In a time when you're not even allowed to say the word "bomb" in an airport (hey, it's for good reason), it's got to be like, really freaking embarrassing to have to run up the jetway at full speed, shoving other passengers out of the way as your flaming laptop explodes on the ground. (
Sound familiar?) According to an eyewitness report on the Awful Forums, passersby stared aghast or fled crying terrorist, the ThinkPad (which was quoted to be an IBM, not a Lenovo) apparently had a number of death throes as the fire went through various phases, until eventually a United employee busted out the fire extinguisher and laid the laptop to rest. Apparently the machine's owner already checked its battery against the recalls and it was not listed -- and why would it be? IBM and Lenovo aren't
flagged for
bad batteries -- yet. (Sony, we're
looking your direction.) But the coup de grâce at LAX: onlookers apparently mumbling that "too many viruses on your computer" can lead to this horrendous fate. How true, indeed.
[Thanks, Peter]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Scott @ Sep 16th 2006 1:33PM
You can't say Bomb on an Airplane!
Bombibomb Bombity Bomb Bomb Bomb
Jeff @ Sep 16th 2006 1:50PM
OMFG that is the same kind of laptop i am using right now to type this comment!
steve @ Sep 18th 2006 12:42PM
dont worry if you are folowing the manufatures charging instructions you will be fine , if you think people are not to bright and start to develop bad charging habets .(overcharging)
omar_abudayyeh @ Sep 16th 2006 1:58PM
Haha i love meet the parents!
Little Joe @ Sep 16th 2006 2:08PM
I have a gut feeling that very soon its going to be very hard to find an airline that will let you carry-on your laptops.
Alden @ Sep 16th 2006 2:15PM
I see the problem.
He forgot to remove the Windows sticker of shame
KAD @ Sep 16th 2006 2:27PM
I don't know about the warranty we should probably ask the American lawyers, who actually passed the bar after finishing law school, who scripted answers for the Indians to use. Then we can get a good Israeli lawyer to sue the Chinese company that made the laptop and/or batteries. But then I think that would likely lead to the layoffs of what few thinking jobs are left for Americans at IBM and cause them to sell their company to the Koreans so that the stock holders don't loose thier investment. This will ensure we can continue to buy more worthless junk made in countries that we don't understand because the furthest we have gone from our front door is the local 7-11 to buy a Big Gulp from an Indian that is too busy chasing away the Mexican that are loitering in front of his store who are waiting to be picked up for a landscaping job at your house. What's wrong with this story? Look in the mirror!
Frances Willis @ Jul 27th 2007 1:10PM
I personally found your comment very prejudice,you could have said ,"whomever had a hand in making these laptops and or battery packs",were not very skilled people. The reference to being Indian, or
Mexican or whatever nationality, should not have been used in your statement , this is the year 2007 and racist comments are not acceptable in my opinion.Maybe it could have been a situation where ,the user of the laptop, or somebody that had the laptop before, installed the wrong battery pack.
Alex @ Sep 16th 2006 2:32PM
Guess he didn't have updated virus definitions. hah.
stewarth @ Sep 16th 2006 2:34PM
I guess its not just Sony to have the Battery problem. It maybe a general issue with Li-On's and that would be a much more serious issue.
i use a desktop! @ Sep 16th 2006 2:34PM
That so fricking scary.
Imagine your using your lappy right now and BOOM the whole laptop flies up into your face or something. lol
Bosco @ Sep 16th 2006 2:36PM
Maybe it has nothing to do with batteries at all..
It's Norton giving self destruct commands.
Every PC laptop has Norton running on it 24/7, right?
:-)
Dean Croshere @ Sep 16th 2006 2:36PM
Finished.Law.School:
was there any point to your reply other than racism?
JT @ Sep 16th 2006 2:45PM
How do they know its from IBM and not Lenovo? I bought a thinkpad in February from Lenovo, but its still branded as an IBM Thinkpad. Only way to tell its from Lenovo, is one label on the bottom.
tekdemon @ Sep 26th 2006 12:19PM
It doesn't really matter whether there's a sticker that says Lenovo on the bottom since Lenovo had been making the Thinkpads for IBM for years before they bought the brand from them. Actually it matters even less since they're not the ones making the batteries anyway.
dssdfsdfsdf @ Sep 16th 2006 2:56PM
Oh no, TERRORISTS EVERYWHERE!
