Apple has announced a ‘USB Power Adapter Takeback Program’ to help reassure customers about the safety of iPhone chargers.

A number of recent media reports have suggested that some counterfeit chargers or third-party chargers may be dangerous, with a woman in China reportedly killed and a Chinese man seriously injured in separate incidents last month.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative, which is part of the Executive Office of the President of the USA, has overruled a legal decision made in June by the US International Trade Commission.

It means that older versions of the Apple iPhone and iPad will remain on sale in the United States and will not be banned.

Figures from researchers at Strategy Analytics show that smartphone shipments grew by 46.7% year-on-year to almost 230 million units worldwide in the second quarter of 2013.

Android devices accounted for 79.5% of these smartphones, with Apple’s iOS in second place and Microsoft third.

A new report conducted by WIK and Aegis for the European Commission has found that 71% of all EU wireless data traffic last year was delivered to smartphones and tablets using WiFi.

This could rise to 78% by 2016, the report claims, with consumers increasingly using their mobile devices at home or work.

Sony’s latest quarterly results show the company making a ¥3.5 billion (£23 million) profit, compared to a loss in the same quarter last year.

Sales and operating revenue was up 13% to ¥1,712.7 billion (£11.3 billion), with favourable exchange rates, financial services revenue and smartphone sales being credited for the improvement.