Abu Dhabi resident's iPhone charger explodes, causes power failure at home

Mohammed Saleh bought a fake Chinese-made charger for his new iPhone after he lost the original charger this week.

A few minutes after he plugged it in and went to have a bath at his home in Abu Dhabi, the charger exploded.

“It was a big bang and the power in my flat went off. The plug was damaged and the charger was blackened and broken but the phone [was intact],” the Syrian man said.

Fake mobile phone accessories, most of which are made in China, have flooded the UAE market although they violate the country’s copyright laws.

Repeated raids on shops by law enforcers have failed to curb the sale of such products, which are much cheaper than the original items.

“Many customers prefer copy products because they are much cheaper…we tell them that they are not original and most of them have no warranty,” said Isam Ayyash, an Arab mobile phone dealer on Defence Road, the main phone market in the capital.

“Some of them have reported explosions of iPhone and BlackBerry chargers. I myself have seen such incidents three times. It has nothing to do with electric shortcircuit but it seems the iPhone is designed to reject any copy item.”

Another dealer said most of the explosions reported by iPhone customers affected only the charger and the electric plug but not the handset.

“But one customer came to my shop last month and told me that he would complain to the authorities after an explosion damaged his iPhone handset. I told him he should not have bought a fake charger but he would not listen,” said Abdul Monem Hariri, another mobile phone dealer in the city.

More than 100 mobile phone shops are located on Defence Road, with daily sales of at least Dh5 million. Most of the fake chargers and other accessories are supplied by dealers in Dubai, the Gulf’s commercial and business hub.

“My advice to customers is that they better pay more and buy authentic accessories asthey are safer and last longer. Though copy items are much cheaper, they could either damage your phone or stop working after a while,” Hariri said.