I think that more patent applications surface from Apple than any other company. Maybe it's that we only hear about the Apple ones, either way a cool new app has surfaced today that comes from Apple and shows some cool tech that we may be seeing on future Mac computers and notebooks. The patent app shows off a new version of the MagSafe cable, which is one of the coolest things about the MacBook line of notebooks in my opinion.

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The MagSafe cable is familiar to many of us with the design that pops free easily if it's pulled on to keep you from catching the cord and knocking the notebook off a desk. The patent app outlines a new version of the MagSafe connector that provides the juice the notebook needs along with servicing the function of a power cable as well.

The design has a single MagSafe connector that provides power and then runs to a box that has lots of connectivity like a docking station would offer. The line art shows the adapter having an Ethernet port, USB ports, optical ports, and DVI output. One image with the app also shows the MagSafe splitting into a fiber optic cable that would be perfect for Intel's Light Peak that Apple is thought to be launching first.