Xbox throws sparks despite replacement power cord, Microsoft denies everything ever
by Ben Striegel 
{ Mar 23rd 2005 at 2:00PM }
Remember that whole mid-February Xbox power cord
recall, where Microsoft determined that as many as 14 million Xboxes might have defective power cords? More
importantly, remember that particular conspiracy theory
that stated that the real problem lay with the Xboxes themselves rather than with the power cords? Well, a report from
Sweden claims that a man's Xbox, outfitted with one of said replacement cords, threw sparks in his face and filled his
apartment with the odor of smoke when he tried to plug it in. Meanwhile, many people have been citing problems with the
power supply as the culprit behind the malfunctions, even going so far as to take apart their Xbox to take photos of
the damaged hardware. What does Microsoft have to say amidst all this?
"A single report recently surfaced that inaccurately speculates that the recently announced power cord replacement
for Xbox is somehow related to broken "solder joints" inside of early Xbox consoles. This report is simply not true. In
rare cases, solder joints have broken. This issue is not associated with the power cord replacement program, nor is it
unique to the Foxlink power supplies or even Xbox consoles.
All consumer electronics products experience some broken solder joints as a result of ordinary wear and tear. Broken
solder joints inside the Xbox are a warranty issue. All Xbox consoles (even without a replacement cord) have been
designed to insure that a broken solder joint does not present any safety issue."
Riiight… So you'll be replacing that guy's Xbox, then? C'mon, you could use some good PR right about now.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tim Trimble @ Dec 18th 2005 10:05PM
I work on Game Consoles as my business and I can confirm that the power supply is a problem. So far I've only seen the cracked solder joints on Version 1.0 systems. I greatly enjoy the XBox system but I'm disappointed at how Microsoft is handling this issue.
Tim
John @ Dec 18th 2005 10:05PM
I think Microsoft made this "unit" (power cord replacement) to detect if your xbox is modded and to fry the MOBO. You can't ship out your xbox to get fixed. So what else can you do? Get another xbox that isn't modded. LOL! Gotta love this BS that Microsoft is doing. My Power cord is fine so I am sticking with it. Peace!