The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with Hewlett-Packard, has announced a voluntary recall of HP 1040 and 1050 fax machines. Users should stop using the recalled products and disconnect them from electrical outlets, unless otherwise instructed, and should not attempt to resell the products, as this is illegal. There are currently about 928,000 1040 and 1050 fax machines in the United States, and about 240,000 in Canada and Mexico.
According to the Consumer Product Safety Commission, the fax machines (shown below) can overheat due to an internal electrical component failure, posing fire and burn hazards. HP states that it’s aware of seven reports of fax machines overheating and catching fire, resulting in property damage, including one instance of significant property damage and one instance of a minor burn injury to a user’s finger. Six incidents were reported in the United States and one in Canada.
The same method that “little businessmen” have used for centuries–face-to-face customer service. There is no technology in the foreseeable future that will overcome that advantage.
On the downside, face-to-face contact is becoming more difficult to accomplish as societies becomes more mobile and detached via digital communications. That’s where social networking comes into play.