Posted on 07/10/2006 9:21:04 AM PDT by FormerACLUmember
AN INQUIRER READER attending a conference in Japan was sat just feet away from a laptop computer that suddenly exploded into flames, in what could have been a deadly accident.
Gaston, our astonished reader reports: "The damn thing was on fire and produced several explosions for more than five minutes".
Should you witness such an event, his advice is, "Don't try anything courageous/stupid, stay away, away, away!"
"For the record, this is a Dell machine," notes Gaston. "It is only a matter of time until such an incident breaks out on a plane," he suggests.
Our witness managed to catch all the action in these amazing pictures.
"Fire extinguishers leave a mess on your suit and belongings; pack your stuff (if you can) and leave, leave, leave!" he advises.
We don't have any further details of the model of the computer in question. In light of the evidence, however, we'd suggest you avoid actually using a laptop on your lap. Ouch.
my pr0n!!"
&&
What does that mean?
No, he was a FReeper who posted a Pro-Buchanan article and attempted to justify his support of him......
The guy REALLY got flamed for that one.....
Maybe Mr. Dell should liquidate his company and give the money back to the shareholders.
...
Camden said it was **too early to draw any conclusions** and **added that it did not appear that the incident had anything to do with the battery issues related to the recall.** "From here it's going to be a very methodical and meticulous process to figure out what happened," Camden said.
Uh-oh. It sounds like someone decided to save some bucks by not including a voltage-limiter on their Lithium-Ion batteries...
I find this a great opportunity to bitch about Dell.
My best friend bought a desktop system from them about three years ago. She has had nothing but problems...and the problems started within the first week she owned it. Their tech support (outsourced to India of course) is far worse than most.
I have read that Dell is considered to have the worst product in the industry. I believe it.
Excellent point. If true, I am sure Dell will announce this ASAP. No word yet, so it might be original equipment. (Truth disclosure: I writing this on a Dell and have never had a problem... BOOM!)
Me too. I posted this after endless problems with "Dell Hell" (Dell's Tech Support on the magnificent, exotic Indian Subcontinent)
WoW! That's quite an explosion. I've been thinking about getting a Dell Laptop. Maybe I need to rethink that now. I wonder if this is an added Dell 'feature?' LOL I think I'll pass on that one. ;o)
Looked like a C610.....a very popular model after the C840.
Is there reportage of what model it was?
I like the "one off" battery theory.
Those suckers do get pretty hot. Docking stations help a little.
LOL
I know that some laptops do *coughTOSHIBA!cough*, but I'm on my HP laptop right now and it's cool as a cucumber.
For the record, this has happened as long as ten years ago. My son, an exceptional engineer (if I do say so myself), was tasked to investigate and solve a similar incident aboard an aircraft around 1996 or so.
He found the design flaw and engineered a solution; the manufacturer of that highly regarded (at the time) and expensive laptop, is no longer in business.
I am no expert on what to buy... How about an Apple laptop?
It's not an isolated incident...a friend of mine from Pax River Naval Air Station sent me a picture of a Dell laptop that burst into flames exactly like the one in this story did. I don't have the picture with me, but apparently the computer started smoking just after it booted up and then blew up just after its quick thinking user ran outside with it and tossed it away from his office. Pretty hair raising, if you ask me...
I've owned three Dells (one currently) and have never had any problems. They have all been well-made, easily upgraded, and dependable. On the other hand, I've heard (anecdotally) that Dell quality has deteriorated and that their outsourced tech support is as useless as mammaries on a masculine bovine.
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