1) To me, the title and article make it sound like Apple is blaming the customer on having used 3rd-party batteries at all, but that's silly since Apple doesn't make AAA.
2) Has anyone else jumped from disposable batteries to only using Eneloop (or similar rechargeable batteries) for all their needs. I only need AA, AAA, and a few 9-Volts these days. They last considerably longer than disposable batteries and my math says it'll reduce both my cost and waste.
I only use rechargeable batteries, everybody should!
Why, because it's better for you? Many use cases where rechargeables are not practical or desirable. Smart people usually avoid absolute statements.
1) To me, the title and article make it sound like Apple is blaming the customer on having used 3rd-party batteries at all, but that's silly since Apple doesn't make AAA.
2) Has anyone else jumped from disposable batteries to only using Eneloop (or similar rechargeable batteries) for all their needs. I only need AA, AAA, and a few 9-Volts these days. They last considerably longer than disposable batteries and my math says it'll reduce both my cost and waste.
I only use rechargeable batteries, everybody should!
Why, because it's better for you? Many use cases where rechargeables are not practical or desirable. Smart people usually avoid absolute statements.
I agree that absolute statements can paint one into a corner, but I am having a hard time seeing how rechargeable batteries have a downside for personal items. If it's a gift, it would be great to include rechargeable batteries—hell, make the gift rechargeable batteries and charger—but it's the one area where I can understand why one wouldn't have to both save money and the environment. What's the counter to, say, having a digital scale that takes 4 AAA batteries that I can now charge once every 6 months instead of replacing every 45 days?
2) Has anyone else jumped from disposable batteries to only using Eneloop (or similar rechargeable batteries) for all their needs. I only need AA, AAA, and a few 9-Volts these days. They last considerably longer than disposable batteries and my math says it'll reduce both my cost and waste.
Your math is correct. I've transitioned from disposable to NiMH and Lithium Ion for all my AA, AAA and 9volt needs (18650 too). It's great, buy them once and that's it for the next 5-10 years. One does have to keep a few chargers around, but that beats throwing away 50-100 batteries a year.
If the rechargeable batteries are made properly. There are cases where manufacturers have been found to make inferior batteries to sell more batteries more often, at greater profit, even when they're rechargeable.
Because it's a woman with a black face from the AAA battery explosion.
At first glance it looked like a beard!
At first glance, because I read the headline and looked at the photo with some sense of paying attention, it looked like a woman with blackened skin from batteries burning up against her head. Beards don't look like that. At least, not real beards made of hair. Maybe some grease paint for stage beards looks like this but come on...
do you want money for the facial burns and hair loss? "No, just a new pair of headphones and a replacement t-shirt"
Exactly. The fact that these lawyers are only looking for replacement headphones and clothes actually makes them more suspicious than typical lawyers.
Or more reasonable. If she didn't get seriously burned, it's hard to demand compensation for something that cannot be demonstrated. The blackened skin in the photo is possibly mostly smoke debris from the batteries.
1) To me, the title and article make it sound like Apple is blaming the customer on having used 3rd-party batteries at all, but that's silly since Apple doesn't make AAA.
2) Has anyone else jumped from disposable batteries to only using Eneloop (or similar rechargeable batteries) for all their needs. I only need AA, AAA, and a few 9-Volts these days. They last considerably longer than disposable batteries and my math says it'll reduce both my cost and waste.
I only use rechargeable batteries, everybody should!
Why, because it's better for you? Many use cases where rechargeables are not practical or desirable. Smart people usually avoid absolute statements.
I agree that absolute statements can paint one into a corner, but I am having a hard time seeing how rechargeable batteries have a downside for personal items. If it's a gift, it would be great to include rechargeable batteries—hell, make the gift rechargeable batteries and charger—but it's the one area where I can understand why one wouldn't have to both save money and the environment. What's the counter to, say, having a digital scale that takes 4 AAA batteries that I can now charge once every 6 months instead of replacing every 45 days?
There are some items for which rechargeable batteries aren't worth it. Our TV remote had the same set of Alkalines for 4 years. The return on investment there is too long to make rechargeables worth it. The other thing I worry about is the mining and environmental cost of Lithium vs alkaline.
I'm in the somewhat unique situation of being able to get AA batteries from work that are only slightly used but will be otherwise discarded. It's hard to make an argument against free batteries!
As for the case, it sounds like the woman purchased defective batteries, so there would have been a problem no matter what the brand of headphone she used
1) To me, the title and article make it sound like Apple is blaming the customer on having used 3rd-party batteries at all, but that's silly since Apple doesn't make AAA.
2) Has anyone else jumped from disposable batteries to only using Eneloop (or similar rechargeable batteries) for all their needs. I only need AA, AAA, and a few 9-Volts these days. They last considerably longer than disposable batteries and my math says it'll reduce both my cost and waste.
I only use rechargeable batteries, everybody should!
Why, because it's better for you? Many use cases where rechargeables are not practical or desirable. Smart people usually avoid absolute statements.
I agree that absolute statements can paint one into a corner, but I am having a hard time seeing how rechargeable batteries have a downside for personal items. If it's a gift, it would be great to include rechargeable batteries—hell, make the gift rechargeable batteries and charger—but it's the one area where I can understand why one wouldn't have to both save money and the environment. What's the counter to, say, having a digital scale that takes 4 AAA batteries that I can now charge once every 6 months instead of replacing every 45 days?
Cost is an important factor for people. Rechargeable batteries that are well made are more costly and the recharger is also costly, when compared to infrequent disposable battery usage.