Amber @ Sep 16th 2006 3:00PM
well it's official
2006 is the year of laptops that ignite.
i think that laptops these days have horrible cooling systems which is probably why they're all catching fire.
and who knows, maybe my decent toshiba satellite is next.
(i think it's best that laptop owners start keeping fire extinguishers nearby)
cheekky @ Sep 16th 2006 3:09PM
What if you're a bombadier on a flight to Bombay playing bomberman on your gameboy?
James @ Sep 16th 2006 3:16PM
If this was yesterday (Friday) at gate 77 while UAL934 was boarding then nobody "fled crying terrorist". There were some collective "ooh"s and "ahh"s as it did its firework show though. The United staff took care of it while we continued boarding the plane.
uclatommy @ Sep 16th 2006 3:17PM
With all these laptops exploding these days, I'm suprised I haven't read an article about someone losing a leg or maybe even a couple fingers. Do these laptops slowly catch on fire? Or is the explosion more energetic?
miken32 @ Sep 16th 2006 3:23PM
cheekky, you just figured out the _real_ reason it's called Mumbai now
Daniel @ Sep 16th 2006 3:28PM
Ummm....just so you know when I called IBM a while back the call center was in the united states.....
cobalt @ Sep 16th 2006 3:30PM
I bet the RIAA is behind this. Maybe Sony started putting RFID chips in their batteries.
ElectroGeek @ Sep 16th 2006 3:36PM
Um, can I say Holy Sh!T? That would freak me out if someones laptop lit up like that before leaving on a flight! I guess IBM/Lenovo is now officially part of the exploding battery club. Congratulations and welcome. Or not. Have any Toshiba batteries ignited yet?
Rick @ Sep 16th 2006 3:43PM
Why do you all knock us Indian help help-centers? We are just trying to better our selves from Slurpee slavery. May a thousand camel fleas infest your laptops, thank you and have a nice day. click
k-man @ Sep 16th 2006 3:51PM
That's definitely an IBM-built thinkpad from the t40-series. It's probably a t43. I've got a t43 myself, and I'm supposed to take it on a business trip next week.
The (original) battery in mine is made in China, by Sanyo.
galen @ Sep 22nd 2006 12:21PM
good luck :))
Josh @ Sep 16th 2006 4:05PM
"In a time when you're not even allowed to say the word 'bomb' in an airport (hey, it's for good reason)"
You're ignorant.
Greg @ Sep 16th 2006 4:16PM
This is a fairly new ThinkPad. The T40 was the first with the battery along the backside as well as the LAN/modem/USB/audio ports along the left side.
I was at gate 71B yesterday and didn't see or hear anything - I missed all the fun.
AC @ Sep 16th 2006 4:20PM
Looks like we found our WMD!
Jesse @ Sep 16th 2006 4:29PM
As much as they don't deserve it, I get such a bloody urge to punch an ignorant person say some absolutely ridiculous thing about why thier computer doesn't work.
Like, I got it for years that my computer was slow because there was so much shit on the hard drive.
1.) No there wasn't, (80 GB + 14 Used)
2.) It was slow, period.
Just sad.
Tom Robinson @ Sep 16th 2006 4:35PM
Dammit, now they're going to ban laptops on airplanes!
Alex Quant @ Sep 16th 2006 4:40PM
So, will the FAA (US), CAA(UK) and other authorities step in to order a complete ban on laptops? The evidence is clear that once a lithium ion battery is compromised, they are potentially lethal - fires on board aircraft are a strict no no! It will be a brave airline that comes out with a volunatary ban, but I doubt that will happen as they will fear losing a lot of revenue quickly.
claudeo @ Sep 16th 2006 4:40PM
Nothing to do with cooling systems. The pictures make it quite clear that this fire started in the battery, probably was caused by an internal battery short, possibly after some normal jostling or a little banging as happens when carrying a laptop.
All in all, it could have been much worse. The fire could have started while the airplane was taking off, when no one can safely get up to reach a fire extinguisher, or the computer could have been stashed under a seat and it could have set fire to the seat in the middle of the ocean on an airplane with no spare seats. This is not an air travel only problem, of course. I think we all need to worry about the laptop we leave at home, in our office or in the trunk of our car as well, when there is no one there to put the fire out.
