The biggest focus of “VR virtual reality” technology is to bring users an immersive and realistic experience. However, a recent incident has caused another completely unexpected “collateral damage”.
According to a recent incident report released by firefighters in Frankfort, Maine, a small fire broke out in a local home recently. After in-depth investigation, they found that the fire was suspected to have come from the battery of a Meta Quest 3 headset. Fortunately, the accident did not cause any casualties, but the footage captured from inside the house still caused some users to worry about whether the battery used in the device had safety concerns.
Local news reports indicate the incident occurred on June 11, when a Frankfurt resident left the device on his bedside table to charge before leaving his home. Not long after, he suddenly heard some unusual noise coming from outside the house, and then triggered the fire alarm, and the owner immediately entered the house to put out the fire.
From the surveillance video he provided to the fire department afterwards, it can be seen that the surveillance system on the first floor suddenly displayed a danger sign in the bedroom on the second floor, and a red flash suddenly lit up, followed by a popping sound. The four frightened pet dogs immediately rushed downstairs, looking back nervously. Soon after, a small fireball rolled down the stairs, and it was the still burning remains of Meta Quest.
Although the relevant images did not record the moment when the device caught fire and exploded, the Frankfurt Volunteer Fire Department hopes to use this case to remind the public of the dangers lurking in rechargeable consumer electronics. It stated in a Facebook post that the resident’s bedside table was 14 feet away from the stairs, and the stairs themselves were also 15 feet long, meaning that the Meta Quest was sprayed nearly 30 feet away after the fire.
Such battery explosions are common around the world and have caused fire accidents, large and small. Prior to this, Valve had issued a warning to players who modified their own Steam Deck, stating that battery-related operations were potentially dangerous. Many PSP players also found that the battery had swelled and deformed after taking out the dusty console.
In addition to the fields of games or electronic products, after electric vehicles have begun to flourish in recent years, such safety issues have also begun to receive increasing attention. So far, there have been unfortunate incidents around the world where electric vehicles caught fire after accidents, and the driver and passengers were unable to open the door to escape due to malfunctions.
As for the Meta Quest 3 explosion, local media stated that firefighters are still conducting in-depth investigations and relevant units are also checking whether there are harmful gases in the residence. Meta officials have not yet issued a response.
Source: KOCPC Chinese