PowerOutage
Latest
Lights out at CES 2018
Possibly the worst thing that could happen at a tech show, power went down across several halls at the Las Vegas Convention Center during CES at 11:15 PT. Several booths suffered power outages, including swathes of TVs at LG. The South Hall is also affected, as people are being stopped getting to and from the exhibition areas. Security staff told Engadget that a "power outage" has affecting all halls except East. Attendees were blocked from entering Central Hall, where the main lighting was briefly down. -- this included Engadget's own stage presence at CES. (Update: our livestream is back and running.) Our staff also saw one man being escorted away from the convention center by police. Attendees at the Cosmopolitan Hotel reported "flickering lights" around the same time. Update: With power restored at the convention center, the CTA has issued the following statement: "Today at approximately 11:15 AM, the Central Hall and South Hall bridge meeting rooms at the Las Vegas Convention Center lost power. Power in the South Hall was restored within minutes, and power has now been fully restored to all areas. A preliminary assessment indicates that condensation from heavy rainfall caused a flashover on one of the facility's transformers. We are grateful to NV Energy for their swift assistance, to our customers and their clients for their patience and to the staff for ensuring the safety and security of all attendees and exhibitors."
Power goes out in India, affecting 600 million
A power outage struck India's northern and eastern electrical grids earlier today, hitting around 600 million people -- that's roughly half of the country's population of 1.2 billion -- cutting off electricity to businesses, transit and traffic lights, to name but a few. The power failure hit around 1pm local time "without warning" according to the electric company. The incident follows another major outage the day prior, which affected around 300 million people. Regions have taken to seeking out alternative energy sources such as hydro power, with local business utilizing backup diesel generators and the like, which have helped keep hospitals and airports in service. [Photo by NASA]
Hand-cranked vending machine offers products sans power, refreshments during emergencies (video)
Ever needed to grab a bottle of water only to find the vending machine you've spotted is without power? The folks in Japan have, especially in the period immediately following natural disasters. The solution? Easy. A hand-cranked vending machine that still affords you the option of your desired food or beverage even during an emergency when the power is down. Sanden, a Japanese vending outfit, has developed the system that would allow the country's 5.5 million machines to run sans electricity or solar power and rely on good ol' fashioned muscle. You'll just need to dish out 70 cranks, in addition to the cost of your selection, and in about 20 seconds the kit powers on. The machine shown here will dispense around seven bottles before needing a full re-crank and there's no word on what the additional cost per vending unit will be. For look at the tech in action, hit the video above and prepare for a bicep workout.
Sony intros 200-pound battery to power businesses, government agencies during a blackout
In the five months since a tsunami and 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit Japan, we've seen various technology companies struggle to get their manufacturing operations back in order, but Sony appears to be the first to introduce a product seemingly inspired by the disaster itself. The outfit's Japanese division just announced the ESSP-2000, a 90kg (198-pound)battery whose 2.4kWh of power should keep businesses and government agencies afloat for at least a few hours in the event of a blackout or natural disaster. All told, the battery can support a maximum load of 1000VA, and can recharge to 95 percent in about two hours -- not bad, considering the capacity of this thing. Sony also went with olivine-type lithium-ion iron phosphate batteries, which it says will last ten years. With a price of ¥2 million ($25,700), this battery's clearly not meant to be a savior for home users, though for businesses it could be a small price to pay for an uninterrupted power supply.
Split second power outage may lead to drop in Toshiba chip shipments
It's more than a little crazy to think about, but a 0.07-second power disruption in Japan yesterday may have just caused as much as a 20 percent drop in chip shipments from Toshiba. The root of the problem is that the backup system at Toshiba's Yokkaichi memory chip plant failed to kick in because the brief drop in voltage was more severe than the system was designed for, which has not only forced the plant to halt production until Friday, but may have caused irreparable damage to scores of chips in production at the time of the outage. As The Wall Street Journal reports, it's still not clear exactly how much damage was caused, but if, for instance, the systems controlling the so-called clean room were shut off, all chips inside would likely be ruined. The good news, such as it is, is that there isn't likely to be a worldwide shortage as a result of the outage -- Toshiba plans to adjust their output accordingly early next year, and it notes that demand is usually slow in January and February anyway following the holiday shopping season.
Samsung to receive insurance payout for power outage damage
Merely hours after a substantial blackout halted six chip production lines in a complex operated by the world's largest flash memory producer, Samsung is now expected to "get insurance payments from a local insurer for the damage received during Friday's power outage." Reportedly, the firm's contract with Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance will cover the damage, which is currently estimated to be somewhere near $40 million. Of note, the exact cause of the outage is still unknown, and it was stated that it would take "considerable amounts of time" to look into before the losses are finally calculated. Furthermore, some analysts have speculated that it "would take weeks for the plants to reach full capacity," and if this does indeed prove true, supplies to electronic-product makers "will likely remain constrained and prices will stay high." Read - Samsung Gets Insurance Payout for Power Outage DamageRead - Samsung Restarts Plants, Damage Resulting [Subscription required]
Samsung resumes chip production, minifies losses
Merely hours after Samsung was staring at "at least" $54 million in losses from an unexpected power outage at its Giheung complex, the firm is now reporting that the half dozen production lines are "fully operational." Moreover, the outfit is now projecting losses to peak at around $43 million, which actually doesn't sound too horrific compared to prior estimates. It was noted, however, that the disruption could extend a shortage of NAND flash memory through "at least the first half of August," and reports are already claiming that prices of select NAND chips have risen "6.3-percent to a record $19.02."
Power outage halts Samsung's flash memory production, shortages expected
Samsung, the worldwide leader in flash memory production, has been forced to "shut down six of its chip production lines after a power outage occurred at a plant near Seoul," and while recent reports suggest that "operations should be restored within a day," the lasting effects could linger on for quite some time. Reportedly, the outage occurred at Samsung's Giheung complex and disrupted production of flash memory, DRAM, and logic chips, and while this may not sound too significant to the average outsider, estimates are already pegging losses at around $54 million. Notably, Samsung wouldn't say whether or not the hiccup will affect supplies of memory chips to Apple (one of its top customers), but analysts are already purporting that we could see "a severe shortage of NAND chips" and increased prices in the coming weeks.[Thanks, Patrick M.]Read - Samsung Electronics chip output hit by power cutRead - Samsung operations should be restored within a day
Cellphone lights enable operation to proceed in blackout
Hearing that a cellphone saved someone's life isn't exactly surprising these days, but it was the manner in which a bundle of handsets enabled doctors to continue on in a recent operation that differentiated this one from the rest. Reportedly, the backup generators at the Policlinico Juan D. Peron hospital in Argentina failed to activate after the power went out whilst an appendix surgery was ongoing, but rather than panicking, a family member gathered up a number of phones in order to provide enough light for the surgeons and anesthetists to keep on keepin' on. According to the hospital director, the operation went on without proper lighting for no more than 20 minutes, but thanks to the beaming LCDs, the fellow under the knife came through just fine.[Via Switched, image courtesy of foto8]
How-To: Network your UPS
Lately, the power grid appears to have gone to hell. An Uninterruptible Power Supply(UPS) just isn't an optional piece of equipment anymore -- it's not for nothing that very decent UPS has a computer interface port. If your computer is connected to the port, and the software is set up, the UPS can tell your computer to safely shut down before the battery runs out.Got a couple of machines sharing a UPS? In today's How-To, we'll show you how to use your network to shut down all of the computers plugged into it and keep your precious data safe.
