14 DAY TRIAL // Samsung is the company that brought the concept of phones catching fire into our lives, but this doesn’t necessarily mean that other brands haven’t been affected too.
The latest to step into the spotlight because of a phone that went up in flames is none other than Google.
A Pixel 3 XL has reportedly burst into flames, according to redditor DysonBorkSphere, despite the device being taken outside in cold winter temperature.
The post reveals that this was a replacement Pixel 3 XL that the owner received after previously experiencing “severe overheating issues” with a previous model. This new device wasn’t even configured, DysonBorkSphere explains, and only had a Google account configured because he “didn’t have time to play with it.”
The Pixel 3 XL was left charging with a charger from the first-generation Pixel, only for the owner to find it extremely hot and with notifications warning it was getting close to a thermal shutoff.
“So it being -13 right now in Toronto, I decided hey why not take it outside to cool off a bit. Nope! It was getting hotter and released a bit of smoke before the screen shut off and it got thrown onto my balcony where it promptly released more smoke, started to glow red, and spewed flames,” DysonBorkSphere says.
“A ticking bomb”
Google has already reached out to the owner to ask for more information and offered a new device or a refund. However, DysonBorkSphere explains he is “not trusting another Pixel,” revealing that the whole incident also caused minor injuries.
“I got lucky, my apartment smells, my fingers are a little burnt, and my eyes and lungs burn from that smoke. Also I have something from the phone burn't onto my balcony,” he said, later adding that “the anxiety and smoke irritating my lungs are keeping me up.”
In updates added to the original post, the redditor points to more people complaining about overheating issues suffered by the Google Pixel 3 XL, speculating that Google’s protection circuit design for the battery may not be working as expected.
“How widespread is this overheating / burning issue?” he asked after several other people chimed in with their own stories of overheating phones.
“Again, a Pixel 2 XL had severe overheating issues. This is just pathetic and dangerous. How many of these phones where ticking time bombs like mine was?!”
Google hasn’t provided a statement on this incident. Despite this being the first case of a Pixel 3 catching fire, buyers are recommended to use the genuine cable and charger and to never leave the device charging when they’re not around or when sleeping.
