Plugging in – No, Really! :: My First Mac - Help Buying and Getting Started with Your New Mac

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Need to Know:
Power, USB, Display Ports

You May Need These:
FireWire 400, Ethernet, Audio Out Ports

Specialty Ports:
Audio In, FireWire 800, Express Card, TOSLINK

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Plugging in – No, Really!

By: Chris Kerins
Published: Sunday, May 27, 2007
Categories: Getting Started

What's important and what's not; we make sense of all the plugs and connectors on your new Mac.

Your new Mac has at least nine ports (MacBook), and can have up to eighteen (Mac Pro). It's not likely that you will use all of them, so let's find out which ones are really important and what they are used for. I'll list them in order of importance, and what you will likely use them for.

Need to Know

		Power port. Obviously, the power cord is most essential thing to plug in. MacBook and MacBook Pro owners: Don't forget that thicker, three prong white cord that came with your Mac can slide into your power supply to extend the reach of your cord. Green energy saving tip: Plug all your devices into a power strip that you can shut off when through using your Mac. Even when you turn most electronics off, they still draw some power from wall sockets.

		USB 2.0 port. This is the port you will be plugging in and out of more than any other. Most of the other devices that you connect to your Mac will use the USB ports. Devices like your mouse, keyboard, printer, iPod, iPhone, camera, flash drive, scanner, etc. You get the idea. Apple includes more than one on your Mac, but they will not be enough. Expect to buy a USB hub, which are fairly cheap, to multiply your USB ports. Using a hub is actually a nice way to keep your cable clutter away from your nice, pristine new Mac. Also, don't forget to check your Apple Keyboard for more USB ports on it; It's a mini-hub.

		Display port. Another essential port if you have a Mac Pro or Mini. These connect to DVI male plugs attached to a LCD display. If you have a MacBook or iMac, you will need to purchase separately a mini-DVI to DVI adapter for about $25 to connect to another display. Getting another display for your new Mac can span your desktop over two displays, which is a very efficient way to work.

You May Need These

		FireWire 400 Port. Use this to connect to your miniDV video camera to import home video into iMovie. FireWire 400 can also used to connect to external hard drive or another Mac.

		Ethernet Port. Used to connect to networks and the internet if you aren't using your Airport wireless connection. It is faster than wireless if networking speed is a concern.

		Audio Out Port. Plug in your headphones or speakers. If you already bought speakers for your iPod, you may be able to plug them into your Mac to rock the house.

Specialty Ports

		Audio In Port. Used to bring audio into your Mac for recording. If your headphones or speakers aren't working, you probably plugged them into this one by accident. Use this port to plug in your external Microphone.

		FireWire 800. An even faster connection to external hard drives. Used mostly in video production.

		Optical Digital Audio Input and Output TOSLINK Ports (Mac Pro). If you know what these are, you know why you need them.

		Express Card/34 slot (MacBook Pro). A utility slot to expand your Macbook Pro's capabilities with devices that need a high speed connection.

Have something to add? Use the Comment section below to let us know!

DIG DEEPER

Detailed explanations of each port on different Macs from Apple's website

MacBook
MacBook Pro
iMac
Mac Pro
Mac Mini


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Your Comments:

this is great. i was wondering what that funny plug was for. i see it is for the display

does anyone know why my new mac will not let me just unplug USB devices? my old pc was fine with me plugging in and unplugging USB stuff, but my mac gives me an error message

is there a way to turn off the error message?
thanks

Tanner

Tanner
06/11/2007 at 09:10 PM

If it's a flash (Thumb, Jump) or any other kind of drive (iPod) it has to be ejected first. You can do this by dragging the objects icon to the Trash Can in the Dock. It will transform in the "Eject" symbol and safely remove the device.

Daniel Decker
06/12/2007 at 12:01 AM

If I have an external Mic. where can I plug it in? I do not see a Mic input above.

Ted Lamb
06/12/2007 at 07:27 AM

Ted,
Use the Audio In Port (under "Specialty Ports" above) for external Microphones. We updated the article accordingly.

pirco
06/12/2007 at 10:08 AM

Ted,

The 1/8" mini jack can also be adapted to use other analog audio devices. For example: 1/4" (like those for guitars) as well as, XLR (high quality microphones) and RCA (typical stereo equipment). This can be fun for recording your own music with the Apple provided Garageband software.

Ant
06/14/2007 at 06:08 PM

The Audio In on all current Mac models is a LINE input, which means you could hook up any powered audio source like components of your home stereo or a battery powered microphone.

This is not a MICROPHONE input since most Macs have build in mics. Therefore typical headsets for gamers or a dynamic microphone will not work! Gamers could try to combine a normal headphone with the internal mic (which works fine for me) or a USB-headset. Musicians should get a USB- or FireWire-audiointerface.

Goetz
07/16/2007 at 02:57 AM

Tanner,
Mac OS X warns you when disconnecting storage devices that you have not "ejected" because it wants to protect you from data loss and corruption that could be caused by removing a device while files on it are open. By "ejecting" the drive you tell the system that you no longer wish to use the device. The system then makes sure all files on the drive are closed (or warns you if it can't close them) and prevents programs from opening files on the device. Thus "ejecting" a disk helps maintain filesystem integrity.

David Robarts
07/23/2007 at 10:31 AM