By: Reporters: Don Teague, Jim Cramer, Al Roker

July 11, 2006, NBC News Transcripts

ANN CURRY, co-host:

Ever hear of the phrase, "there's no such thing as bad publicity"? Well, that may not be the case with one computer company having a hard time in the wake of some trouble with one of its laptops. And now, thanks to the Internet, that bad publicity is spreading. NBC's Don Teague has the details now.

DON TEAGUE reporting:

It's a single incident that could cost millions of dollars. A Dell notebook computer bursts into flames during a conference in Japan. Someone posted pictures on the Internet and an already troubled company is facing a PR nightmare.

Professor TIM CALKINS (Northwestern University): So it's visually arresting, a remarkable event, and as a result, it's going to get a lot of attention. That means for Dell it's a big deal.

TEAGUE: The last year has been tough on Dell. Its stock is down almost 45 percent. Bloggers have ripped the company for what they consider poor customer support. This guy even set fire to a Dell laptop posting the video on the Internet.

JIM CRAMER reporting:

It's unfortunate for Dell...

TEAGUE: But CNBC's Jim Cramer says it's unfair to fault Dell's quality. The company is really suffering from remarkable bad luck, just like Wendy's, which lost millions from that bogus finger-in-the-chili claim.

CRAMER: It doesn't help to have an exploding Dell out there, but the company wouldn't be doing well with or without an exploding Dell.

TEAGUE: Computer technicians say there's a slight risk of fire with any laptop, not necessarily from the computer itself, but from the battery.

Dell declined our request for an interview, but in a statement says its investigation of the fire in Japan found no problem with the computer. Instead, blaming a fault in a battery cell. Computer technician David Williams says any laptop can overheat. He's seen other brands go up in flames, too.

Mr. DAVID WILLIAMS: We've had computers spontaneously combust. You look over and it's like, `whoa, fire extinguisher.'

TEAGUE: Williams say lithium ion batteries, like the one in my Dell notebook, rarely fail, but nothing is perfect.

Mr. WILLIAMS: I wouldn't question their quality because that one battery failed. There are millions of batteries out there.

TEAGUE: In fact, a trade group says two billion lithium ion batteries were manufactured last year with only a small number of incidents involving fires. Still, the pictures of this fire are out there, drawing a mixed response from potential Dell customers.

Unidentified Man #1: Zero, no concern.

Unidentified Man #2: Wow. Maybe there is a risk here.

TEAGUE: A lesson in the power of pictures, especially on the Internet. For TODAY, Don Teague, NBC News, Dallas.

LESTER HOLT, co-host:

OK.

AL ROKER reporting:

But the good news is now, they're selling their--they're selling them with marshmallows.

HOLT: Oh, that's so mean.

ROKER: So it works out well.

NATALIE MORALES, anchor:

(Unintelligible)

HOLT: All right, now you be the judge here.

MORALES: Talking about technology.

HOLT: Ann picked up somebody's cell phone...

ROKER: Right.

HOLT: ...she's talking to them right now. Is she being rude to us?

ROKER: Well, I think that she's dissing us a little bit.

MORALES: I think it's a little snub.

HOLT: Because this is an interesting question, because one of the things coming up...

MORALES: Although if it's a viewer watching the show then we have no problem with that.

HOLT: ...it's OK, because we're going to talk about the whole etiquette of the electronic era.

ROKER: All right.

HOLT: IPods, cell phones, BlackBerrys. We decided--I don't know if we decided you're rude or not. We're going to let the...

ANN CURRY, co-host:

I am, I think, being rude.

HOLT: ...we're going to let the viewers decide.

ROKER: It's OK. I'm used to it.

CURRY: But you really get angry about it?

MORALES: (Unintelligible).

ROKER: Well, I get a little upset. Look, I keep a cell phone when we're out--Deborah and I are out to dinner, and the kids--and I see the caller ID as home, then I answer. But other than that, and meetings, I've actually walked out of a couple of meetings because somebody has been on a--on a BlackBerry.

HOLT: Most meetings you go to, people are doing this.

CURRY: What if it was an emergency?

MORALES: Yeah.

Yeah, and I just think it's rude.

CURRY: Yeah, you know that it's ubiquitous. It's hard to control the urge, though. I get do--it's like I got to pick it up.

ROKER: Well, it's like, `I'm so important, I must be connected.'

MORALES: It is. Every time you see that little red light flashes...

ROKER: `I must be so connected 24 hours.'

CURRY: It's not that I'm so important. It's like it might be my kids might be calling.

HOLT: Anyway, boy have we got a lot to talk about when we talk electronic etiquette...

CURRY: NBC may want to...

HOLT: ...coming up shortly. We'll take a break. We'll be back.

CURRY: After your local news.