If you’ve recently purchased an HP Chromebook 11, be warned. HP and Google are cautioning the chargers included with the unit are prone to overheat. The companies have stopped sale of the product after receiving reports from consumers. Recalls have also begun from some overseas retailers.
In duplicate posts on both companies’ official websites, representatives explained:
“We are working with the Consumer Product Safety Commission to identify the appropriate corrective action, and will provide additional information and instructions as soon as we can.
In the meantime, customers who have purchased an HP Chromebook 11 should not use the original charger provided with the product. In the interim they may continue using their HP Chromebook 11 with any other Underwriters Laboratories-listed micro-USB charger, for example one provided with a tablet or smartphone.”
Neither company has been specific about the number of reports received from users other than to say it is “small.”
Google Vice President of Product Management Caesar Sengupta and Worldwide Public Relations Representative at Hewlett Packard Sheila Watson said problems were limited to damage to some chargers.
However, a recall notice from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said the faulty charger could be at risk of melting and catching fire, reports CRN.
Neither company is obviously taking any chances.
Image: Google
I’m thinking for the charger to overheat, it wasn’t tested out long enough to throw up, isolate and fix an eventuality such as the one that occurred; they didn’t put in the man hours to test it to its limit/s. I could be wrong, but that’s how it comes across to me.
I guess this is bigger than a simple “Oops”. How do products get mass produced without sufficient testing these days?
My thoughts exactly, Robert. How can a product get the go-ahead to a market release if it hasn’t been thoroughly tested? And if it has been thoroughly tested (which the argument may be from them), then how did that fault slip through?
Aira Bongco
It’s scary. What’s even more scary is the damage that can happen because of their mass production. Trust me. I had my own experience with low quality electronics and I don’t want that to happen again.
Rick
HP announced this back in early November. The real news story is that it’s been four weeks and still no announcement on a fix.
Matt
Agreed Rick. We are on our second Chromebook. The first stopped turning on, and google said it was because of the charger. We received a replacement and now that has stopped working in a matter of days. We both really love this chromebook, if it worked of course. Even more appalling is that they said we could use any other charge, but did not ship a charger with the replacement, of any kind!
Hmm, that’s not good at all, Matt. It seems to me Chromebook is a problem as well as the charger. And then for them to not send you a replacement charger – that’s just bad customer service – total lack of thought considering the reason the charger’s faulty is down to them.
Janet
The manufacturing facility probably didn’t use the proper parts, either as a cost-cutting move or due to supply constraints.
May very well be the case, Janet. May very well be. If it was indeed that, they now stand the risk of potentially having to pay several times over for trying to cut corners.