14 million Xbox power cord recall a vain attempt?

Even after that big stink MS put up about replacing those 14 million some-odd dangerous Xbox cables with the very safe, very overdone ones with boxes full of circuit interrupters and bomb-proof radiation shielding, it turns out the issue with fried Xboxes isn't in the power cable at all. Actually, the problem lies in the circuits to the power supplies of some units, which wore down unduly and caused some big problems for the Xbox and Microsoft alike. Did they know? Are they handling the situation properly? We'll let the courts sort it out.

[Heyuan @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Another reason to buy PS2.

*runs away and grabs a flame shield

Erm, does anybody know is Xbox still a loss making segment

[Mike @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

I don't know if it's just me, but I didn't receive the power cord pictured above. The one a received looks pretty similar to the original, but it has a different number on it. Also, there's a blue sticker on it now with a lightning bolt. Did I get jipped?

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Pretty debateable whether the big replacement cords are "very safe". See here: http://www.xbox-scene.com/xbox1data/sep/EEEEEApFuEPfcZdkPo.php

This could eventually be a disaster for MS. I personally am pretty pissed off knowing that I have a defective, unsafe Xbox (a fact pretty well proved on those same forums), with a power supply that could detach itself at any moment, and all MS wants to do about it is send me a useless power cord. What MS needs to do is replace these Xboxes themselves unless they want to get hit with a massive lawsuit - and I don't mean by consumers. The first kid that gets killed by a defective Xbox, or the first house that burns down because of one, you can get the state or even the feds will get involved, especially if it comes out that MS knew about the real problem and did nothing to actually fix it (which is pretty obviously the case).

One thing is for sure - I am not buying an Xbox 360 on launch day like I did with Xbox. And I'm playing my Xbox less and less just because I don't want to even touch it. I certainly am not giving MS any more of my money until they really come clean about this and deal with the actual problem, rather than sending me a band-aid solution that obviously doesn't work.

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Er, that should be "bet" the state or feds will get involved...

[Jay @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

and again I state:

You have to be an utter MORON to buy or support ANYTHING from MicroSHIT. Some people really insist on learning the hard way...sheeeshh

That company should be shut down and its staff jailed in Alcatraz! (yeah open it up for these idiots! )

[Omat5e1 @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Everyone's acting like this is either specific to Microsoft or highly unusual in consumer electronics. Sadly, it's a fact that just about any consumer electronics, including TV's, VCR's, DVD Players, and even computers, can blow up and/or cause a fire at any time. I've been hearing these horror stories, ranging in severity, for decades. I remember back in the late 90's how people thought CD's would explode in your CD drive in your computer, or how the PS1 overheated and allegedly burned down a couple people's houses, or how the slim PS2 had a 100% failure rate of its lasers, and it was all just a conspiracy of Sony's to make you replace your PS2 faster. I mean, damn... I even remember hearing that both cell phones and LCD monitors cause cancer. The fact is that XBox's probably have a 0.001% rate of failure as described (with overheated, fire, etc.), and Microsoft probably didn't have 5-6 years of testing of 10,000,000 XBox's to see which parts were defective, so they replaced everyone's power cables. In this case, they probably figured that if they replaced something cheap and simple like the power cable, most people would assume their XBox was safe, and they'd never know the difference. Since most people don't participate in recalls anyway, the chances of someone who DID, and who also had a catastrophic disaster was almost too small to calculate.

[pari @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Looks like everyone need to get a soldering iron and do it themselves. Its interesting, if this happened to PS2, God knows what, a huge protest and cry would have been made. Guess what MS would have come out and made an statement saying how safe and thoughtful design Xbox is. The problem is with us consumers, for letting companies like MS manipulate us.
I checked my serial# with the website, said do not need any replacement cord, but looks like I need to check it out for sure. Never know...

[TheTspot.org Admin @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Xbox is a great system, its a shame microsoft makes it. xbox has added value with a modchip and xbox media center available at
http://www.thetspot.org

[Chris @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

I'm no fan of M$, but I think some people are over-reacting to this. 30 cases out of 14.1 million is 0.00021% (or to put it another way, 1 in ever half-million). Fuses and circuit breakers mean a short isn't going to last long, and your box isn't going to turn into a towering info in an instant. Unplug it at the wall when you're not using it. Unplug it at the wall if it goes bang while you are using it.

[Myria @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Geeze, you'd think MS had released a laptop with exploding batteries...

Sorry, kids, this is beyond asinine and if it wasn't MS we wouldn't even be talking about it. 30 out of 14.1 mil? Oh my god, it's a deathtrap! My Xbox is going to explode! Proof MS is the evil Satan! Jail them all in Alcatraz! Xbox, the Pinto of the 21st century!

Puhlease.

[Awesom-o @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

I'd still rather have an exploding Xbox, that caused chemical burns, than use a PS2. Quality, not quantity...

