Confirmed: iPad2 is a killer app

[Rogue Trader]

Foxconn confirms 3rd death at plant linked to iPad

Smoke rises as police and onlookers stand near at a Foxconn factory in Chengdu, Sichuan province

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Foxconn Technology Co Ltd on Sunday confirmed that a third person has died following a large explosion at a plant in southwestern China on Friday that local media have linked to production of Apple's iPad 2.

The Taiwanese company, Apple Inc's main contract manufacturer for gadgets from the popular tablet to the iPhone, operates the plant in Chengdu, the capital of China's Sichuan province.

A task force led by government officials and law enforcement said preliminary findings point to an explosion of combustible dust in a duct at a polishing workshop at the plant, Foxconn said.

The company also said that all operations at that workshop remain suspended and production at all workshops doing similar work is also suspended. All other production operations at its facilities in China are running as usual, it added.
An Apple spokesman was not immediately available for comment.

In addition to the three deaths, 15 employees were hurt. Of those six, have been treated and released from hospital, Foxconn said.

Foxconn, the world's largest contract manufacturer, is an affiliate of Taiwan's Hon Hai.

 

[cooleo]

Luckily i bought my iPad 2 liao. And the fact that those were PRCunts, made me sleep well.

 

[Rogue Trader]

Foxconn blast may lead to supply shortage of iPad 2
Source: Globaltimes.cn [16:25 May 23 2011

The explosion of the Foxconn factory in Chengdu on May 20 may cause a supply shortage of iPad 2 models, the Guangzhou Daily reported on Monday. [RT: you kidding? there's already a serious worldwide issue of stock availability for the iPad2]

Analysts said that the production of the iPad 2 will indeed be affected, as the factory in Chengdu was one of the main iPad 2 production bases.

Local brokers had believed that the iPad 2 in China was mainly manufactured in Foxconn's Shenzhen factory. However, other sources showed that the Taiwan-based company was shifting production to Chengdu. The annual capacity of the Chengdu base was to eventually reach 6 million products. Apple had sold 4.69 million models of the iPad 1 by March 26, the company reported.

Apple have adopted a "hunger marketing" strategy for the iPod 2 since the product's introduction on the market. This involves strictly controlling market supply through producing only in batches. Tim Cook, the COO of Apple, has revealed that the gap between supply and demand regarding models of the iPad 2 is still very large. Japan's earthquake, as well as the production of the white iPhone 4, have both affected the manufacture of the iPad 2. The tablet computer is facing a supply shortage in many regions in the country, and demand has increased in the second quarter. The supply shortage could potentially have a negative effect on future business. [RT: serve Apple right for launching iPad2 without proper production level planning]

Apple's stock price decreased by $5.31, a 1.56-percent drop on the figure before the explosion, and closed at $335.22 per share on the 20th.

 

[Rogue Trader]

made me sleep well.

Congrats. Just don't sleep next to your iPad2. It might explode at night.

 

[cooleo]

Congrats. Just don't sleep next to your iPad2. It might explode at night.

Don't be stupid. Chances are more likely for u to die of stupidity.

 

[Rogue Trader]

iPad2 got yellowish discharge??

MAY 6, 2011 4:54 PM PDT
LG light leak blamed for iPad 2 shortage
by Christopher MacManus

Light leakage bothered many iPad 2 owners.
(Credit: Tempest/AVforums.com)

Some of you may remember earlier rumblings about light leakage and yellowing spotted on the iPad 2 LCD panel.

A report today from DigiTimes may have pinpointed the culprit. The publication cites unnamed sources as saying LG's display division had to pull back on iPad 2 screen production because of light leakage issues that emerged during manufacturing.

The problem reportedly arose at LG's sixth-generation production line in Gumi, South Korea, and all but confirms widespread complaints of the complication, which became a widely circulated story online and clogged Apple's support forums.

Light leakage is common in edge-lit LCD panels, where light unintentionally emanates from the bezel that surrounds the screen, causing a patchy, non-uniform display that is most noticeable in dark scenes. This problem also pops up in TVs, and is sometimes called "flashlighting."

DigiTimes says that Apple shifted iPad 2 screen production to Samsung, which produced a total of 4 million 9.7-inch IPS panels for Apple in the first quarter of this year. LG was only able to ship about 3.2 million panels in the same time frame before shuttering production. LG supposedly has "fixed the problem and will resume shipment momentum to Apple in the second quarter," according to DigiTimes.

The iPad 2 went on sale in March, and quickly sold out around the world. Weeks after the device went on sale, even Apple's Web site could only offer vague shipping times of between three and five weeks.

Since then, supply of the tablet has nearly caught up with demand.


Read more: http://news.cnet.com/lg-light-leak-.../8301-17938_105-20060625-1.html#ixzz1NEdTicNk

 

[cooleo]

If u scared got discharge, wear tampon la.

 

[Rogue Trader]

I'm not the one who bought a pad. you are.

 

[cooleo]

I'm not the one who bought a pad. you are.

My iPad 2 is perfectly fine. Don't worry for me. If spoil, just send in for repair or buy new one. $1k u don't have?

 

[Rogue Trader]

I'm glad it's working out for you. Whatever rocks your boat.

 

[Rogue Trader]

Fucking Foxconn has been abusing workers, driving them to suicide. Now they are even poisoning the environment. knn.. Can always trust a fucking chinaman to place profit above all else.

Foxconn Knew Ahead Of Time About The Dust That Caused iPad 2 Facility Explosion
By John Brownlee (8:37 am, May. 23, 2011)

The unexpected explosion that rocked Foxconn’s Chengdu facility on Friday killing three has been blamed upon a build up of combustible dust at the iPad 2 polishing plant. As a two-week old report on factory worker conditions makes clear, though, the dangers of allowing such dust to build-up has been brought to the attention of Foxconn and Apple before.


On May 6th, The Students and Scholars Against Corporate Misbehavior (or SACOM) released a report on Foxconn working conditions throughout China.

At the Chendu facility, in particular, the report lingers over the “alarming” pccupational health and safety issues caused by huge amounts of airborne dust.

According to the report:
"Workers in the polishing department also complain that the department is full of aluminum dust. Even though they have worn gloves, their hands are still covered by dust and so (is) their face and clothes. Some workers comment that ventilation on shop floor should be improved."

“I’m breathing in dust at Foxconn just like a vacuum cleaner. My nostrils are totally black every day,” said one employee.

The picture the report paints at the Chengdu facility is an unhygienic and dangerous one in which dust permeates everything, even through protective clothing, and where employees are often exhausted because of forced overtime. Granted, there’s no warning of explosions here, but even so, a cursory read is enough to make one thing very clear: dust was such a hazard at Chengdu that it was only a matter of time before it killed someone, one way or the other.

Given these conditions, which seem to be long existing and a frequently cited cause of concern at the Chengdu facility, is it any wonder that such a grave accident happened sooner rather than later? Suicides which may or may not be work condition related are one thing, but when people are dying over an issue that Foxconn has been warned in the past about by outside groups, it makes Foxconn appear criminally negligent, if not downright evil.