Apple has voided warranties and refused to carry out repairs on Macbooks which have been exposed to cigarette smoke, according to a US consumer website.
The Consumerist reported that people have had their repairs rejected and warranties torn up because their computer system was found to contain residue from cigarette smoke, something which is unavoidable if a person smokes when working on their system.
According to letters of reply from owners of the laptops, Apple claims that the smoke damages the system as well as stating that it would not work on the machines because of “health risks over second hand smoke”.
A spokesperson from technology firm Ryan’s Computer Consulting Services told Pocket-Lint.com that cigarette smoke could cover the insides of the machine with sticky tar-like goo.
“Electronics are hot and naturally create an environment for dust to collect around its circuitry. What makes cigarette smoke the worse kind of ‘dust’ is that it isn’t dry. The smoke carries moisture with it,” the representative added.
Smoke damage has also been known to kill hard drives inside PCs as particles get between the legs on the chipset.