...
- dagw 13y ago
  The 13" has a lot better battery life than the 11" and the 2012 has a lot better battery than the 2011. I get 3-4 hours out of my 11" 2011 MBA.
chiph 13y ago
Tip for soldering the milspec connectors. Slide your heatshrink tubing over the end of the wire. Strip the insulation from the wire so that the copper will bottom out in the connector cup, with about 1/16" (1-1.5mm) left bare beyond the end of the cup. Clean the wire with some alcohol & a cotton wipe, taking the opportunity to twist the strands back together. Tin the wire with your solder. Use a large paperclip or tweezers to prevent heat transfer that might melt the insulation. Locking forceps can work if you bend the handle so that the jaws don't crush the wire. Once the wire cools, coat it with a thin layer of flux. Then cut a length of solder to fit into the connector cup. Insert the tinned wire next to the solder strip and heat the cup. At the exact moment when the strip of solder melts and blends with the tinned wire, rock the wire away from, and then back down against the back of the cup, and remove heat. Hold it still while it cools. Slide the heatshrink over the connector and shrink it with a heat gun. Don't use a lighter - it chars the insulation and you'll have to start over. Most hair dryers don't get hot enough (darn safety rules!)
sigkill 13y ago
>dropped a glass of water on the case, and Okay, so that sucks. >razor sharp shards of glass ricocheted Welp, you literally dropped a glass glass of water. Good lord, that's scary on a naked computer. This is a pretty awesome hack. >(Be sure to get your finger partially in front of the lens while documenting this.) Why does he say this? I don't understand. I have another question. What is the present status of taking something like this on-board an airplane? Is the extended battery likely to raise alarm at the carry-in security section?
- jrobertfox 13y ago
  oh lol, it's cause i had my figure in front of the lens in one of the pictures i took. We had no problems, sending it through the airplane, i snuck a peek at the x-ray cause i wanted to see what the battery looked like. Just a bunch of cells.
ChuckMcM 13y ago
Pretty cool, the other change I would suggest would be munging one of those plugs that can morph into any sort of wall plug [1] (they sell them in airport shops) so you end up with a charging cable that can plug into anything. [1] Something like this: http://www.isplc2006.org/b2b/graphite/5/universal_plug_adapter_203.html http://www.isplc2006.org/b2b/graphite/5/universal_plug_adapt... I've got a round shaped one with a "Fuji" logo on the side I got at Heathrow I believe.
- jrobertfox 13y ago
  That's a good idea, especially because the charger is duel voltage.

10 points by jrobertfox 13y ago

thuuuomas 13y ago

"Military Spec MacBook Air" is my new favorite oxymoron.

Samuel_Michon 13y ago
Military Spec MacBook Air case. During use, it’s the external battery and power supply that are very well protected, not the computer itself. The MacBook Air is hardly a Toughbook (of course, a Toughbook is also 3 times as heavy).
- johnbellone 13y ago
  I had trouble seeing where it actually houses the MacBook Air? In the first photo it looks like the battery and custom power-charging cable. There does not seem to be much clearance for the lid of the Pelican case if you put the MacBook on top.
  - jrobertfox 13y ago
    there is a very slim slot above the battery and charger, that holds the closed laptop. When it's all close everything is quite well protected.
  - Samuel_Michon 13y ago
    It looks to me that the biggest cut-out is exactly the size of a 13" MBA. The computer also isn’t very deep, 0.4" on average.
stackcollision 13y ago
This is exactly what i thought. Really cool build, but if you're going mil-spec, shouldn't you have chosen a more rugged-looking computer? With the macbook air it kind of reminds me of a Volkswagen on a jacked up monster truck chassis. My T61 would look badass in this, though.

Samuel_Michon 13y ago

> My [MacBook] Air usually lasts about 4 or 5 hours with full brightness and the wifi turned on What are you doing that depletes the battery so fast? I have a 2012 13" MacBook Air which lasts 8-9 hours. My typical use is: display set to 50% brightness, WiFi turned on, mostly using Adobe CC apps.

jrobertfox 13y ago
I think those numbers are full brightness. Maybe 2012 is better, this was mid 2011.
- Samuel_Michon 13y ago
  Ah yes, that does matter. My 2012 MBA has a better battery life than the 2011 MBA, and this year’s MBAs in turn have way better battery life than my MBA. It also matters a great deal whether you have the 11" or the 13" model (which has way better battery life). http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook-air/macbook-air-faq/macbook-air-mid-2011-real-world-battery-life-core-i5-core-i7.html http://www.everymac.com/systems/apple/macbook-air/macbook-ai...
dagw 13y ago
The 13" has a lot better battery life than the 11" and the 2012 has a lot better battery than the 2011. I get 3-4 hours out of my 11" 2011 MBA.

chiph 13y ago

Tip for soldering the milspec connectors. Slide your heatshrink tubing over the end of the wire. Strip the insulation from the wire so that the copper will bottom out in the connector cup, with about 1/16" (1-1.5mm) left bare beyond the end of the cup. Clean the wire with some alcohol & a cotton wipe, taking the opportunity to twist the strands back together. Tin the wire with your solder. Use a large paperclip or tweezers to prevent heat transfer that might melt the insulation. Locking forceps can work if you bend the handle so that the jaws don't crush the wire. Once the wire cools, coat it with a thin layer of flux. Then cut a length of solder to fit into the connector cup. Insert the tinned wire next to the solder strip and heat the cup. At the exact moment when the strip of solder melts and blends with the tinned wire, rock the wire away from, and then back down against the back of the cup, and remove heat. Hold it still while it cools. Slide the heatshrink over the connector and shrink it with a heat gun. Don't use a lighter - it chars the insulation and you'll have to start over. Most hair dryers don't get hot enough (darn safety rules!)

sigkill 13y ago

>dropped a glass of water on the case, and Okay, so that sucks. >razor sharp shards of glass ricocheted Welp, you literally dropped a glass glass of water. Good lord, that's scary on a naked computer. This is a pretty awesome hack. >(Be sure to get your finger partially in front of the lens while documenting this.) Why does he say this? I don't understand. I have another question. What is the present status of taking something like this on-board an airplane? Is the extended battery likely to raise alarm at the carry-in security section?

jrobertfox 13y ago
oh lol, it's cause i had my figure in front of the lens in one of the pictures i took. We had no problems, sending it through the airplane, i snuck a peek at the x-ray cause i wanted to see what the battery looked like. Just a bunch of cells.

ChuckMcM 13y ago

Pretty cool, the other change I would suggest would be munging one of those plugs that can morph into any sort of wall plug [1] (they sell them in airport shops) so you end up with a charging cable that can plug into anything. [1] Something like this: http://www.isplc2006.org/b2b/graphite/5/universal_plug_adapter_203.html http://www.isplc2006.org/b2b/graphite/5/universal_plug_adapt... I've got a round shaped one with a "Fuji" logo on the side I got at Heathrow I believe.

jrobertfox 13y ago
That's a good idea, especially because the charger is duel voltage.