Electrocution is so common in Thailand it could easily be call a national Passed time.
First thing I did with my house in Thailand is have the electrics re-done. I have the before and after pictures, the before would Shock you (bad pun but true).
Thailand just doesn't get the idea of an earth line. Most places don't have one, which is why I had mine rewired. Despite buying the copper rods, earth cables and three pin power sockets, and checking that asking for confirmation every day that the earth wires were being used, when the work was done, the only thing actually earthed was my shower (which was certainly the most important). For the rest, even though all the three pin sockets had been installed, a quick test revealed none were earthed. Sigh.
This story is here because it's an iPhone charger (and the vast majority of iPhones here are knock-offs anyway).
There is a real story here, but it has nothing to do with iPhones, and everything to do with Thais and Electrocutions.
Babies
Tourists
Thais
Way too many deaths.
That may be true, but in this case the iPhone charger doesn't by law require an earth pin because it has no conductive external parts and is (at least in theory) supposed to be satisfactorily isolated from the mains supply. I get what you're saying but it doesn't apply to this case. Yes, I'm an electrical engineer. The unfortunate case here is that the cheap dodgy charger had insufficient isolation to the mains supply, not that there was an unsatisfactory earth connection. Recall for this reason that the Apple USB chargers don't use earth pins either. However the Apple power supplies would have top notch thoroughly tested isolation of mains in case of internal fault...
That may be true, but in this case the iPhone charger doesn't by law require an earth pin because it has no conductive external parts and is (at least in theory) supposed to be satisfactorily isolated from the mains supply. I get what you're saying but it doesn't apply to this case. Yes, I'm an electrical engineer. The unfortunate case here is that the cheap dodgy charger had insufficient isolation to the mains supply, not that there was an unsatisfactory earth connection. Recall for this reason that the Apple USB chargers don't use earth pins either. However the Apple power supplies would have top notch thoroughly tested isolation of mains in case of internal fault..
Yes, after I posted I was suddenly struck by the thought that an electrical engineer would pick up on that. It's your vocation/profession so of course you have to. But if you work the problem backwards, to why these dodgy chargers are the norm here, it comes down to the cavalier attitude towards electricity.
I really didn't want to do this, but now I feel compelled to, it's my vocation. Here are the before and after pictures (or as AppleInsider likes to show them, the after and before).
Seriously, a tourist died in the floods here two years ago, because the floodwater he was walking through to get back to his hotel became live.
I bought a fake Thai charger by mistake last time I was in the country. Totally had me fooled....until it started falling apart 1 month later. The Power cord perished at a rapid rate with the outer insulator literally crumbling away in front of my eyes.
In today's news, a third party bluetooth keyboard that could possibly connect to an iPad was used to beat a baby seal to a bloody pulp. Seal's parents sue Apple. In later news, it appears that the Seal's parents were actually Samsung managers dressed up in seal costumes. After several hours of questioning by the authorities, it appears this deceptive ploy was concocted from a company "Crisis Awareness" team meeting at Samsung headquarters.
Did this happen before or after his marriage to Heidi Klum dissolved? Might be an extra pain and suffering claim to be made there.
I bought a fake Thai charger by mistake last time I was in the country. Totally had me fooled....until it started falling apart 1 month later. The Power cord perished at a rapid rate with the outer insulator literally crumbling away in front of my eyes.
But where did you buy it and how much did you pay? Was it at an authorized reseller or from some random street vendor?
Is this article a reprint or did an AI staffer write it? Because if it was written by an AI staffer they should be let go. The first sentence is misleading and could have been written by Samsung itself.
“Another iPhone electrocution...” should have been “Another third party charger electrocution...” The iPhone, assuming it was indeed being charged by a knock-off charger, didn’t electrocute anyone. The charger did. Does Apple have to suffer at the hands of so-called friendly blog sites too?
What really bothers me about news items like this is the misleading headline. It attempts to grab the reader's attention with shock, at the expense of the truth. This man did not die because he was charging an iPhone 4S. He died because he was using a knockoff charger and fell asleep on it. I understand that site owners want to pull you into their website, but these type of titles get seen by other "news" websites and the article and title gets picked up and repeated until it becomes the truth.
What really bothers me about news items like this is the misleading headline. It attempts to grab the reader's attention with shock, at the expense of the truth. This man did not die because he was charging an iPhone 4S. He died because he was using a knockoff charger and fell asleep on it. I understand that site owners want to pull you into their website, but these type of titles get seen by other "news" websites and the article and title gets picked up and repeated until it becomes the truth.
Just my 2 cents.
I share the same feeling about those kind of news, I think having a iProduct in a story is what made any incident an international news story every time. I'm pretty sure there is many more electrocution incident involving cheap knock off electronics every day, but since it doesn't involve an Apple product there is nothing for the press to write about.
