Experiencing reverse polarity—where positive and negative terminals are incorrectly crossed during a connection—can cause severe damage depending on the device and safety protections present. In older electronic devices without built-in reverse polarity protection diodes, crossing the leads can instantly fry circuit boards, blow internal fuses, cause overheating, or permanently ruin rechargeable lithium-ion or lead-acid batteries by inducing internal short circuits, cell damage, or dangerous chemical off-gassing and thermal runaway risks.
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