I bought the 175 watt Enercell inverter for $68 plus tax at a Radio Shack in Boulder City, November 2011. It is a great travel charger and works well, powering everything I use; MacBook Pro, Sony digital camera, cell phone... one at a time. This morning, while warming up the car for a drive to Twenty Nine Palms from the campsite in Joshua Tree NP, I could not get the charging light to change to amber. I had that feeling of dread I get when I am confronted with malfunctioning technology. But I recalled that the charging system of the MacBook Pro is temperature and humidity sensitive, so the owners guide foretold.... I did have a charging failure while camping during an afternoon of 70-80 percent humidity in August of 2011.
It was only about 5o degrees F, even in my tent and the metal casing of the computer was icy to the touch. I unplugged the charger, turned on the heater and drove to McDonald's in 29 Palms. I reconnected the inverter/charger system and the charging light immediately turned amber, all good. That pile of notices and advisories Apple packs in with the computers is not just to add weight to the box. Temperature and high humidity will cause your Apple battery charging system to fail but not forever.
So the Enercell 175 watt inverter is still working very well, some noisy moments, maybe a period of cooling fan cycling but not continuously. It charges the battery in the MacBook Pro back up from red/dead in a 2 hour drive.
I really like the Chevy Silverado 1500 power points. They even work with the engine turned off. And there is a sensor that shuts the system down if the car battery is in danger of running low. Are all cars like this now? I know, where have I been all these years?
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