[JK @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

hahaha the mod chip companies should come up with a modded power supply that won't burn up!

[carpet burn @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

A George Forman grill or a toaster is statistically more dangerous than an xbox. Every electrical appliance in your house is a potential hazard. Get over it. Live dangerously, leave it plugged in.

[Comcipher @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

The problem isn't with the power cord at all and it has never been the problem. What M$ is doing is putting a band-aid on the problem. What the situation really is is that in the early versions of Xbox M$ used a crappy FoxLink power supply, and went pretty light on the solder where the power prongs plug into the xbox power supply. This is well documented and has caused countless xboxes to die. The newer ones are safe, if they let you get a new power cord it's essentially the same as your old one.

Check out this thread : http://forums.xbox-scene.com/index.php?showtopic=361537
for more details.

[Squeg @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Where did the picture of that cord come from? I had a replacement cord maile to me by microsoft and it looked NOTHING like that one. In fact, my replacement cord came in a thin, padded, yellow envelope that fit easilly in my mailbox. It had no large box-like adapter on it. It looked very much original cord except for some minor cosmetic differences and a sticker that proclaimed it to be the electrically sound choice.

So does this mean microsoft is sending out different cables to different people based on the age of their machine? I was required to fill in serial number and time of purchase when ordering my new cable. Or is that picture in your article a total hoax?

[Jeff @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

"30 out of 14.1 mil? Oh my god, it's a deathtrap!"

30 out of 14.1 mil what? Where are these numbers coming from? From MS themselves?

Why do you think MS would do *anything* voluntarily unless there was a real problem? The fact is there was something serious enough here that MS said "you know, we can't wait for the feds to come down on us, we have to at least ship out a bunch of new power cords RIGHT NOW."

There is a massive thread on xbox-scene.com (linked from here after the original story broke) that had something like 50% of those who opened their Xboxes finding disconnected power supplies. One guy in those forums had his Xbox explode on him and he had pics of the power supply to prove it. My own Xbox - which I have barely ever moved - sparks every time I unplug it. Sparks cause fires. No piece of electronics would ever be licensed for sale with a problem like this, and if there was proof of this problem (which there is), the government would force an involuntary recall. Eventually, that may happen. Only now is the media starting to pick up on this (there's an article in The Register about it today too; it's only a matter of time before it spreads around).

If an Xbox sparks and dies and it's out of warranty, most people (especially prior to now) aren't going to report it. I mean, why would you? Stuff breaks all the time, and you don't know why. So whatever numbers MS has released are meaningless. The fact is it's a hazard. Electronics should not have high-voltage arcing going on every time you plug the thing in or turn it on. It is a major problem, and it would be a major problem if the system was made by Nintendo or Sony too. The difference is that I'll bet Nintendo or Sony wouldn't be sitting on their hands waiting until somebody gets killed before they do something about it.

[Usman @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Obligatory Penny Arcade reference:

http://www.penny-arcade.com/view.php3?date=2005-02-18&res=l

[Jordie @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

You're right.. so what if 30 people had their entertainment center destroyed or their house burned down.

It wasn't you so what do you care.

[Scott @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Squeg, to answer your question, the picture came from here:
http://www.tacosntonic.com/mt/archives/2005/02/got_my_replacement_xbox_power_cord.php

And yes, Microsoft is sending out different power cords based on which machine you have.

[Ben @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

my cable replacement came in a few days and it did not have the clunky adapter thing on it at all...

[Zack @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

the clunky one in the picture is actually the one that retail stores use to test the xboxs out to see if they need a replacement cord or not.

[Eion Murdock @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

The clunky one in the picture is actually (as far as I can tell) the same model that Microsoft sent me as a replacement.

[Abe @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

I bought my Xbox the very first day it came out and it hasn't burned now any houses that I know of. Then again, I don't ask it where it's been when it comes home at 3am smelling like booze and stripper purfume.

And the replacement cable I got looks just like the one pictured above.

[Click @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

Somebody mentioned Alcatraz? www.virtuar.com/alcatraz/ - Here it is

[rob @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

if the one u got looks similar to ur old one, then u basically got same one back. btw its not 14 million power cords, because not all xboxes were effected. and no its not a reason 'not to buy an xbox' because this happened with earlier consoles. this is nothing new with videogames so dont act like it has never happened before

[rob @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

if the one u got looks similar to ur old one, then u basically got same one back. btw its not 14 million power cords, because not all xboxes were effected. and no its not a reason 'not to buy an xbox' because this happened with earlier consoles. this is nothing new with videogames so dont act like it has never happened before

[chad chastain @ Dec 19th 2005 12:53AM]

xbox 360 still rocks i dont have one but my freind let mw borrow his while he was on vacation i hope i could get one soon xbox 360 rocks