Scribem

Laptops and feats of self-immolation

If you’re one of those people who like to use your notebook or laptop by actually sitting it on your lap and then tapping away, be prepared for a change in habit.

Only a month ago, news about a Dell laptop exploding in a Japanese conference made way for lots of interesting discussions on the safety of laptops. Today, it looks like another Dell laptop has just decided to protest its existence with a rather angry display of spontaneous combustion.

Now, laptops are machines that we use everyday. We expect them to help us do our job without causing extensive damage to the user. The notion of laptops exploding spontaneously when in use is something that I think should be dealt with by the QA guys before the product hits the market, and not by me having thoughts of self-preservation worrying about whether I’m risking permanent damage to parts of my anatomy in using one.

Evidently, this has not been the case. However, Dell is not the only company that has attracted media attention for their laptops with “undocumented features” – Apple has been in the spotlight recently with their newly released MacBook Pro’s having heat issues. Dell has announced product recalls for both batteries and AC adaptors citing potential fire hazards. Funnily enough, Apple has also just issued a battery recall program for their 15″ MacBook Pro’s, not for safety reasons but because they “do not meet our high standards for battery performance”. The timing couldn’t be better…

So, for all of you out there thinking your laptop is just a harmless productivity (I guess games count as productivity in this case) tool, think again. Oh, and for all you guys out there who plan to celebrate Father’s Day someday, I’d think twice about using my laptop on my lap…

This has been a public service announcement.