Now THIS is a computer problem!

[Cvstos]

Another Dell laptop has caught on fire[/b].   

That's not my normal exaggerations.  The machine caught on fire.  With flames and everything.  The battery literally spontaneously combusted, catching the machine on fire.  This issue has appeared in the past as well.  Dell is launching an "inquiry" into the problem.

Yeah, I'm not buying a Dell laptop anytime soon.   

[ElectroMotive]

this is why I stick to macs

[Tapewolf]

A couple of years ago I was trying to set my Dad's spare PC up as a video capture machine.  It had an internal graphics card, but it was disconnected from the case for some reason, so I reconnected it.  Backwards.

When I switched on, nothing appeared on the screen.  I turned around and noticed that there was a strange orange glow coming from inside the machine.  Convinced for a few moments that some kind of supernatural event was in progress I just stared at it, until the clouds of white smoke appeared.  Then I hit the power switch quick as lightning.

Needless to say, the graphics chip was totally fried, and the video connector had turned into a mixture of metal and plastic slag.  Remarkably, the machine worked afterwards once a PCI graphics card was installed.

[xHaZxMaTx]

This was an AGP card?  If so, I'm wondering how the f*** you managed to put it in backwards.   Actually, I'd wonder if you put ANY card in backwards.

[ilpalazzo]

*buys dell laptop* Burn darn you BURN!!!!!

[Tapewolf]

This was an AGP card?  If so, I'm wondering how the f*** you managed to put it in backwards.   Actually, I'd wonder if you put ANY card in backwards.

I don't know what the bus topology was but more likely it was PCI.  Let me clarify.
The graphics 'card' was an IC on the motherboard - an SiS-6205 as I recall.  To actually plug it into a monitor, you have to have a flying lead from the motherboard to a blanker plate on the back which contains the VGA connector.  The flying lead terminates in a ribbon cable connector, which was reversable on this particular board.  You generally have a blank pin or something to ensure it can only be plugged in the correct way - whoever made that motherboard did not.

[xHaZxMaTx]

Oh, that makes more sense.

[Sid]

this is why I stick to macs

Apple Laptops are not THAT failsafe, either, especially the new MacBooks, which have had a fair share of problem reports that range from overheating to the MagSafe Connector catching fire.

http://www.gizmodo.com/gadgets/fire/ has a few posts of the Dell and Apple laptops, and googling for macbook overheat also gives a fair share of newsposts. [EDIT]Granted, Apple was usually quick to address these problems one way or another, so this is mostly outdated, I think.[/EDIT]

But if in doubt, I'd also rather get a MacBook than a Dell

[Darkmoon]

I'd rather neither, honestly. Dells are... well, they're Dells. You're gettinga crappy computer no matter how you cut it. As for Mac... in this day and age, there is little that you HAVE to have a Mac for.

[Tapewolf]

Oh, that makes more sense.

Possibly one of the things which made me careless was my days it Caldera in 1998.  There I had an IBM PS/1 which I used for kernel debugging.  The sockets on the monitor and PC were so worn that they were 'O'-shaped instead of 'D'-shaped.  On multiple occasions I plugged the monitor in backwards and was rewarded with a freaky display of lines since the sync line was going into Red or something like that.  Since that one didn't catch fire, I had no reason to expect the onboard VGA chip would...

[Jorge D. Fuentes]

I'd rather neither, honestly. Dells are... well, they're Dells. You're gettinga crappy computer no matter how you cut it. As for Mac... in this day and age, there is little that you HAVE to have a Mac for.

I don't know, man, my Dell Inspiron 9200 is a competent machine, and the price was pretty good.
The only part that's ever messed up is the AC Adapter and they replaced it for free and stuff.

I mean, Laptops... it's not like it's that easy to build your own, otherwise I would.

[Aridas]

this is why I stick to macs

That's like saying a pizza from Topper's made someone sick, and that's why you stick to hamburgers. Dell is only one company, and a company that I recall several recalls from.

You generally have a blank pin or something to ensure it can only be plugged in the correct way - whoever made that motherboard did not.

Usually the connectors have some sort of mark, visible or near-invisible, indicating which side is the "top" side of the connector, and the motherboards have an indication of the first pin. If this one didn't have either when it didn't even have a one-way plug, someone in the design group was slacking off.

I mean, Laptops... it's not like it's that easy to build your own, otherwise I would.

I'm not much of a snoop when it comes to this, but I actually remember an article about hand-build laptops... One that was supposed to be put together yourself. I can't remember the details so don't trust me on any of this at all. In fact, it's likely you already KNOW of this and I wasted my time being vague.

[Gornemant]

Another Dell laptop has caught on fire[/b].   

That's not my normal exaggerations.  The machine caught on fire.  With flames and everything.  The battery literally spontaneously combusted, catching the machine on fire.  This issue has appeared in the past as well.  Dell is launching an "inquiry" into the problem.

Yeah, I'm not buying a Dell laptop anytime soon.   

if you want the complete explenation it's rather easy, the Li-Ion cells overheated, this resulted in a chemical chain reaction causing it to... well... burn, or explode, whatever term you like better.
this happens to every Li-Ion cells with cheaply designed security.

this is why I stick to macs

not to sound like a troll, but the latest mac model has quite a few more issues as far as I remember.... including bursting into flames.

*buys dell laptop* Burn darn you BURN!!!!!

take any cheap Li-Ion cell, heat it up, if it hasn't a failsafe at a certain temperature it'll go "SPLOEY!" (note that the chemical reaction is triggered way before the cells explode)