Nokia stops sales of Lumia 2520 tablet over electric shock fears

Nokia has suspended sales of the Nokia Lumia 2520 tablet around the world over fears that the charger could give you an electric shock -- leaving current owners with a device Nokia admits is 'virtually useless.'

James Martin/CNET

Nokia has suspended sales of the Nokia Lumia 2520 tablet over fears that the charger could give you an electric shock.

Anyone with a Lumia 2520 in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Russia, Switzerland and the UK is 'strongly advised to suspend use of the AC-300 charger until further notice.'

Nokia also urges people in those countries and in the USA not to use the travel charger accessory. Sales of the 2520 continue in the US, but the travel charger has been removed from shelves.

Nokia says there is 'a potential product quality issue that may potentially lead to a safety concern' in certain AC-300 chargers, which are manufactured by a third-party supplier. The charger in question is only used for the 2520 slate, so other Nokia phones and chargers are fine.

'Under certain conditions,' Nokia warns, 'the plastic cover of the charger's exchangeable plug could come loose and separate. If loose and separated, certain internal components pose a hazard of an electric shock if touched while the plug remains in a live socket.'

In an online FAQ, Nokia admits that without the charger the tablet is 'virtually useless', but pre-empts questions about replacement chargers and compensation by repeating several times the phrase 'We apologize to the owners of the Lumia 2520, and we are working with urgency to minimize the inconvenience.'

The Finnish phone-fanciers say there have been no 'there have been no confirmed consumer incidents related to this potential quality issue.' They do like the word 'potential', don't they?

For more information and to register for updates on this shocking development, head for http://ift.tt/1j6mMOu.