But a few users are reporting that their new Kindle Fires are being damaged after going through X-ray machines at airport TSA checkpoints. While the X-ray machine isn't exactly to blame, according to an expert, it can be a factor.
Professor Daping Chu, chairman of the University of Cambridge Centre for Advanced Photonics, says that static electricity is likely the culprit . He says:
"I don’t think the radiation used in an airport scanner would ever be strong enough to damage an electronic ink display. . . . But you can get a buildup of static inside these machines, caused by the rubber belt rubbing. If that charge were to pass through a Kindle, it’s conceivable that it could damage the screen. . . . A static charge from an airport scanner could be 100 volts or more. That could permanently stick the particles to the screen.”