Xbox 360 power supply cited in Little Rock fire
by Kyle Orland 
{ Apr 18th 2008 at 10:00PM }
Thankfully no one was hurt in the fire, which did $10,000 worth of damage to the house, but we're a little concerned that it was an Xbox 360 that allegedly caused the fire. Isn't the original Xbox supposed to be the one with the spark-generating, recall-spawning power supply? We thought the Xbox 360's heat problems were usually limited to inside the system (sorry, we had to go there).
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Mark @ Apr 18th 2008 11:14PM
Fanboys goooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo
Evan @ Apr 18th 2008 10:08PM
So the other millions of 360 power cords haven't caused any fires but this one did? Hard for me to believe it is that simple.
Syn @ Apr 18th 2008 10:27PM
Lets add some fuel to the fire.
This is what really went down.
Someone actually got over their fears of RROD and turned it on, only to find out it was a heater in disguise or wait...
In other news, Detroit just scored in Overtime.
Obie @ Apr 19th 2008 12:20AM
Sure! A cow kicked over the xbox...geez...read the facts man!
Zeus.:God @ Apr 18th 2008 10:12PM
Sounds like something else was wrong.
el serpiente @ Apr 19th 2008 1:49AM
Yeah, the problem was they had an xbox in their house in the first place...
IT KILLS, PEOPLE, IT KILLS! IT WILL KILL YOUR CHILDREN AND ALL YOU HOLD DEAR!
Knight Marquise @ Apr 19th 2008 11:21AM
El Serpiente: "Sony Fanbotism at its Best"
Zeus.:God @ Apr 19th 2008 4:41PM
Honestly, this guy HAS to be ranking himself up repeatedly. There is no way there are that many people that agree with him.
el serpiente @ Apr 19th 2008 11:33PM
Dear Joystiq,
Zeus gets very upset when you give me more hearts than him. This hurts his feelings and exacerbates his feelings of inadequacy. Please try to throw him a couple of charity '+'s so he doesn't feel so bad about himself.
Thanks for your attention and consideration.
Yours Truly,
El Serpiente
Zeus.:God @ Apr 19th 2008 11:49PM
El Serpiente, making fun of someone, antagonizing someone, or pretty much calling something out is TROLLING. Thanks for proving me and everyone else right about that.
el serpiente @ Apr 20th 2008 11:42AM
Zeus, how many times do I have to embarrass you until you remove yourself from my jock strap?
Zeus.:God @ Apr 20th 2008 2:21PM
You haven't embarrassed me once, child. Don't fool yourself into believing you have, because you might actually try to start this kind of shit with people in real life- then you would have problems. Dire problems that would end with you crying for your mommy, most likely.
You're a fanboy. You're devoid of all logic. Grow up and shut up, please.
el serpiente @ Apr 20th 2008 8:00PM
Heh, seems I've just made you embarrassed AND angry. Don't let it get to you, Zeusy, it's just the internets. The feelings will fade away.
Zeus.:God @ Apr 20th 2008 10:49PM
El Serpiente, there is no way ANYONE on this Earth, nor in Heaven or Hell, could EVER embarrass me over the INTERNET.
Go outside, young'n, and play with your friends... If you have any.
HighFiveJesus @ Apr 18th 2008 10:13PM
There was that xbox 360 that caused the house to catch on fire and killed that baby.
really sad, but i believe the 360 was the catalyst for that as well.
Zeus.:God @ Apr 18th 2008 10:17PM
Uh really? That house fire you're referring to happened in 2004- before the 360 was released. They claimed it was a 360 but were obviously lying. The fire was caused by a *faulty* Xbox power supply (original Xbox) that had been recalled.
el serpiente @ Apr 19th 2008 1:50AM
Wow, so their hardware was shit last generation as well?
tmacairjordan87 @ Apr 19th 2008 10:26AM
So was sony's hardware last generation. Or has everyone already forgotten the dreaded disc read error?
el serpiente @ Apr 19th 2008 12:43PM
Some have learned from the past, some have not...
Zeus.:God @ Apr 19th 2008 4:42PM
No, they had a power supply (not all power supplies were the same on the original Xbox) that COULD catch fire. They recalled it within the month the 360 was released.
These people apparently didn't listen.
Russell @ Apr 18th 2008 10:13PM
It could be a 3rd party power block, you never know. I've got one
crashedpc @ Apr 18th 2008 10:59PM
Oh, I know about those third party power supplies. I used to work at a company that made them for... the Microsoft steering wheel. You really don't want to know what went on behind the scenes with that.
