'Rare' Fire Safety Risk Sparks Apple To Recall Beats Pill XL Speakers Sold Globally

Apple is offering $325 refunds for each of 222,000 Beats Pill XL speakers sold in the U.S. -- part of a global voluntary recall sparked by reports that the speaker's battery may overheat and pose a fire safety risk, said an Apple "important notice" and Consumer Product Safety Commission "recall summary," both posted Wednesday. Incidents involving the speakers have been “rare,” Apple said, without quantifying them. However, the CPSC, which is overseeing the U.S. recall, said Apple “has received eight reports of incidents of the speakers overheating, including one with a burn to a consumer's finger and one with damage to a consumer's desk.” Beats by Dre introduced the Beats Pill XL speakers in November 2013, Apple said, about seven months before Apple announced the $3 billion agreement to buy Beats in a deal it completed in late July 2014. However, the recall affects Beats Pill XL speakers sold only since January 2014, the CPSC notice said. Apple and CPSC representatives didn’t comment. Apple is instructing consumers to stop using their Beats Pill XL speakers and visit the company’s recall website for information on how to procure a postage-paid box for returning the product to the company. Those who follow the procedure should expect a $325 Apple Store credit or electronic refund payment in about three weeks, the website says. Given the high volume of Beats Pill XL speakers sold globally, the recall could cost Apple many millions of dollars in refunds and postage and processing costs, including in excess of $7.2 million in the U.S. alone, if all the affected products are returned to the company.