Redditor claims MacBook Pro exploded during 'normal use'
Exploding gadgets aren't necessarily a new phenomenon, but a video that caught the attention of Reddit and Twitter users this week showed just how terrifying it can be.
A MacBook Pro belonging to a musician who goes by White Panda apparently exploded earlier this week, and we now know the intimate details thanks to a popular Reddit post and a Twitter thread.
White Panda captured a video of the explosion's aftermath, with smoke billowing out of the laptop and visible burn marks on the wood floor underneath it.
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In a phone interview with Mashable, White Panda said the video was shot approximately two minutes after the actual explosion. He had the MacBook on his lap when smoke started appearing out of the computer's sides.
"It was literally like when someone throws a smoke grenade and it lands and starts shooting out all sides," White Panda told Mashable. "Out of nowhere, smoke was pouring out of both sides of the computer."
He quickly placed it on the floor where it "popped," per the Reddit post. He said he saw flames and more smoke over the course of several seconds. He managed to take care of the fire and, though his wife and dog were in the building, nobody was hurt.
He told Mashable that he's kept the door that room closed with a fan on and windows opened since the incident occurred on Tuesday.
“I was literally blown away," White Panda said. "It was so much smoke, so instantaneously.”
The incident inspired a trip to the local Apple Store, where he was told the laptop would need to be kept in a fireproof safe for 24 hours. He was later told the Apple Store had "escalated" the issue and he would get a response within five business days.
"Escalation" in this case means Apple will likely bring the laptop to the company's Cupertino headquarters for evaluation, per Apple Insider.
White Panda told Mashable that the store had offered to replace the laptop, but he would evaluate his options further before making a decision. He said he had experienced shortness of breath and headaches since the explosion, and he planned on speaking to Apple again soon.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment.
This certainly isn't the first time a MacBook has suffered a similar fate, as there are stories going back years of laptop batteries exploding across multiple MacBook models. It also doesn't seem to be a growing or especially common trend, per Apple Insider's data.
It's also not exclusive to Apple products. Samsung rather famously sold a bunch of people exploding smartphones back in 2016. Still, it's pretty scary to think that this could theoretically happen with regular devices that we use every day. It's even scarier to see evidence of what it looks like and to hear about the aftermath of a tech explosion.
Alex Perry is a tech reporter at Mashable who primarily covers video games and consumer tech. Alex has spent most of the last decade reviewing games, smartphones, headphones, and laptops, and he doesn’t plan on stopping anytime soon. He is also a Pisces, a cat lover, and a Kansas City sports fan. Alex can be found on Bluesky at yelix.bsky.social.
