It’s always worrying when your phone feels warmer than it should, but there are levels of severity. Slight warmth after a particularly long streaming session is usually fine, but scalding and a burning odor are the most concerning. If this happens to you, it’s a sign that shouldn’t be ignored.
Now, I probably didn’t have to tell you that a burning, metallic, or chemical smell coming from your phone is a bad thing. However, you may be curious as to why it happens. There are a number of components that can lead to the weird smell a phone emits when it’s overheated, and it’s not only about the battery.
“Warm computer” smell
Nostalgic and usually harmless
We’ll start with the most common and typically harmless odor. If you used a beige desktop PC in the late ‘90s or early 2000s, you may be familiar with what some people refer to as the “warm computer” smell. Smartphones can give off a similar scent, too.
“Warm computer” smell typically comes from dust being roasted by hot components or warm plastic. For a smartphone, that usually comes from the charging port, which is a playground for dust and lint to collect. The good news is that’s usually all it is, and you can fix it by carefully cleaning out the port. If the smell persists, though, it could be a sign of something worse.
QuizAccidentally dangerous gadgets
Trivia challenge
Some tech was built to help — but ended up causing chaos, injuries, and even fires.
SafetyHistoryRecallsDesignHazards
Samsung recalled millions of Galaxy Note 7 smartphones in 2016 primarily because of what dangerous defect?
Correct! The Galaxy Note 7’s lithium-ion batteries had a manufacturing flaw that caused them to short-circuit and combust. The situation was so serious that the phones were banned from commercial flights worldwide, and Samsung ultimately discontinued the entire product line.
Not quite. The Galaxy Note 7 was recalled because its batteries would overheat and catch fire — sometimes violently. The crisis was so severe that airlines banned the device from all flights and Samsung killed the Note 7 entirely.
Hoverboards became notorious in 2015 and 2016 for frequently doing what dangerous thing?
That’s right! Early hoverboards used low-quality, unregulated lithium-ion battery packs that were prone to thermal runaway — meaning they could burst into flames while riding or charging. Hundreds of house fires were linked to the devices before safety standards were enforced.
Not quite. The big hoverboard danger was fire. Cheap, unregulated battery packs caused thermal runaway events, sparking hundreds of house fires across the US and UK and triggering a wave of import bans and safety investigations.
The Therac-25 radiation therapy machine in the 1980s became a cautionary tale in engineering because it caused patient deaths due to what?
Exactly right! The Therac-25’s software had race conditions — timing bugs that could occur when operators typed commands quickly. In certain cases this removed safety interlocks and delivered doses up to 100 times the intended amount, killing at least three patients. It remains one of the most studied disasters in software engineering history.
The culprit was actually software bugs — specifically race conditions that disabled hardware safety checks under certain operator inputs. The result was lethal radiation overdoses. The Therac-25 is now a foundational case study in why software safety cannot replace physical hardware interlocks.
Early versions of which popular fitness gadget were recalled after the device’s wristband caused skin burns and rashes in thousands of users?
Correct! Fitbit recalled its Force wristband in 2014 after thousands of users reported contact dermatitis, skin irritation, and even burns. The issues were linked to allergic reactions to the nickel in the stainless steel casing and adhesives in the band material. It was a costly recall that led Fitbit to redesign future bands.
It was actually the Fitbit Force that was recalled in 2014 after causing widespread skin irritation and burns. The culprit was a combination of nickel in the hardware and adhesives in the band material that triggered serious allergic reactions in many wearers.
The original Microsoft Surface Pro power connector was quietly redesigned after reports that the charging cable could do what?
Right on! The Surface Pro’s proprietary charging cables were widely reported to fray near the connector end, exposing live electrical wires. Microsoft faced significant user complaints and a class-action lawsuit over the issue. The problem highlighted how cable strain relief design is a critical — and often overlooked — safety factor.
The real issue was cable fraying. The Surface Pro charging cables were prone to splitting open near the connector, leaving bare live wires exposed. This created both fire and electrocution hazards, and Microsoft faced lawsuits and significant criticism over the design.
Lawn darts, sold as a family garden game in the 1970s and 1980s, were eventually banned in the US and Canada. What made them so dangerous?