Slashdot got an interesting article today about Telsa getting an unfair treatment from the press when Ford doesn't get any attention when they do a massive recall for the same issue.
I learned a lesson about cheap knock-off chargers/cables...nothing terrible happened to me, but my friend bought a 10' charging cable for his iPad for mere cents off eBay from China. A month after getting it, one night he smelled smoke and then saw the cable shoot a few sparks and burn out at the 30-pin connector. Thankfully the iPad is ok and the cable replaced with a much shorter genuine Apple cable.
He bought it so he could charge his iPad and watch movies at the same time in bed and the nearest outlet to his bed was too far for the standard length Apple cable. He'll just have to charge it to full and watch movies unplugged from now on.
I learned a lesson about cheap knock-off chargers/cables...nothing terrible happened to me, but my friend bought a 10' charging cable for his iPad for mere cents off eBay from China. A month after getting it, one night he smelled smoke and then saw the cable shoot a few sparks and burn out at the 30-pin connector. Thankfully the iPad is ok and the cable replaced with a much shorter genuine Apple cable.
He bought it so he could charge his iPad and watch movies at the same time in bed and the nearest outlet to his bed was too far for the standard length Apple cable. He'll just have to charge it to full and watch movies unplugged from now on.
The rule of thumb is avoid buy/use anything you can't identify a brand on it. If the mfg is ashamed to put his name on it, why you should trust their product?
Unfortunately, your headline gives the impression that this was caused by an iPhone BRAND (i.e., Apple) charger. I realize that the article clarifies this, but many people only read headlines and are likely to be misled. Your headline, to be accurate, should have read something like:
"Thai man dies after alleged electrocution from using Fake iPhone 4S Charger"
One thing I think we should consider is that few, if any, of us would do a hard check of an AC wall charger before using it if our device is dead. This is not the same as deciding to save a $7 on a cheap AC charger replacement, which I don't think most of us would do, but rather checking if an AC charger is of acceptable quality before using it when in a pinch.
Case in point, when traveling I sometimes have required another person's AC charger for a quick charge and have never once checked to make sure it was up to spec before using it. Frankly I wouldn't even know what to look for except to look for an Apple logo and that green dot they put on their newer 5W chargers but if I were in China that could still be a quality looking knock off and a 3rd-party option could still be abiding by safety specs.
I suppose our bet bets is to stick with name brands and if you need to charge on the run you're safest solution is to use a USB port on a PC.
One thing I think we should consider is that few, if any, of us would do a hard check of an AC wall charger before using it if our device is dead. This is not the same as deciding to save a $7 on a cheap AC charger replacement, which I don't think most of us would do, but rather checking if an AC charger is of acceptable quality before using it when in a pinch.
Case in point, when traveling I sometimes have required another person's AC charger for a quick charge and have never once checked to make sure it was up to spec before using it. Frankly I wouldn't even know what to look for except to look for an Apple logo and that green dot they put on their newer 5W chargers but if I were in China that could still be a quality looking knock off and a 3rd-party option could still be abiding by safety specs.
I suppose our bet bets is to stick with name brands and if you need to charge on the run you're safest solution is to use a USB port on a PC.
The hazard clearly exists but, from the rates of occurrence that are reported, the risk is probably very low even with 3rd party chargers. That said, I believe that one of the two common fault modes in a switched-mode power supply is failure of the switching transistor - typically shorting the full input voltage to the output. That should rapidly blow the main fuse (if included in the design...) but, if one were unlucky enough to be in contact when it happens, it could be fatal.
The hazard clearly exists but, from the rates of occurrence that are reported, the risk is probably very low even with 3rd party chargers. That said, I believe that one of the two common fault modes in a switched-mode power supply is failure of the switching transistor - typically shorting the full input voltage to the output. That should rapidly blow the main fuse (if included in the design...) but, if one were unlucky enough to be in contact when it happens, it could be fatal.
There are also several unknowns (at least to me). We know that cheap knock-offs are very common in the countries these issues are being reported but I'm curious if that is just one of least two factors that leads to a higher than normal likelihood of fatal injury.
For instance, how does their AC power differ from other countries? How do their plug designs differ? Is it inherently more or less dangerous? IOW, do any of these a factors increase the odds of injury in a way that would not occur in another country even if using the same wall charger?
The hazard clearly exists but, from the rates of occurrence that are reported, the risk is probably very low even with 3rd party chargers. That said, I believe that one of the two common fault modes in a switched-mode power supply is failure of the switching transistor - typically shorting the full input voltage to the output. That should rapidly blow the main fuse (if included in the design...) but, if one were unlucky enough to be in contact when it happens, it could be fatal.
