Apple iPhones Exploding? Chinese Users Complain To Shanghai Consumer Council

Apple claimed on its Chinese website Friday its iPhones would shut down rather than explode, to protect hardware from damage due to low voltages. On Tuesday, a Chinese consumer watchdog refuted the claim, saying it had received complaints of iPhones exploding and catching fire.

Shanghai Consumer Council called on Apple to address the complaints: “Apple should be responsible for consumers. A lot of consumer complaints are not solved effectively.”

The state-run consumer protection forum alleged it received eight reports of iPhones simultaneously combusting while being used or charged, in a report posted Friday on its website. The report quotes one woman saying her iPhone 6s exploded in August, shattering the display and blackening the back and battery of the phone. The council added it had seen a six-fold rise in the number of complaints in the past two months, including those related to iPhone 6 and iPhone 6s.

This is not the first time that news of iPhones exploding has surfaced. On Oct. 1, an iPhone exploded in a student's back pocket in New Jersey and on Oct. 20, an iPhone exploded in an Australian man's car, burning down the vehicle.

Apple China addressed the issue of the accidental shutdown of a few iPhone 6s handsets Dec. 2 and said the complaints concerned only those handsets manufactured between September and October.

The consumer watchdog's report comes on the heels of the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 scandal, where the recall of the exploding devices caused the South Korean company an estimated $5 billion. Apple has also seen a plunge in its profits and such incidents could hit the company further.