After several high-profile cases involving Apple users being electrocuted by counterfeit chargers were reported in the media, an Apple trade-in program for chargers has been launched. The exchange drive allows consumers to exchange their counterfeit or third-party chargers with genuine ones. It will run in Apple stores and authorized Apple resellers in the United States from August 16 through October 18.
The trade-in will only cost $10, a fraction of what consumers usually pay for brand-new, original Apple chargers, which range from $20 to $40. Apple consumers who are not interested in exchanging for new chargers can also just send their their-party chargers and let the Apple store dispose it “in an environmentally-friendly way” free of charge.
In addition to the Apple trade-in program for chargers, Apple has also issued user directions on how to spot a fake Apple charger. The company has also posted this message on its Chinese site:
“iPhone electric shock incidents seem to be more common in China, where the colorful counterfeit or ‘shanzhai’ market booms undercut the market for genuine Apple products. Apple’s ‘exchange’ — which will run from August 9 to October 18 in China — may be an attempt to, at least temporarily, compete with the shanzhai market.”
The exchange program comes after a Chinese man using a third-party charger was comatosed after getting electrocuted. Another case of iPhone electrocution involved a female flight attendant, also in China, who died after receiving an electric shock when she answered her iPhone while charging.
Source: Huffington Post
