Dell users complain Latitude 6430u laptops ‘smell of cat urine’

GlobalPost

Dell users who bought the computer company's Latitude 6430u Ultrabook have complained that the laptops "smell of cat urine."

Engineers for the company ruled out biological contamination and said the smell emanating from the computers was not a health hazard.

Dell was first made aware of its stinky problem in June, when a user on one of the company's online support forums said, "the machine is great, but it smells as if it was assembled near a tomcat's litter box. It is truly awful! It seems to be coming from the keyboard."

The company first suggested the customer clean the keyboard and air vents to rid himself of the stench, but then several other users from different countries and regions began to complain of the same problem.

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"Well .. here I am Sunday doing some work on the couch and my wife says, 'What stinks like cat pee?' I said … I think its this laptop … she puts her nose up to the keyboard and BAM! It really stinks," said gambit29.

Dell began issuing replacements for the smelly laptops, although some of the new machines weren't much better than the originals.

"I just received my 5th replacement 6430u yesterday and the smell is still there …" one user said.

The problem has now been pinpointed as having occurred during the manufacturing process, which has now been changed, according to Dell. Machines rolling off the assembly line since October are pee-smell free.

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