Anker makes killer peripherals, but when I say that, I generally mean they’re of good quality at a fair price. I don’t mean they burst into flames, but here we are, as the US Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a recall for the Anker PowerCore 10000mAh, model designation A1263 because it’s gotten 19 reports of units catching fire.
Now in the interest of not pissing off Anker’s or Vice’s lawyers, I’ll clear up that none of the reported incidents have resulted in anything more than “two reports of minor burn injuries not requiring medical attention and 11 reports of property damage totaling over $60,700.” Still, if you have an Anker power bank, you should check to see if you have an affected unit right away.
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what to replace it with
Don’t automatically freak out if you have an Anker 10000mAh of some type. There have been many over the past years, as PowerCore is a long-running nameplate of several generations of power banks, and 10000mAh refers to its capacity.
If it’s a 10000mAh model,fFlip over your Anker power bank and look to see if A1263 is printed on the bottom. If it is, stop using it and follow the disposal directions at the end of this article. And you probably want a replacement power bank. Here’s what won’t break the bank or (probably) catch on fire.
As for what to do with that Anker A1263, if you’ve got one, I’ll let the US Consumer Product Safety Commission say the important bits so that I don’t mince the words:
“Do not throw this recalled lithium-ion battery or device in the trash, in the general recycling stream (e.g., street-level or curbside recycling bins), or in used battery recycling boxes found at various retail and home improvement stores.
“Recalled lithium-ion batteries must be disposed of differently than other batteries, because they present a greater risk of fire. Your municipal household hazardous waste (HHW) collection center may accept this recalled lithium-ion battery or device for disposal.
“Before taking your battery or device to a HHW collection center, contact it ahead of time and ask whether it accepts recalled lithium-ion batteries. If it does not, contact your municipality for further guidance.”
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