Shunnabunich @ Sep 16th 2006 4:46PM
"But the coup de grâce at LAX: onlookers apparently mumbling that 'too many viruses on your computer' can lead to this horrendous fate."
Ha ha ha, he should've got a Mac...oh...wait. :(
claudeo @ Sep 16th 2006 5:15PM
BTW, I am aware that airplane seats are built with fire-retardant or self-extinguishing materials and the materials are supposed to not emit toxic fumes in a fire. Even so... BTW Virgin has "temporarily" banned Dell and Apple laptops with the battery in place. You can still carry on the battery "suitably wrapped" -- whatever that means.
Corey @ Sep 16th 2006 5:38PM
If they don't ban carry-on items completely, then it's of no use to ban laptops.
Anybody here know exacly how much power a half-ounce of plastic explosives have? Let's just put it this way...I can take down a plane with a lipstick container...
But then again, I can take down a parking garage or a building above a parking garage with a couple strategically placed cars...should we start banning some more stuff?
Richard Lai @ Sep 16th 2006 5:43PM
Shunnabunich: LOL! :D
Vic Thacker @ Sep 16th 2006 6:01PM
Wow, will this give terrorist a new idea to hide a bomb in a laptop? Next we will be banning all batteries on planes including in checked luggage. But then...with out their hand held GPS and laptops how the hell would today's young pilots find their destinations?
Blair @ Sep 19th 2006 11:36PM
I mean really, do you honestly believe that they are culling our tiny little brains for Ideas? Considering the engineering degrees (electronics and chemical, etc) that many of the "brains" behind these terrorist cells have, I don't think that a bomb in a laptop is a "new" idea.
The Lockerbie incident (December 21, 1988, Pan Am Flight 103) showed that hiding "plastics" in electronics (radio - in checked baggage) is an easy and functional way to take down a very large bomb-of-an airplane. 9/11 as nasty as it was proved that these guys are not stupid - add religious ferver to that and anything goes.
Security at the airport is a joke. I can walk in and see holes in the illusion of security instantly - some countries (Philippines, of note) are far worse. Security is always a compromise of convenience. We could have a very secure airport system fairly easily but none of us would care to go through the inconvenience of true security.
Personally, I don't see any difference between abortion clinics or planes being bombed. Religious ferver driving heinous acts
optix @ Sep 16th 2006 6:13PM
Corey-- Welcome to the No-Fly-List Club. I would tell you not to say shit like that, but it's too late. So if you are ever stuck in a foreign country (like Germany) and can't get home (like me) just remember me.
I do agree, cellphones have been exploding for years, but since they have smaller batteries, the fireworks weren't as cool, so less press.
Dan Bugglin @ Sep 16th 2006 7:29PM
"But the coup de grâce at LAX: onlookers apparently mumbling that "too many viruses on your computer" can lead to this horrendous fate. How true, indeed."
You better not be serious, we were supposed to have that beat in the 90s!
eric @ Sep 16th 2006 7:39PM
hey i have a ibm think pad
where do i check if the battery is recalled ?
Bob Easton @ Sep 16th 2006 9:21PM
That battery -COULD- be a Sony. My recently acquired T40 replacement battery was made by Sony. Just because it's an IBM laptop doesn't mean the battery is there's too.
nick @ Sep 16th 2006 9:24PM
Maybe Sony is attempting to destory any device capable of playing DVDs, one by one, in an effort to get people to buy Blu-Ray drives.
dp462090 @ Sep 16th 2006 9:34PM
An ironic story considering, this(http://www.engadget.com/2006/09/16/fire-retardant-sleeves-for-your-laptop/) was few stories down.
Amy Hikari @ Sep 16th 2006 9:39PM
All these exploding batteries make me paranoid about using my laptop now. It's a fairly old Dell, from before all the recalls started, but it runs effin' hot and now I'm afraid it's going to go boom. Sigh.
Chakrisu @ Sep 16th 2006 9:54PM
@ Rick
You try taking 15 minutes to order a pizza...
Donna Knight @ Sep 16th 2006 10:43PM
They can't ban laptops if they want to stay in business. Business travel would plummet and so would the airlines' earnings.
Foof @ Sep 16th 2006 10:54PM
This is a standard 14.1" T4x thinkpad (either IBM or Lenovo, can't tell between the T42 and T43), and yes, Sony does make the batteries for it (one of mine is Sony, the other is a Sanyo).