There are also several unknowns (at least to me). We know that cheap knock-offs are very common in the countries these issues are being reported but I'm curious if that is just one of least two factors that leads to a higher than normal likelihood of fatal injury.
For instance, how does their AC power differ from other countries? How do their plug designs differ? Is it inherently more or less dangerous? IOW, do any of these a factors increase the odds of injury in a way that would not occur in another country even if using the same wall charger?
That's also a good point. I think it's a pretty safe bet that the AC voltage supply regulation is poorer than in the west, and I've heard that large voltage excursions are not uncommon. That, alone, could drive this kind of failure even in a reasonably well designed unit. It's probably too much to expect serious overvoltage protection in inexpensive consumer items.
I learned a lesson about cheap knock-off chargers/cables...nothing terrible happened to me, but my friend bought a 10' charging cable for his iPad for mere cents off eBay from China. A month after getting it, one night he smelled smoke and then saw the cable shoot a few sparks and burn out at the 30-pin connector. Thankfully the iPad is ok and the cable replaced with a much shorter genuine Apple cable.
He bought it so he could charge his iPad and watch movies at the same time in bed and the nearest outlet to his bed was too far for the standard length Apple cable. He'll just have to charge it to full and watch movies unplugged from now on.
Or your friend could buy a $5 extension cord. Good lord.
Comments
Electrocution is so common in Thailand it could easily be call a national Passed time.
First thing I did with my house in Thailand is have the electrics re-done. I have the before and after pictures, the before would Shock you (bad pun but true).
Thailand just doesn't get the idea of an earth line. Most places don't have one, which is why I had mine rewired. Despite buying the copper rods, earth cables and three pin power sockets, and checking that asking for confirmation every day that the earth wires were being used, when the work was done, the only thing actually earthed was my shower (which was certainly the most important). For the rest, even though all the three pin sockets had been installed, a quick test revealed none were earthed. Sigh.
This story is here because it's an iPhone charger (and the vast majority of iPhones here are knock-offs anyway).
There is a real story here, but it has nothing to do with iPhones, and everything to do with Thais and Electrocutions.
Babies
Tourists
Thais
Way too many deaths.
That may be true, but in this case the iPhone charger doesn't by law require an earth pin because it has no conductive external parts and is (at least in theory) supposed to be satisfactorily isolated from the mains supply. I get what you're saying but it doesn't apply to this case. Yes, I'm an electrical engineer. The unfortunate case here is that the cheap dodgy charger had insufficient isolation to the mains supply, not that there was an unsatisfactory earth connection. Recall for this reason that the Apple USB chargers don't use earth pins either. However the Apple power supplies would have top notch thoroughly tested isolation of mains in case of internal fault...
Yes, after I posted I was suddenly struck by the thought that an electrical engineer would pick up on that. It's your vocation/profession so of course you have to. But if you work the problem backwards, to why these dodgy chargers are the norm here, it comes down to the cavalier attitude towards electricity.
I really didn't want to do this, but now I feel compelled to, it's my vocation. Here are the before and after pictures (or as AppleInsider likes to show them, the after and before).
Seriously, a tourist died in the floods here two years ago, because the floodwater he was walking through to get back to his hotel became live.
Najinsky
I bought a fake Thai charger by mistake last time I was in the country. Totally had me fooled....until it started falling apart 1 month later. The Power cord perished at a rapid rate with the outer insulator literally crumbling away in front of my eyes.
Did this happen before or after his marriage to Heidi Klum dissolved? Might be an extra pain and suffering claim to be made there.
But where did you buy it and how much did you pay? Was it at an authorized reseller or from some random street vendor?
Is this article a reprint or did an AI staffer write it? Because if it was written by an AI staffer they should be let go. The first sentence is misleading and could have been written by Samsung itself.
“Another iPhone electrocution...” should have been “Another third party charger electrocution...” The iPhone, assuming it was indeed being charged by a knock-off charger, didn’t electrocute anyone. The charger did. Does Apple have to suffer at the hands of so-called friendly blog sites too?
What really bothers me about news items like this is the misleading headline. It attempts to grab the reader's attention with shock, at the expense of the truth. This man did not die because he was charging an iPhone 4S. He died because he was using a knockoff charger and fell asleep on it. I understand that site owners want to pull you into their website, but these type of titles get seen by other "news" websites and the article and title gets picked up and repeated until it becomes the truth.
Just my 2 cents.
What really bothers me about news items like this is the misleading headline. It attempts to grab the reader's attention with shock, at the expense of the truth. This man did not die because he was charging an iPhone 4S. He died because he was using a knockoff charger and fell asleep on it. I understand that site owners want to pull you into their website, but these type of titles get seen by other "news" websites and the article and title gets picked up and repeated until it becomes the truth.