Spot on! Lawn darts — also known as Jarts — featured heavy steel-tipped spikes meant to stick into the ground. When thrown into the air and landing on a person, they acted essentially like a javelin. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission banned them in 1988 after they were linked to thousands of injuries and multiple deaths, many involving children.
The danger was their sharp, heavy metal tips. Lawn darts were essentially javelins sold as toys — when they came down on a person instead of the grass, the results were catastrophic. The CPSC banned them in the US in 1988 following multiple deaths, predominantly among children.
Which early consumer technology product was found to expose users to low levels of X-ray radiation due to a manufacturing defect in its vacuum tubes?
Correct! In 1967, General Electric recalled around 90,000 color televisions after it was discovered that faulty high-voltage regulators in the CRT sets were emitting X-ray radiation at levels exceeding federal safety guidelines. The incident prompted the US government to pass the Radiation Control for Health and Safety Act in 1968.
The answer is early color televisions. In 1967, GE had to recall tens of thousands of color TV sets because defective components in their cathode ray tubes were leaking X-ray radiation. The scandal was serious enough to prompt the US Congress to pass new radiation safety legislation the very next year.
Takata airbag inflators, subject to the largest automotive recall in history, were dangerous because their inflators could do what upon deployment?
Exactly right! Takata used ammonium nitrate as the propellant in their inflators without a chemical stabilizer. Over time — especially in hot, humid climates — the compound degraded and could explode with excessive force, shattering the metal inflator housing and firing shrapnel directly at passengers. The defect was linked to over 27 deaths and hundreds of injuries worldwide.
The terrifying truth is that Takata’s inflators could literally explode, turning the airbag housing into a metal fragmentation device firing shards into the car’s occupants. A degraded ammonium nitrate propellant was the chemical culprit, and the defect caused more than 27 deaths globally in the largest auto recall ever recorded.
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Burning rubber or plastic
Sometimes only temporary, but not to be ignored
What if the plastic scent is strong, or it smells more like rubber? This can be a sign of something going wrong with the internal circuit boards or wiring. Depending on the age of your phone, it can be temporary or an indicator of a serious flaw.
When you purchase brand new appliances—especially those with heating elements—they sometimes come with instructions to run them empty the first time to burn off any dust or plastic remnants. New phones are similar. Internal components made of plastic and rubber can put off subtle odors until they “bake off.”
If this smell doesn’t go away after a while, it could mean something more serious is happening inside the phone. As I mentioned, the smell might be coming from an electric short on the circuit board or wiring. When the smell gets stronger, it’s time for further inspection.
Code Red, take this seriously
Now it’s time for the worst-case scenario. When it comes to a smartphone, the most dangerous component is the battery. If you remember the Samsung Galaxy Note 7 debacle, you’re well aware of the damage they can cause. Faulty batteries have been known to explode and burn down houses—it’s not to be taken lightly.
The smells that accompany a failing battery have been described as “sweet,” “metallic,” like nail polish remover, “chemical-y,” and even “fishy.” These smells usually come from VOCs and the fluid inside lithium-ion batteries. If the battery is punctured and leaking, you have an extremely severe problem on your hands.
Don’t believe me? HTG’s own Ismar Hrnjicevic shared the story of his mom’s phone exploding. The early warning signs were dramatic drops in battery life, erratic battery percentage readings, and random reboots. Things eventually graduated to overheating and the battery swelling enough to separate the back of the phone from the frame.
Listen to your nose
Regardless of which specific odor you’re smelling, it’s important to pay attention to it. Needless to say, phones aren’t supposed to smell at all—so don’t ignore the message.
The first thing you should do is unplug the phone if it’s charging and power it off. Let the phone fully cool down before trying to turn it on again. There’s always the chance that simply turning it off and on again solves the problem.
Of course, if it doesn’t, you’ll need to seriously consider replacing your phone. There’s a good chance your carrier or the phone’s manufacturer will send a replacement if you can prove it’s malfunctioning. Just don’t expect the problem to go away on its own.
Stephan is the sports journalist for the Maple Grove Report.
