Laptop power bricks (was: Dell laptops)

[Ben Scott]

On Mon, 28 Mar 2005 17:29:23 -0500, Michael ODonnell
<michael.odonnell at comcast.net> wrote:
> Fire hazard!  I have an Inspiron 7500 with one of the
> affected units (I always did think it got a little
> toasty) ...

  I've seen recall notices, at one time or another, for laptop power
bricks from Dell, HP, IBM, and Apple, for the same sort of reason. 
I've found those bricks tend to run anywhere from warm to hot as a
rule.  I know those things are packing a lot of power conversion in a
small space (many modern laptops draw 90 watts or more), and they're
generally made by the lowest bidder.  So it doesn't surprise me that
they're a source of frequent trouble.

  Practical upshot being: I wouldn't leave any laptop power brick
plugged in, unattended, around combustible material.  In particular,
*do not* leave them wedged into your couch cushions like I've seen
many people do...

> I signed up for a replacement adapter thru
> that site in October of 2004 - they're sure taking
> their time about sending it...

  FWIW, I RMA'ed three around the same time, and got them back in late
December.  I imagine Dell is having supply problems.  There must be
several bajillion of those things out in the wild.