Foxconn, and the Question of Hardware Failure Rates
by Phoenix, HSM team writer
Is it conceivably possible that some small percentage of Sony’s next generation console could have fallen victim to assembly line sabotage? In a deleted post from the forum of IGN, an assembly line worker in the Foxconn manufacturing plant in Yantai, China, claims to have had a part in sabotaging PS4 devices. If this is true, it could explain the reports of blue light and power on/off issues the PS4 has experienced for a small percentage of owners. Some report being able to turn the console on but having no visual response when on. Reportedly this is what the intern claims he and other workers are responsible for.
Or, it could just as likely be false, and a complete fabrication.
The workers claim this sabotage was in retaliation for unfair work issues at the company. The grievance with the manufacturing plant was reported over a month ago. If this is true you can bet it will have some sort of effect on sales of the new console, but how much and what type of an impact is uncertain.
A good number of buyers have purchased the console already, but how many consumers are not yet ready to put the $399.99 at this first launch for the PS4? First-gen hardware is always a scary proposition to some extent, and given the well-publicized issues with the PS3 and XBox 360 — because actual failure rates matter far less than the perception of rampant issues — there’s a lot of skittishness right now, even with record sales numbers. So, I don’t doubt that that many more will hold off on the purchase of the console. Sony I’m sure is on top of the problem, and if unexpected will still handle the problem as expressly as they can to keep the PS4 from any further stigma in its opening launch, particularly now that the rival console has launched as well (and has its own hardware failure issues).
This issue, whether true or false, I expect will have some bearing on sales between now and Christmas. Just the post itself, deleted or not, could have a long-reaching effect 
on sales. I would think some people will shy away from purchasing the console — people who might not have, had they not seen or heard this supposed confession by the intern. How many will never be known exactly. The post forum was locked, leaving the IGN author unable to elaborate on this article. The original post was quickly deleted once it was found.
How will Sony know for certain if the culpability is real? There seems to be no supported physical evidence so far to prove the console was sabotaged, but when has the lack of evidence been enough to stop something from taking off like wildfire and marring new release sales? The idea of scandal in the technological world is tantalizing. Conspiracy theories are something else that can have an effect on the sales of something. Some forums are offering troubleshooting advice before customers have to send the consoles back, while others advice the consumer to take the PS4 to a Sony store where they can have a look at it.
What’s more interesting here is that it brings to light something we as consumers would prefer to forget about: the conditions in which some of our favorite consumer electronics (and that pointedly includes far more brands than just Sony) are manufactured, all to help keep pricing down. A full debate on this subject would go far longer than the scope of this article permits; nevertheless, it is something to ruminate upon.
Whatever the truth, I will be interested in watching the sales of the PS4 in the coming weeks. With luck, the console’s robust sales performance will continue.
November 24th, 2013 by Phoenix | 2 comments
Phoenix writes poetry and is a photography enthusiast, along with writing for HomeStation Magazine. She is currently studying for a BFA in Creative Writing and BA with concentration in Photography. psn ID phoenixstorm21
youtube.com/user/phoenixstorm21
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I simply call BS on the faulty post they’ve made.
It was also stated that IGN created an article on how the PS4 has been having hardware issues in EU when the system--at the time--never released there yet. It was like I had to convince my good friend that the “news” she heard was incredibly false.
This is where my continuance of the Knowledge 101 adventure plays here: Failure rate.
Many will exaggerate the problems that they have with the Playstation 4 when there is a .14% deficit of defect systems. That’s under the percentile average of the defective systems that Sony are allowed to have.
That would mean that 50,000 PS4 systems HAVE to fail in order for Sony to be in trouble. Now of the 3-5 percent deficit, what percentage can anyone get out of a million units sold?
It’s an easy answer: a false statement and the plenty that will downgrade Sony for a system that will make history yet again since the PS2.
With that being said, even in the media people have been trying to exaggerate on how Sony “rushed” their system when this tactic was deployed by M$ last gen, and people had no qualms whatsoever about it only for Sony to release and to state that “they released too late in the game”.
I don’t expect any slow down on the sales this Christmas. The PS4 has been picking up steam on sales and the system is 50% more powerful than Xbone, along with a bigger library of launched games.
Even so, “bleh” to that post but great article Phoenix. 8D
If anyone would care to read from the following site, you will find that Xbox One has been experiencing some of the same issues. This would seem to make the rumors and article confessions look a bit different. Seems to me the problems with both are just what keeps some ppl from buying the first launch systems in the first place, nothing more then expected bugs.
http://www.ign.com/articles/2013/11/22/xbox-one-early-adopters-reporting-hardware-problems