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Sony Tells Users Of New Vaio Laptop To Stop Using It Unless They Like Being Burned

Nothing can interrupt your productivity quite like having your computer catching fire. If you own one of the new Sony Vaio laptops that’s an actual possibility.

On Friday, Sony warned users of its new Vaio Fit 11A to immediately discontinue use because of the potential for batteries to burn or catch fire, The New York Times reports.

There have been three reports of overheating resulting in partial burns to the housing unit of the convertible laptop, company officials say.

Not all the computers, which launched in February, contain the issue. Affected units use nondetachable internal battery packs sourced from an unnamed third-party supplier and contain the product name beginning with SVF11N1.

Officials estimate that 26,000 units, 497 of which have been purchased in the United States, contain the issue.

Consumers with computers matching the description should “immediately discontinue use, shut down and unplug the PC.” The company plans to develop a program within the next two weeks to repair or replace the affected units free of charge, or to refund the purchase price.

In 2010, the company recalled 535,000 Vaio laptops for overheating, creating a potential burn hazard for users.

Friday’s announcement comes just a month after it was revealed that Sony was attempting to find a buyer for the Vaio line, essentially getting itself out of the PC business.

Sony Warns Some New Laptop Batteries May Catch Fire [The New York Times]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Subway: No More “Yoga Mat” Chemicals In Our Bread By Next Week

(Morton Fox)

Back in February, Subway pledged to stop using Azodicarbonamide, a controversial chemical that it uses to improve elasticity in its bread but that also shows up in things like yoga mats. You won’t be doing any downward dogging (that’s how yoga people talk, right?) on Subway’s bread soon, as the company says it’s almost done phasing out the chemical.

The ingredient is approved for use in food by the Food and Drug Administration, but its use in products from everything to the aforementioned mats to dough prompted a food blogger to launch a campaign against it recently.

Subway’s chief marketing officer, Tony Pace, tells the Associated Press that the phaseout should be complete within a week.

“You see the social media traffic, and people are happy that we’re taking it out, but they want to know when we’re taking it out,” Pace said. “If there are people who have that hesitation, that hesitation is going to be removed.”

And if you’ve turned away from Subway during this time of yoga mat unrest, he adds that the company is “happy to invite consumers back in who might’ve had hesitation.”

At the time of the blogger’s petition in February, Subway said it’d already started to test “Azo-free bread” in four markets and was in the process of removing it from all breads.

“We’re always trying to improve stuff,” Pace said.

Look at that — companies, they’re just like us! I’m always trying to improve my stuff, because having the best stuff possible is ideal.

Subway: ‘Yoga mat’ chemical almost out of bread [Associated Press]

You can follow MBQ on Twitter if you also like to talk about improving stuff, or heck, just stuff in general: @marybethquirk

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Walmart Toe-Sucker Sentenced To 60 Days In Jail

(Clean Wal-Mart)

Last month, we told you about the North Carolina man who misled a Walmart customer into letting him help her try on shoes, and then crossed a big line by sucking on her toes. Yesterday, the faux podiatrist was in court to hear his fate.

WSOC-TV reports (warning: auto-play video) that the man — who told the customer he was a podiatry student in order to get his hands (and mouth) on her feet — entered a guilty plea to assault charges at the Gaston County, NC, court on Thursday.

He was immediately sentenced to 60 days in jail, but he’s being given credit for the 21 days he’s already served.

“I apologize to the victim,” he told the court. “I am ready to take full responsibility for my actions.”

According to WSOC, he has a criminal history of doing lewd things to female feet that goes back to 2001, so excuse us if we’re a bit skeptical about his sudden willingness to straighten out and fly right from now on.

[via NY Daily News]

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Regulators Warn Banks To Plug Any Heartbleed Security Holes ASAP

While most major services you use like Facebook, Google, Yahoo, Twitter and others have likely (and hopefully) patched up any security holes at risk from the Heartbleed bug, U.S. regulators are warning banks to update their systems as well, and quickly.

The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council says the Heartbleed encryption bug could’ve allowed hackers to access the private encryption keys to banks’ servers, potentially giving them access to your personal information, reports the Wall Street Journal .

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is a member of the council, and said it isn’t aware of anyone using the Heartbleed flaw to attack, but banks should pretty much know they’re big targets for a breach. You know, what with all that financial information and money they deal with.

Some banks have responded to the Heartbleed brouhaha, saying they’re checking their systems and haven’t found any breaches.