Scary thing is, last I heard before I quit, they were bidding on making the power supply for the main console itself... *shudder* REALLY don't want to know the shizz I heard/saw when that was going down.
theturtle363 @ Apr 18th 2008 10:13PM
VIDEO GAMES START FIRES! ALERT JACK THOMPSON!
Tiptup300 @ Apr 18th 2008 11:02PM
This guy? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dal-0Z27_CM
Phillip @ Apr 19th 2008 12:32AM
No, game consoles don't have anything to do with fires. They simply bring out fires that were already there to begin with. And since they only serve as a catalyst they should get no blame at all.
Oh, and the other main problem is the parents. The parents should have known better and not let their kids play with a fire-hazard in the house.
tmacairjordan87 @ Apr 18th 2008 10:14PM
Power brick-1
House-0
Round 2 will commence when the opponent can piece himself together.
Ninjakamster @ Apr 18th 2008 10:19PM
Who cares about this? Very very very rare chance of this happened to 360s. I'm still worried about the RROD, I don't care if the repairs are free, I don't want to deal with the hassle, I hope it is/will be fully fixed now. I just want to play it without it crapping out. I don't want that fear.
tmacairjordan87 @ Apr 18th 2008 10:24PM
Specially with GTA 4 right around the corner. I keep getting bad feelings mine will die before the 29th (as it did right before mass effect came out last year) but I'm trying to think happy thoughts. No bad karma for me.
Alexander @ Apr 18th 2008 10:30PM
luckily I'm buying the PS3 version special edition and renting the 360 version
heckthor @ Apr 18th 2008 10:30PM
Im so sorry to tell you but it is inevitable... sooner or later it will happen to You. I used to make Fun of my friends cuz they all got it, and i got mine since launch day and 1 day ago just died... So, just prepare yourself for the hassle of talking to people from MS. Bwa ha ha...
Shmil @ Apr 18th 2008 10:59PM
@Heckthor
You can order your repair online and avoid talking to Indian Microsoft Employees.
License to ill @ Apr 19th 2008 12:50PM
2 years 4 months is how long it took my 360 to finally get the RRoD, so now I'm waiting for the box. Good thing I got a new one as back up. I do find it funny it got the RR right after a live update...
hotnutz @ Apr 20th 2008 11:34AM
Am I the only person who thinks it's wrong that you buy two 360s so that when ones dies, you have another one to play?
I find this complacency for poorly designed products highly unsettling - yes I know that the 360 has some good games for it but when did supporting poor engineering become cool?
If that's the case, I guess Ford, GM and Chrysler will be making a comeback as well.
chris king @ Apr 18th 2008 11:07PM
i live in little rock, and all i've got to say is...
i hope it was that bastard that broke into my house on oct 12, 2007 and stole my plasma, my 360, my ps2 and my gamecube (and if you work for my insurance company, my other flat screen).
lost all of my game saves and achievements (got my 360 at launch). always hoped that system went RRoD on the muther, but thinking that it could have possibly burned down his house is AWESOME satisfaction!!
oh, unless it was an innocent persons house, and then I'm really sorry about that.
TomCo @ Apr 19th 2008 11:29AM
Achievements are associated with your live account, as with downloadable content.
Shmil @ Apr 18th 2008 10:33PM
@Heckthor
You can order your repair online and avoid talking to Indian Microsoft Employees.
Ninjakamster @ Apr 19th 2008 1:23AM
I'm Indian and I'll admit they are quite annoying, I am getting very very sick of the Indian accent, UGH!!!! Burns my ears!!!! : )
ZeroCorpse @ Apr 19th 2008 10:26AM
I don't mind the accent. I just wish they'd:
A. Not be so goddamn condescending.
B. LISTEN to me and not rely on their script.
Really, the majority of Indian call centers might as well be voice mail, because the people aren't interested in helping you, and they are incapable of making decisions or offering advice on their own. If you go off the script, they get rude and nasty about it, and they're completely lost.
And here I sit, laid off from my job, perfectly capable of handling a call center job but unable to do it because they're all in India now.
Shmil @ Apr 19th 2008 1:26PM
The second time my xbox RROD'd, (before the online setup and 3 year warranty). I called tech support got an Indian, I was asking him I was able to get a refund for my first RROD repair. He obviously didn't understand what I was talking about. He tried to ask me if my Xbox was well ventalated, etc. He was going by the script and not answering any of my questions. So I hung up, called back and got a native English speaker. We were done in less than 5 minutes. I fell through the cracks of warranties Microsoft set up so I never got a refund for my first repair. :-(
Poisoned Al @ Apr 18th 2008 10:42PM
Well this is one reason I don't leave shit on, no matter how well it's built. Saves money too. Same goes for all transformer power bricks, not just game consoles. Even when your not using them they are still on, so turn the damn bricks off when you ain't using them.
Also, having a modern breaker box cuts the risk of fires and shocks of faulty gear immensely.
Poisoned Al @ Apr 18th 2008 10:44PM
Oh, just to make myself clear, you have to kill the power at the wall. Just turning the console or whatever off won't do.
Anonymous @ Apr 18th 2008 11:19PM
So the kid whose house was charred had this to say: "My XBox 360 has the rings of death, which means something gone wrong you have to send it back for repair. Generally it's over heating inside."
Apparently this kid's 360 died and he just left it plugged in. Oh, and according to the fire marshall he had shoved his 360's power supply in a tight space next to the wall. We're obviously dealing with a real expert on the subject of fire hazards here, which is probably why KTHV uses him as the only source to justify its claim that the Xbox 360 poses a threat to consumers.
horngreen @ Apr 18th 2008 11:35PM
Could be the kids fault I guess. I just got my 360 back from MS for the second RROD. They made me send the brick in this time as well. When I got it back in 12 days it had a new brick...hmmmmm
GoonieGooGoo @ Apr 18th 2008 11:35PM
People who are stupid enough to enclose that power brick in little to no space against a wall with no ventilation.....deserve to have their house burned up a little.
Darwin's theory of natural selection no longer works.....I fear Mike Judge's IDIOCRACY is becoming reality more and more every day.
ill trooper @ Apr 19th 2008 9:07AM
C'mon, really? You buy something, you plug it in, in a common area for such devices to be plugged in, and it's YOUR fault when it bursts into flames?
No. I love my 360 but Microsoft has built this thing right on the brink of undependable. Common sense calls for adequate ventilation, but if the device can't be put in common spaces without fear of breaking down (or worse) then the company needs to design it so it's more tolerant and has a wider range of extremes. That is the other half of things that Mike Judge was talking about in Idiocracy: Companies being allowed to take over, do what they want, and no one noticing. The Bush Administration Has Electrolytes!
djmanoloco @ Apr 19th 2008 10:29AM
LOL Idiocracy is the shit. Well we do have a modern day "Ow My Balls" with Jack Ass. People who haven't seen Idiocracy need to at least give it a rental. It's a very dark comedy that deals with dysgenics and anti-corporateism (is that a word?). Honestly we do have many idiots alive today who worry more about what Britney said or did (ahem TMZ) instead of national and international issues such as our economy (recession). It's a common pattern that after a war we always go into a recession since a large fraction of our budget goes into military spending. I don't understand why people are surprised. You want to really support the troops, please bring them home. Also I don't understand how we are fighting terrorism in Iraq. Can someone please elaborate? Taliban are a terrorist faction rooted in Afghanistan. Hussain was an Iraqi dictator. It's like if a Ku Klux Klan unit from somewhere in the Southern United States bombed a subway station in Japan and Japan declared war on Canada. What the fuck? But hey that's what makes Idiocracy that much better of a movie. Proves that there are a lot of human beings out there contributing to our decline in average intelligence. Hell we (shrugs) reelected Bush the second time. Shit got very off topic. Umm Smash Bros rules! LOL.
A Pissed-off English Gamer @ Apr 19th 2008 5:22PM
I might have to have a look at that film, sounds somewhat interesting. As for Iraq, a pull-out of soldiers would result in a civil war there, and as silly as it might have been to attack in the first place your congress authorised it. To pull out now with no thoughts of the consequences would be making a mistake as large as the original ivasion.
Zeus.:God @ Apr 19th 2008 9:10PM
Ill Trooper, if it wasn't damaged in any way, then fine, it's Microsoft's fault, but who's to say the thing hadn't been dropped a few times or had something spilled on it- Hell, maybe their was a broken wire and the guy neglected to fix it. In that case, it wouldn't be. We can't just sit here and immediately blame Microsoft for this. There is more to it. Even if it happened with a PS3, PS2, Xbox, Gamecube, Wii, PC or whatever- there are more factors, and considering it appears to be a small issue, and this is the only time I've heard of a 360 power supply catching fire, then I would doubt this is recall worthy, or even suit worthy.
Kujel @ Apr 19th 2008 12:02AM
Well of course it's the kids fault, games aren't really for kids after all.
michael @ Apr 19th 2008 12:29AM
hahahaha "Captain Jason Weaver fingered an Xbox 360 power supply" hahahahaha