Power-switch glitch nips Cubes, too
On Dec. 30, Apple Japan posted a tech note explaining that some Cube users had encountered "a strong odor or smoke" and blaming the phenomenon on defective parts that Apple has discontinued using.
The message assured users that the problem presented no hazard to users and pledged to make needed repairs promptly.
Apple spokeswoman Nathalie Welch confirmed to ZDNet News that the problems in the Cube are related to a bug--identified last fall--that affected the power switch in Apple's professional-strength Power Mac G4 towers: A defective panel behind the power switch on some G4 towers had a tendency to burn out, emitting small amounts of smoke.
"Apple has had a very small number of reported cases of a power-switch malfunction on the Power Mac G4 Cube and minitower," Welch said. "This failure has been diagnosed to a particular component on units of both systems." She also echoed Apple Japan's assertion that changes to the manufacturing process had addressed the issue and reiterated that it poses no safety threat to users.
Customers having any issues with their Apple product are urged to contact Apple, Welch said.
Dan Mack, IT manager in the Denver offices of Atlanta-based Internet services company iXL, said he encountered the problem back in October, when a new Cube started "smoking like a burnt toaster.
"We kept it in a clean environment in our server room. There was nothing around it and tons of ventilation," Mack said. "We'd been joking that we'd known for years that Apple wanted to make a home appliance, and the Cube looks like a toaster. The new joke is it acts like a burning toaster."
The power-switch glitch isn't the first manufacturing issue to affect the Cube since its introduction at July's Macworld Expo/New York. In September, the company acknowledged irregularities in the clear Lucite chassis of some Cubes. According to Apple, the marks were "mold lines" created during the injection-molding process, not cracks as some users had claimed.
Matthew Rothenberg, ZDNet News, contributed to this report.