http://www.tuaw.com/2009/05/20/readers- ... ches-fire/

It just works

Like this :

I wouldn't be terribly worried, you shouldn't leave your laptop unattended charging anyway. And other brands have had far worse track records with faulty batteries.

This can happen to any laptop or charger.

What a way to wake up , your whole going up in flames has a new meaning from now on .

Sorry what?

As stated in the article, the guy was doing a backup:



Leaving a laptop plugged in over night isn't any different to leaving a server plugged into a UPS all night. The only problem is if you have one of them there faulty "magsafe" things. Luckily, all my computers have pyrotechnic-free plugs on.

Of course, to be on the safe side you should switch off the power at the main fuse box before you go to bed. Who knows, otherwise your radio alarm clock or freezer might catch fire. It does happen.

So let me get this straight. Not only do you pay over the odds for the hardware, there's a good chance it'll burn your house down too - yet this is ok and "does happen"? Crikey! The high price of mindless fanboyism!

As much as people like to dress things up, the macbook is built in a Chinese factory, pretty much identically and in large quantities. If it can happen to one...

Given that they are already being sued over their magsafe adaptors, it seems that there may be some fire with that smoke.

I'm sorry DaftFunk, are you suggesting that it wouldn't have burnt, if he had been sitting at the machine?

That is the most preposterous thing I've ever heard!

If the device is sold as electrically safe, then there shouldn't be any problems with plugging it in and leaving it over night - heck, most accumulator operated devices I've bought (phones, mobilephones, laptops, toothbrushes etc.) have always said that the first charge can be anything from 18 hour to 36 hours. I'm not going to sit in front of the device for a complete day!

Plus he says that the manual states for the first back-up: "you may need to plug your computer in and leave it on overnight to complete the first backup"...

My 2 last laptops were left plugged into the mains over night for several years. Mainly because of where the power strip was at the last flat, crawl around on the floor and try and feed the end of the cable up onto the desk, to plug it into the laptop.

The only time it got unplugged was when I went travelling.

Really? What about religion?

I guess you're right, but leaving anything that takes a battery charging for long periods of time is never wise (yes the guy wasn't doing that)



Completely different, a UPS has far more safety features built in and is tested for that very situation.



YAWN there was me thinking that some things change, never mind.

You're right, things don't change - there are still forumites who defend Apple in the face of what could easily have led to someone's death. Had the macbook owner not realised until the fire had spread, he may not have been alive to report it.

Saw a particularly poignant comment on the engadget site.
"When a dell catches fire, it's Dell's fault. When a mac catches fire it's the user's fault"

Just about sums it all up.

LMFAO.

If "not catching fire" is a special safety feature, then I'm afraid I pretty much insist that all my electrical goods are "tested for that very situation".

What safety feature exactly do you think my £20 UPS has that's too exotic to fit to a laptop? The only thing I can think of is it doesn't have a faulty plug. Same goes for my mobile phone which I leave on charge every night, and my radio alarm, and my electric screwdriver, and my emergency standby torch, my 4 cordless phones and my electric tooth brush.

If I was leaving the house empty for a period of time, then I'd turn the power off. Over night? I want my batteries to be charged in the morning so I can actually use my stuff.

Lol I'm loving the mac fanboyism in this thread.

Personally if my laptop charger caught fire I'd be the first one down to Trading Standards, right after demanding a replacement from the retailer or manufacturer.

Unfortunately, even Apple have to comply with EU Law. EU Safety regs. FTW.

I have to say I have three magsafe adapters here, and two are plugged in and powered all the time. I've now owned and operated three Apple laptops in almost permanent desktop mode for over five years now.

No problems, no overheating, no sparks, flames or smoke.

Which doesn't mean it can't happen, but like most issues that arise which may only affect a relatively small proportion of the users of a bit of kit, those affected by it tend to make the most noise about it.

Sure, we can all accept that a minority of components go wrong sometimes. It's a fact of life. However, what is most amusing is that some Apple fanboys in this thread absolutely refuse to accept that it's Apple's fault, instead blaming the poor victim.

What's next, the owners of those laptops with dodgy batteries are to blame for when they caught fire too?

I can't be arsed. maybe it's the alcohol

From what I've read, it's the way the cable is twisted around to support it which creates a weakness. If you move it about a lot, then the stress at the kink breaks strands inside the cable until the entire charge is being carried by one tiny wire that overheats. If you don't wiggle it, then it won't break. That's true of all connectors - they last for ever if you don't mess with them.

What bugs me most, these stories have been going on for years now. This isn't a one-off, there have been loads of identical stories. Didn't Apple do a recall? If not, why not? I don't care enough to research, so do you know if they've redesigned the one ones they sell today or do they still have the same stress induced failure point?

The reason we have moulded plugs on our appliances these days is because the manufacturer is supposed to create a strong product which doesn't work lose and become a fire hazard. Hands up if you're old enough to remember buying something from Argos, and then having to buy a plug for it?