Rechargeables require the consumer to do investigative work before purchase (to avoid garbage rechargeable batteries and chargers that offer no benefit over disposables).
Rechargeable batteries also require careful usage to maintain their rechargeable and usable lifespan (unless that has changed: don't let them sit around uncharged or unused, for example).
It's not a great purchase for occasional usage in one or two gadgets. If you have a lot of battery-powered items, the value improves.
When you're poor, there are a lot of things that don't rank as a priority. Unfortunately, disposables make more sense to poor people who are just looking for a battery to power a TV remote or a kid's toy for occasional usage.
oas far as i know almost all products that take regular batteries are designed to work with either non rechargeable or rechargeable batteries knowing that there is a difference in voltage (1.5v vs 1.2v) and certainly if you put the wrong ones in worst case is just doesn't work... so apple is being ridiculous if it is saying that she should not have used 3rd party batteries... you don't want people to use non apple batteries then like my camera use a different shape or like why iPhone don't allow battery change. if you design your headphones to support standard shape then assume people will use standard batteries of that specification. now, that said, the question is whether the battery blew up due to a headset problem or a battery problem, either is possible, and apple and the battery manufacturer should work together to figure out which...
that's not what Apple is saying. Apple is saying the third party batteries are to blame. Some Apple and the customer didn't make the batteries, it's third party. Apple isn't saying all third party batteries are the problem.
At least Apple should give this poor woman a new pair of their latest and best Beats when the whole lawyer thing is over...good for publicity.
Btw: If the Beats had a built-in rechargeable battery, Apple would be responsible for the explosion, no matter who the manufacturer of the built-in rechargeable battery was. Apple sells the product, they are responsible for the product and all it's components. Then, after compensating the victim, they could legally go after the manufacturer of the battery. In this case however, it wasn't Apple's fault!
Yeah why are they asking Apple to compensate them if its the batteries? It doesn't matter if it says anything on the outside of the box. The batteries exploded, plain and simple. It doesn't matter what they were in. If they can show that the headphones caused the batteries to explode thats a different story, but if its just simply the batteries themselves that had fault you need to look to the battery manufacturer, not Apple. But like @SpamSandwich said, lawyers always go to the company with the most money.
Sorry but when my headphones would explode the first company I would turn to is the maker of the headphones. If they do a thorough investigation and can plausible explain that their electronics was working within the allowed parameters and that they suspect it was the batteries, then I would turn to the manufacturer of the batteries. But all we can read in the AI report is that Apple is blaming the batteries, nothing about what Apple did during the investigation. Could just be shortened reporting.
Yeah why are they asking Apple to compensate them if its the batteries? It doesn't matter if it says anything on the outside of the box. The batteries exploded, plain and simple. It doesn't matter what they were in. If they can show that the headphones caused the batteries to explode thats a different story, but if its just simply the batteries themselves that had fault you need to look to the battery manufacturer, not Apple. But like @SpamSandwich said, lawyers always go to the company with the most money.
Sorry but when my headphones would explode the first company I would turn to is the maker of the headphones. If they do a thorough investigation and can plausible explain that their electronics was working within the allowed parameters and that they suspect it was the batteries, then I would turn to the manufacturer of the batteries. But all we can read in the AI report is that Apple is blaming the batteries, nothing about what Apple did during the investigation. Could just be shortened reporting.
There is absolutely nothing in a pair of headphones that could explode *except* the batteries -- and since these were removable AAAs and weren't the original batteries shipped w/ the headphones, theres no reason the first company to turn to should be Apple. it's nonsense.
At least Apple should give this poor woman a new pair of their latest and best Beats when the whole lawyer thing is over...good for publicity.
Btw: If the Beats had a built-in rechargeable battery, Apple would be responsible for the explosion, no matter who the manufacturer of the built-in rechargeable battery was. Apple sells the product, they are responsible for the product and all it's components. Then, after compensating the victim, they could legally go after the manufacturer of the battery. In this case however, it wasn't Apple's fault!
Comments
At first glance, because I read the headline and looked at the photo with some sense of paying attention, it looked like a woman with blackened skin from batteries burning up against her head. Beards don't look like that. At least, not real beards made of hair. Maybe some grease paint for stage beards looks like this but come on...
I'm in the somewhat unique situation of being able to get AA batteries from work that are only slightly used but will be otherwise discarded. It's hard to make an argument against free batteries!
As for the case, it sounds like the woman purchased defective batteries, so there would have been a problem no matter what the brand of headphone she used
Rechargeables require the consumer to do investigative work before purchase (to avoid garbage rechargeable batteries and chargers that offer no benefit over disposables).
Rechargeable batteries also require careful usage to maintain their rechargeable and usable lifespan (unless that has changed: don't let them sit around uncharged or unused, for example).
It's not a great purchase for occasional usage in one or two gadgets. If you have a lot of battery-powered items, the value improves.
When you're poor, there are a lot of things that don't rank as a priority. Unfortunately, disposables make more sense to poor people who are just looking for a battery to power a TV remote or a kid's toy for occasional usage.
Btw: If the Beats had a built-in rechargeable battery, Apple would be responsible for the explosion, no matter who the manufacturer of the built-in rechargeable battery was. Apple sells the product, they are responsible for the product and all it's components. Then, after compensating the victim, they could legally go after the manufacturer of the battery. In this case however, it wasn't Apple's fault!
If they do a thorough investigation and can plausible explain that their electronics was working within the allowed parameters and that they suspect it was the batteries, then I would turn to the manufacturer of the batteries.
But all we can read in the AI report is that Apple is blaming the batteries, nothing about what Apple did during the investigation. Could just be shortened reporting.