Just my 2 cents.
I share the same feeling about those kind of news, I think having a iProduct in a story is what made any incident an international news story every time. I'm pretty sure there is many more electrocution incident involving cheap knock off electronics every day, but since it doesn't involve an Apple product there is nothing for the press to write about.
Slashdot got an interesting article today about Telsa getting an unfair treatment from the press when Ford doesn't get any attention when they do a massive recall for the same issue.
He bought it so he could charge his iPad and watch movies at the same time in bed and the nearest outlet to his bed was too far for the standard length Apple cable. He'll just have to charge it to full and watch movies unplugged from now on.
I learned a lesson about cheap knock-off chargers/cables...nothing terrible happened to me, but my friend bought a 10' charging cable for his iPad for mere cents off eBay from China. A month after getting it, one night he smelled smoke and then saw the cable shoot a few sparks and burn out at the 30-pin connector. Thankfully the iPad is ok and the cable replaced with a much shorter genuine Apple cable.
He bought it so he could charge his iPad and watch movies at the same time in bed and the nearest outlet to his bed was too far for the standard length Apple cable. He'll just have to charge it to full and watch movies unplugged from now on.
The rule of thumb is avoid buy/use anything you can't identify a brand on it. If the mfg is ashamed to put his name on it, why you should trust their product?
"Thai man dies after alleged electrocution from using Fake iPhone 4S Charger"
Case in point, when traveling I sometimes have required another person's AC charger for a quick charge and have never once checked to make sure it was up to spec before using it. Frankly I wouldn't even know what to look for except to look for an Apple logo and that green dot they put on their newer 5W chargers but if I were in China that could still be a quality looking knock off and a 3rd-party option could still be abiding by safety specs.
I suppose our bet bets is to stick with name brands and if you need to charge on the run you're safest solution is to use a USB port on a PC.
Is that your idea for the "iMurder" episode of the Murder She Wrote reboot starring Octavia Spencer?
One thing I think we should consider is that few, if any, of us would do a hard check of an AC wall charger before using it if our device is dead. This is not the same as deciding to save a $7 on a cheap AC charger replacement, which I don't think most of us would do, but rather checking if an AC charger is of acceptable quality before using it when in a pinch.
Case in point, when traveling I sometimes have required another person's AC charger for a quick charge and have never once checked to make sure it was up to spec before using it. Frankly I wouldn't even know what to look for except to look for an Apple logo and that green dot they put on their newer 5W chargers but if I were in China that could still be a quality looking knock off and a 3rd-party option could still be abiding by safety specs.
I suppose our bet bets is to stick with name brands and if you need to charge on the run you're safest solution is to use a USB port on a PC.
The hazard clearly exists but, from the rates of occurrence that are reported, the risk is probably very low even with 3rd party chargers. That said, I believe that one of the two common fault modes in a switched-mode power supply is failure of the switching transistor - typically shorting the full input voltage to the output. That should rapidly blow the main fuse (if included in the design...) but, if one were unlucky enough to be in contact when it happens, it could be fatal.
There are also several unknowns (at least to me). We know that cheap knock-offs are very common in the countries these issues are being reported but I'm curious if that is just one of least two factors that leads to a higher than normal likelihood of fatal injury.
For instance, how does their AC power differ from other countries? How do their plug designs differ? Is it inherently more or less dangerous? IOW, do any of these a factors increase the odds of injury in a way that would not occur in another country even if using the same wall charger?
The hazard clearly exists but, from the rates of occurrence that are reported, the risk is probably very low even with 3rd party chargers. That said, I believe that one of the two common fault modes in a switched-mode power supply is failure of the switching transistor - typically shorting the full input voltage to the output. That should rapidly blow the main fuse (if included in the design...) but, if one were unlucky enough to be in contact when it happens, it could be fatal.
There are also several unknowns (at least to me). We know that cheap knock-offs are very common in the countries these issues are being reported but I'm curious if that is just one of least two factors that leads to a higher than normal likelihood of fatal injury.
For instance, how does their AC power differ from other countries? How do their plug designs differ? Is it inherently more or less dangerous? IOW, do any of these a factors increase the odds of injury in a way that would not occur in another country even if using the same wall charger?
That's also a good point. I think it's a pretty safe bet that the AC voltage supply regulation is poorer than in the west, and I've heard that large voltage excursions are not uncommon. That, alone, could drive this kind of failure even in a reasonably well designed unit. It's probably too much to expect serious overvoltage protection in inexpensive consumer items.
Or your friend could buy a $5 extension cord. Good lord.