A redditor's gaming mouse spontaneously combusted, nearly causing a house fire. The user, u/lommelinn, reported waking to the smell of smoke and discovering their Gigabyte M6880X mouse engulfed in flames. The incident occurred while their PC was in sleep mode.
The resulting damage is significant. Images show the mouse's top rear panel completely melted, while the bottom surprisingly escaped major damage. The desk and mousepad also sustained melt damage. The cause remains a mystery, especially considering the mouse is a wired, optical model with no internal battery and a low-power USB 2.0 connection (5V at 0.5A).
My Gigabyte mouse caught fire and almost burned down my apartment
by u/lommelinn in pcmasterrace
Gigabyte responded to the incident on the Reddit thread, stating that they are investigating the matter and have contacted the user to offer support.
“Hi Everyone, We have been made aware of the incident shared by lommelin regarding the M6880X gaming mice. Our customer's safety is our top priority and we are actively looking into this case. Our team has reached out to lommelin to offer support and to investigate the matter fully. In the meantime, we appreciate the community’s understanding and patience as we work to address this issue. Best, The GIGABYTE Team.”
The user, still shocked, confirmed their PC was in sleep mode and that the USB port tested fine, leaving the cause of the fire unexplained. The incident highlights an unexpected and alarming potential hazard with even seemingly simple computer peripherals.
