Apple recalls Beats Pill XL speakers due to users report overheating and fire risks
On Wednesday, Apple announced that it was recalling Beats Pill XL wireless speaker due to overheating of batteries that pose a “fire safety risk.”
According to a recall advisory posted by the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, there were eight reports of the Beats Pill XL malfunctioning speakers due to overheating. These included instances of a customer’s finger getting burned and another involved damage to a desk. In the voluntary recall of the Beats Pill XL speakers made by Apple on Wednesday would involve recalling of more than 200,000 speakers in total.
Apple asked people to stop using Beats Pill XL speakers. According to Apple’s recall page, customers can apply for US$325 refund by sending it back to the company. They can also choose to go to an Apple Store and receive in-store credit for the same amount. Apple, which is based in Cupertino, California, said it will send customers boxes for free to return the speakers.
The commission estimated that about 222,000 of the speakers were sold in the United States and another 11,000 in Canada. Starting in January 2014, they were sold at Apple’s stores and websites as well as was also sold at other retailers. No other Apple products or Beats products are affected by the recall, the company said.
According to an Apple representative sales are currently on hold, as reported to Mashable. Several stores in the New York metropolitan area indicate that they are still selling the Pill XL speakers, even though they are listed as unavailable on the company’s online. Whether Apple will fix the overheating issue and continue to sell the Pill XL in stores is still not clear.
The recall is a rare flaw on Apple’s record. The company typically offers repair programs or replacement for faulty devices, not full-on recalls. Last year, it confessed that some batteries of iPhone 5 were losing their charge too soon, and offered to install new ones free of charge. They extended this offer even to customers who had phones outside its normal one-year warranty.
Beats, which also has a streaming music service and makes headphones, launched the Pill XL in November 2013, six months before the company was bought by Apple in a deal valued at US$3 billion.
