Sometime in September last year, Samsung had to recall its flagship phablet, the Galaxy Note 7 because there were instances where the device suddenly burst into flames.
The result for the Korean tech giant was a major debacle which Samsung plans to redeem itself from with the impending launching of its latest flagship smartphones, the Galaxy S8 and the Galaxy S8 Edge later this month at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2017 in Barcelona, Spain.
However, it seems that a Dell laptop in California has done one better than what the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 infamously accomplished last year. Instead of merely bursting into fire, the Dell laptop actually explodes, which means it is certainly more dangerous and risky for the user.
But from the looks of it, it seems that the explosion of the Dell laptop was an isolated incident and some analysts and experts investigating the incident all claim that it is the lithium ion battery of the laptop that caused the device to explode just like that, reports NBC News.
The Dell Inspiron laptop is actually owned by Devon Johnson of Thousand Oaks, Californa and the good thing is that his laptop actually exploded why he was not working or using it; because if he did, he could have certainly sustained serious physical injuries.
A fire and then another explosion
Johnson’s laptop was actually charging on the couch when he heard a loud bang and when he went to check it out, he saw the laptop burst into flames.
He described the first explosion as really loud so he got up and blew the flames out of the burning laptop.
Johnson then unplugged the laptop and put it on a table outside. It exploded again. Johnson again put out the flames, this time with a fire extinguisher. But this didn’t deter the laptop from combusting yet again.
The fiery sequence was actually caught on home security cameras showing Johnson trying to extinguish his laptop from burning further.
Analysts say that the combustion seems to be caused by the lithium-ion battery of the Dell Inspiron, the same kind found in hover boards and cell phones that have caught fire, prompting nationwide recall, details C/Net.
A four-year-old laptop
A Dell spokesman explained that the company is working with Johnson to examine the laptop, but he had no update to share until they are able to complete their full investigation to verify the product’s origin and understand its full history.
Johnson has said that his Dell Inspiron laptop is already four years old.
The investigation of the incident was expected to focus on the laptop’s lithium-ion battery. The batteries have been linked to explosions in smartphones, including the controversial incident involving the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 last year.
It is also the same type of battery found in hoverboard and other gadgets. It’s no secret that lithium-ion batteries pose a risk, but the electronics industry continues to use the flammable formula because they’re so much smaller and lighter than less-destructive chemistries.
Johnson explained that had he gone to the movies and left his laptop charging, their house would have been burned to the ground and completely gone by this time.
His mother, Tori, also shared the same scenario but she went on to say that had his son inspected his laptop a little more closely, Johnson’s face might have sustained burns and serious damages too.
A lithium-ion battery, also known as the li-ion battery is a type of rechargeable battery in which lithium ions move from the negative electrode to the positive electrode during discharge and back when charging.
Li-ion batteries use an intercalated lithium compound as one electrode material, compared to the metallic lithium used in a non-rechargeable lithium battery. The electrolyte, which allows for ionic movement, and the two electrodes are the constituent components of a lithium-ion battery cell.
Lithium-ion batteries are common in home electronics. They are one of the most popular types of rechargeable batteries for portable electronics, with a high energy density, tiny memory effect, and low self-discharge.
Staged.