“Bank of America has experienced no issues as a result of the Heartbleed Bug, and has determined our sites are not vulnerable,” a spokesman told the WSJ.

Citigroup says the bank’s “initial assessment indicates it has not impacted our retail banking or credit card websites, and we are taking appropriate steps to safeguard all of our websites.”

A Wells Fargo spokeswoman said the “vulnerabilities associated with Heartbleed have had no impact on the safety of banking online with Wells Fargo.”

The alert focused more on the internal passwords and systems used by bank employees, rather than warning bank customers that their accounts could’ve been compromised.

Again, if you haven’t changed your passwords yet (check this handy list from Mashable of which ones you definitely need to change) you should. And don’t use the same password across numerous sites, if you can avoid it.

U.S. Regulators Tell Banks to Plug ‘HeartBleed’ Security Hole [Wall Street Journal]

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Consumerist Friday Flickr Finds

Here are eleven of the best photos that readers added to the Consumerist Flickr Pool in the last week, picked for usability in a Consumerist post or for just plain neatness.

(gblahe (Plump Panda Photography))

(DC)

(Karen Chappell)

(jayRaz)

(Terrah)

(Nicholas Eckhart)

Our Flickr Pool is the place where Consumerist readers upload photos for possible use in future Consumerist posts. Want to see your pictures on our site? Just be a registered Flickr user, go here, and click “Join Group?” up on the top right. Choose your best photos, then click “send to group” on the individual images you want to add to the pool.

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Amazon Offers Employees $5,000 To Quit, Doesn’t Really Want Them To Take The Money

(DJHeini)

Want to make sure your employees really love their job? Offer them a large sum of money to quit, if they pass up the dough you can be sure they’re loyal workers. Okay, it might not be foolproof, but that’s the plan at Amazon, anyway.

In an effort to make sure warehouse employees really want to be there, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos unveiled the “Pay to Quit” program, which offers employees up to $5,000 to quit, CNNMoney reports.

“The goal is to encourage folks to take a moment and think about what they really want,” Bezos wrote in the letter. “In the long-run, an employee staying somewhere they don’t want to be isn’t healthy for the employee or the company.”

Bezos makes it clear he doesn’t actually want his employees to quit. In fact, the offer comes with the headline “Please Don’t Take This Offer.”

Each year employees will be offered the deal. The first proposition employees receive is for $2,000, and the amount increases by $1,000 each subsequent year until it reaches $5,000.

The tempting offer comes at the same time the Internet retailer is adding warehouses and increasing their workforce.

Amazon offers employees $5,000 to quit [CNNMoney]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Google Bringing Glass To Masses Yearning To See Like A Cyborg In Public Release Next Week

Soon, you too can look like a human/robot hybrid.

Have you had $1,500 just burning a hole in your pocket, all while cursing these damnable human eyes limited by human genetics? Prepare yourself for future cyborgdom, ye members of the general public who weren’t part of Google Glass’s initial limited release — the company will open up sales to the masses next week.

Google will open the online gates and take orders for Glass starting April 15 at 6 a.m. PDT online from anyone who wants to fork over $1,500 for the wearable Web-ready devices, the company announced in a blog post.

“Our Explorers are moms, bakers, surgeons, rockers, and each new Explorer has brought a new perspective that is making Glass better,” the company writes. “But every day we get requests from those of you who haven’t found a way into the program yet, and we want your feedback too. So in typical Explorer Program fashion, we’re trying something new. “

It’s only for a limited time, however, and the quantity will be limited. Google’s not saying how many it’ll sell, only that “spots are limited.” That just means more fodder for the hype machine.

by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Coldwater Creek Files For Bankruptcy Protection, Planning Big Farewell Sale

Where will all of the women in the world shop for quality clothes at good prices? Fine, there are plenty of other clothiers, but that doesn’t make the demise of Coldwater Creek any less sad. The stores aren’t closing just yet, but that will be the next step after the retailer filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

After spending several months evaluating its options, officials with the company say declining financial resources, tough retail conditions and the inability to find other viable options led to Friday’s filing, the Associated Press reports.

The company had hoped to find a buyer or a source of capital to fund a turnaround.

While Coldwater Creek stores and its website are still making sales, officials have plans for a going out of business sale in the next several months.

In the past, the Idaho-based company cut costs and closed stores in attempts to keep the business running.

Coldwater Creek files for bankruptcy protection [Associated Press]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist