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Wi-Fi Router's 'Pregnant Women' Setting Sparks Vendor Rivalry In China

colinneagle writes: When one Chinese technology vendor, Qihoo, launched a new Wi-Fi router with a safety setting for "pregnant women," a rival vendor took offense to the implication that their routers might be dangerous. Xiamo, which also sells Wi-Fi routers, took to its page on Chinese social media site Weibo to denounce Qihoo's pregnant women mode as a "marketing tactic," and clarify that "Wi-Fi usage is safe."

Zhou Hongyi, chief executive and president of Qihoo, acknowledged in a statement to the South China Morning Post that there is no evidence supporting claims that Wi-Fi routers pose a risk for birth defects. But he said the company is appealing to consumers' beliefs, whether they are supported by science or not.

"We are targeting people who are afraid of radiation," Hongyi said. "We aren't scientists. We haven't done many experiments to prove how much damage the radiation from Wi-Fi can cause. We leave the right of choice to our customers."

11 of 207 comments (clear)

  1. Not What I Thought It Meant by ranton · · Score: 5, Funny

    I originally thought the warning meant pregnant women are dangerous.

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    -- All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing. -- Edmund Burke
  2. Re:Illogical by ArcadeMan · · Score: 5, Funny

    He knows because their routers have a "pregnant women" setting. Didn't you read the article?

  3. Me Chinese by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Me make router, make sure baby not look like flounder.

  4. Re:Illogical by Drewdad · · Score: 4, Funny

    Insert obligatory dihydrogen monoxide reference.

  5. This router big rip off! by RevWaldo · · Score: 5, Funny

    Hold up to wife's belly one full month! Still no baby!

    .

    1. Re:This router big rip off! by zlives · · Score: 4, Funny

      you are holding it wrong!!!

  6. Re:Wi-Fi is for Luddites. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    These "X is for Luddites" "Apping the apped appers" posts really make me long for the old days of "In Soviet Russia..." or "Does it run Linux". Hell, "OMG! Ponies!" was literary genius by comparison

  7. Re:Won't someone think of the children? by rogoshen1 · · Score: 3, Funny

    wish they'd make a router with 'epilepsy' mode, where it dims/disables all front lights. I mean short of the electrical tape option of course.

  8. Re:Wi-Fi is for Luddites. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    IN SOVIET RUSSIA, appers app YOU!

    I'm not a script, da.

  9. Re:For sale: Tiger-repelling rock by Actually,+I+do+RTFA · · Score: 3, Funny

    people will be able to buy Holy Tiger-Repelling Rocks!

    Buying holy items within a repressive communist government area? Check

    Making the "tiger rock" joke about a country that has at least two variants of tiger? Check

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    Your ad here. Ask me how!
  10. I own a qihoo router by nimbius · · Score: 5, Funny

    as a qihoo wireless model 32 router owner I can say this is being completely blown out of proportion. my router has 6 very clearly labeled settings besides 'pregnant woman' mode and the article mentions nothing about them. Qihoo users like myself typically prefer to keep the router in 'surly wombat' mode to ensure best communication with devices that may be situated between an agitated or unruly wombat (as mine typically can be.) When i have company over I might set the router on 'roger whittaker' mode, which enables it to automatically emit up to 44 different songs from mellow folk sensation Roger Wittaker. You can even control time of day with different settings...for example around dinnertime ill set the router to 'defrost-reheat' which increases power levels accordingly and allows me to thaw and cook up to 15 pounds of turkey in my living room. And i challenge anyone to find a better mode than 'depeche' mode, which activates both gloomy QoS and tortured soul packet conditioning.

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    Good people go to bed earlier.