Apparently, Samsung isn’t the only company with badly malfunctioning devices. A Florida man named Jason Colon has shown that his AirPods exploded, potentially adding another issue on top of Apple’s growing pile of problems.
The AirPods exploded, but the left was left intact while the right was blown apart and charred. “It’s the craziest thing I ever went through,” Colon told WFLA in an interview.
The Florida man was at LA Fitness in Tampa listening to a dance mix during his workout when the AirPods exploded “And then I saw white smoke billowing out.”
He proceeded to leave the AirPods be and seek help at that point, and when he returned he was shocked by the conditions of the earbuds.
“It was already like this. It was already popped. I didn’t see it happen, but I mean it was already fried! You can see flame damage…I don’t know what would’ve happened to my ear, but I’m sure since it hangs down, it could’ve been [my[ ear lobe. Ear lobe could’ve been burnt.”
As mentioned above, this isn’t the only time a piece of high-end electronics has caught fire. A few years ago, the Galaxy Note 7 caused massive losses for Samsung as they had to write off an entire generation of phones due to the battery exploding. The fact that the AirPods exploded is a major problem for Apple, as it suggests a problem with the manufacturing that could become disastrous if it ended up being a widespread problem. While exploding AirPods is no doubt a less expensive problem than a high-end flagship catching fire, it could still be a significant dent in Apple’s pocket if they ended up having to recall due to the fact that more AirPods exploded.
This spells yet another problem for Apple, who has recently dealt with a large amount of backlash due to some questionable decisions they made, with their lack of transparency causing huge public relations issues. For several generations of iPhone, owners have suspected that the phones were being artificially slowed in order to drive sales of newer models. Apple recently confirmed that they are, in fact, slowing older iPhones, but apparently for a less nefarious reason.
The most recent iPhones are built using a lithium-ion battery which, while having many advantages over older technology, starts to lose its capacity after several hundred charges. By throttling the phone, Apple has been extending the life of the device by avoiding unnecessary crashes – but whether having a phone that’s incredibly slow is a worthwhile tradeoff for a more stable operation is questionable for many iPhone owners.
Apple has since backtracked on the decision, continuing to slow down older phones but offering the opportunity to replace the battery for $29 rather than $79 which would fix the issue. Additionally, the launch of iOS 11.3 will bring a new Battery Health feature that allows users to disable the throttling of older phones with the understanding that their device may be more prone to crashing due to an aging battery.
The fact that the AirPods exploded is just another problem for Apple when they’re already seeing some major problems in terms of their reputation. While it has yet to have a significant impact on their bottom lines, if more AirPods exploded, a massive recall could put a serious dent in their profits.
