In what looks like a first for the Mac laptop line, support of MacBook and MacBook Pro owners everywhere, a 3rd party is offering external battery packs for MacBook, MacBook Pro and MacBook air models.

The batteries, from Sanho in California, are available in 4 different capacities, 60Wh, 100Wh, 150Wh and 222Wh, giving a computer like the MacBook up to 32 hours of battery life. The company is also offering a car charger. These items are all available for pre-order and will ship later this month. Prices are $149.95US (car charger), $199.95 (60-watt-hour battery), $299.95 (100Wh), $399.95 (150Wh) and $499.95 (222Wh). The batteries also come with a USB power port so you can charge an iPhone at the same time or separately.

The first thing I thought of when I saw this announcement was how the company was able to offer a charger with a MagSafe adapter, because that design is protected by Apple patents. I checked with the company president, Daniel Chin, and he told me: “What we did is obtain the MagSafe connector and cable from the original MacBook AC adapter, remove the adapter and splice in our own charger plug, which interfaces with our battery and car charger products. Since we are using the original Apple MagSafe plug and did not modify the actual plug (which the patent in question covers) in any way, we are still respecting Apple’s IP and in no way infringing upon their patent.”

That might or might not satisfy Apple, but it did allow the company to offer these chargers which are likely to be highly desired by some customers. At the very least, I’m surprised Apple has not offered a car charger for laptops. I can think of many times such an adapter would have been handy.

Update: Several commenters have pointed out the QuickerTek and MikeGyver power solutions for the MBP line, which predate the Sanho offering and use the same approach of sacrificing a MagSafe adapter to provide the plug connector. Apple’s Airline adaptor, while electrically similar to a car adapter, is not recommended for automotive use (some have tried it with success, your mileage may vary). Lastly, you can of course use a DC inverter for in-car charging, but please be careful not to obstruct vents or leave the device plugged in and unattended… they can get very hot while in use. Happy motoring!

TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington is reporting that rumors beginning to float around the blogosphere are stating that Apple is interested in purchasing Twitter for US$700 million in cash. Twitter, in case you’ve been off of the planet for the last two years, is the magical “social networking” tool that has you answer the question “What am I doing right now?” in 140 characters or less.

Twitter currently has more than 25 million users, and it is rumored that growth has been exploding since Oprah blessed the service with her presence in mid-April. However, despite the size and growth potential of Twitter, there’s simply no compelling reason for Apple to spend part of its huge cash reserves to purchase the company.

Google recently tried to purchase Twitter, but was turned down by Twitter’s CEO Evan Williams. Today’s rumor comes from a “normally reliable source” who told Arrington that “Apple is in late-stage negotiations to buy Twitter and is hoping to announce it at WWDC in June.”

Despite the popularity of Twitter, the service hasn’t figured out a way to make a profit, and is strictly powered by venture capital at this point. Can any TUAW readers think of a reason why Apple should buy Twitter? Leave us a comment!

As my colleague Aron Trimble has pointed out today, Apple has launched a new series of iPhone ads. As they have done recently, these 3 new commercials talk about all the added functionality the iPhone gets from having many thousands of apps available.

There are some ironies that cross my mind as I look at and enjoy the usual creativity from Apple.

One of the apps highlighted is a point of sale system that runs on an iPhone. Most ironic, since if you go the the Apple Stores the POS system they use is running on Windows CE. They’re the little portable credit card units the sales people carry.

These ads emphasizing the variety of apps also makes me chuckle, as I think back to how Steve Jobs insisted in June of 2007 that web apps would be enough for iPhone users. Not only was that not true, but by changing his mind, Apple has generated millions of dollars in revenues it would never have made. It could be argued that the addition of apps has revitalized the iPhone and iPod Touch and given life to a device that was showing some weakness before the SDK was allowed. As the many reviews we’ve done here show, there truly is something for every taste, or lack of taste at the App Store. Like other good ideas, they’re hard to protect. Microsoft, RIM, and the Google Android all have app stores either running or on the way. Let’s drink a toast to Steve giving in.