Posts tagged Exploding at Switched

Posts with tag exploding

Japan Investigates Exploding iPod Nanos, Again

by Thomas Ricker, posted Aug 19th 2008 at 11:01AM

Look, it's pretty clear that the lithium-ion battery in the first generation iPod nano has the potential to burst into flames. Seriously, how many more cases do we have to see? Even after giving Apple a stern talking-to and ferocious wag of the finger back in March, Japan's government is once again investigating possible battery defects that caused a pair of Tokyo nanos to burn: nano model MA099 recently singed a piece of nearby paper while a model MA005 nano burned a traditional tatami mat in January (no injuries were reported).

Presumably Apple is calculating the Tyler Durden cost-of-recall at this very moment. In other words, take the number of 1st gen nanos in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, they don't do one.

Update: Japan has issued a warning to iPod nano users saying, "Users need to be careful about overheating of the machines," particularly when charging the players. Japan's government has reported a total of 14 similar incidents to Apple related to models MA004J/A, MA005J/A, MA099J/A and MA107J/A all sold between September '05 and September '06 -- two of which resulted in minor burns. NHK claims that Apple does not plan a recall but is ready to exchange defective parts.

Apple Ordered to Investigate Exploding iPod Nanos

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Mar 12th 2008 at 11:17AM

Japan Asks Apple to Investigate Exploding iPods

Exploding gadgets are nothing new, but governments ordering companies to investigate them is. The Japanese government has ordered Apple to investigate a possible defect in the iPod Nano that occasionally causes the diminutive player to burst into flames.

The likely culprit is the media player's lithium-ion battery, which is the cause behind exploding cell phones and the piles of burning laptops. The Japanese government offered a strongly worded warning to Apple for failing to promptly investigate after an incident in January when a charging iPod shot sparks into the air.

However don't expect much from a company investigating itself.

From Engadget

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iPod Nano Catches Fire While Owner Snoozes

by Tim Stevens, posted Mar 10th 2008 at 11:21AM

One of the more popular accessories out there for the iPod is the alarm clock dock, letting you charge your player while you sleep and wake up in style to any of your digital tunes. However, one owner of an iPod Nano found that he didn't need any such accessory for his gadget to wake him up rather abruptly at 2:00 am -- the fire alarm it kicked off after it burst into flames took care of that.

The alarm jolted the owner out of bed, who found his formerly pocketable player burning on the floor of his bedroom. The fire was extinguished and no further property was destroyed, nor injuries caused, but it's yet another disturbing case of a gadget battery gone bad.

From Engadget

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Pregnant Woman's Nokia Phone Battery Explodes

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Sep 4th 2007 at 3:39PM

We have a fascination with people being hurt, maimed or even killed by cell phones. Call us morbid, but we just can't help it.

Less than a month after Nokia recalled 46 million batteries from its BL-5C series, the Finnish cell phone maker might have to start thinking about recalling yet another series. An Indian woman (pregnant, no less!) suffered (thankfully) mild burns when her three year old Nokia exploded ten minutes after she plugged it in to the charger.

The exploding battery was not part of part of the previously recalled series, but from the BL-D3 series. Nokia says it was an isolated incident and if the phone, charger and battery all turn out to be original, the woman will be compensated. We don't know which Nokia phones are affected with the BL-D3 series batteries, but check the Nokia Web site for further updates.

Even if this is an "isolated" incident, it gets us nervous since the news increasingly tells us we're carrying around so many potential firestarters in our bags and pockets: Laptops burst into flames, cell phone batteries explode, and, it seems as though Sony has to recall batteries every couple of months.

We don't know about you, but we're beginning to feel a little bit like walking time-bombs.

From Engadget

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More Battery Woes for Sony

by Terrence O'Brien, posted Apr 27th 2007 at 2:05PM

Unlike chimps, laptops that smoke are not very funny. One company that certainly isn't laughing today is Acer, which just announced the recall of 27,000 defective laptop batteries supplied by Sony, which are prone to overheating and smoking.

For anyone keeping score, that's now well over seven million batteries being recalled since last August when Dell reported six incidents of overheating and/or fire caused by Sony-built batteries. Since the Dell announcement, Apple, Lenovo/IBM, Gateway, Panasonic, Toshiba, Fujitsu and Hitachi have all joined the recall party. And let's not forget that Sony's own laptops have been affected by the recall as well.

The Acer recall affects TravelMate models made between May 2004 and September 2006, as well as some Aspire models. If you think that describes your laptop, check the serial number against this list and learn how to score a free replacement battery. Until it arrives, though, be sure to remove the defective one and run off of wall power.

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How to Recycle Dead Gadgets (Batteries)

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