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IBM and Lenovo Recall Sony Batteries

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the things-that-go-boom dept.

digihome writes "IBM and Lenovo are recalling 168,500 ThinkPad notebook battery packs in the United States and another 357,000 worldwide, saying the Sony-made lithium-ion batteries can 'cause overheating, posing a fire hazard to consumers.'" The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission has more details.

11 of 111 comments (clear)

  1. This leaves only Acer and HP by arivanov · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Out of all big Sony battery customers this leaves only Acer and HP. Everybody else has recalled. Interesting - how long till they recall the remainders (they did partial "fire" recalls last year).

    --
    Baker's Law: Misery no longer loves company. Nowadays it insists on it
    http://www.sigsegv.cx/
    1. Re:This leaves only Acer and HP by markana · · Score: 4, Funny

      Over at HP, Mark Hurd is reported to have said that he was sent the reports of batteries exploding, but he hadn't read them. Patricia Dunn is quoted as saying "I thought laptops burst into flames all the time. I still don't see anything wrong with it."

      Spokespersons at HP defended the batteries, saying that laptop batteries routinely exploded in use: "It's a standard industry practice".

      HP's stock rose on analysts predictions that sales of replacement laptops would surge following the wave of melted hardware. "They were going to have to buy all new laptops to run Vista anyway.", said one. "This way, the customers can stick it to their insurance companies."

  2. Saw that one coming... by piquadratCH · · Score: 3, Interesting

    ...after reading this little story.

    I have a battery from Sanyo, unfortunately, so no free, new battery for me :(

  3. Who's the bad guy now? by twifosp · · Score: 4, Insightful
    Everyone ripped on Dell when they first announced the recall. Sony's PR said this was a Dell issue, and not a Sony one. There were even some pretty hilarious jokes about Dell Laptops and [insert exploding situation here].

    So why were they so bad for recalling the batteries months before everyone else again?

    Or I guess a better, and more on-topic, question would be: Why is it taking everyone else so long to innitiate a recall?

    1. Re:Who's the bad guy now? by Slightly+Askew · · Score: 3, Funny
      Why is it taking everyone else so long to innitiate a recall?

      Narrator: A new battery by my company ships out in a new laptop. The battery heats up. The laptop burns with all the data trapped inside. Now, should we initiate a recall? Take the number of batteries in the field, A, multiply by the probable rate of failure, B, multiply by the average out-of-court settlement, C. A times B times C equals X. If X is less than the cost of a recall, we don't do one.
      Business woman on plane: Are there a lot of these kinds of accidents?
      Narrator: You wouldn't believe.
      Business woman on plane: Which battery company do you work for?
      Narrator: A major one.

      --
      Public use of any portable music system is a virtually guaranteed indicator of sociopathic tendencies. -- Zoso
  4. From Lenovo.com by E+IS+mC(Square) · · Score: 5, Informative

    Their announcement here.

    This involves systems sold between February 2005 and September 2006, including:

    ThinkPad R Series (R51e, R52, R60, R60e)
    ThinkPad T Series (T43, T43p, T60)
    ThinkPad X Series (X60, X60s)

    Yes, my one month old T60 too is on the list. Though I will wait out till the initial rush dies out.

  5. Not good for Sony by PineHall · · Score: 4, Insightful

    When I think of Sony, I think of rootkits, exploding batteries and a delayed PS3. Sony has some significant problems. I don't think I want to buy anything connected with the name of Sony.

  6. Re:E-gad... by Rob86TA · · Score: 3, Funny
    May you win a thousand Darwin awards...

    I thought you could only win a Darwin award once. After that you are merely an example/warning to others

  7. Quick check (Linux) by toolz · · Score: 4, Informative
    To quickly check (under Linux) if you are subject to the battery recall:

    $ grep model /proc/acpi/battery/BAT0/info

    Then compare the output to this list:
    ASM P/N FRU P/N
    92P1072 92P1073
    92P1088 92P1089
    92P1142 92P1141
    92P1170 92P1169 or 93P5028
    92P1174 92P1173 or 93P5030
    The value returned is the ASM P/N (*not* the FRU!)
    --
    You aren't remembered for doing what is expected of you
  8. Actually... by d3m0nCr4t · · Score: 3, Funny

    I think Sony has succeeded to implement a DRM rootkit into their batteries... One illegal MP3 or movie and BANG !!!

  9. Check Your Battery from Linux by d3xt3r · · Score: 3, Informative
    If you're running Linux and want to check your battery model number without powering off.
    1. Open up a shell
    2. Type: cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT0/info
    3. Look for the line labled model number:

    My output is listed below and does not appear to be affected ...

    cat /proc/acpi/battery/BAT0/info
    present: yes
    design capacity: 84240 mWh
    last full capacity: 79610 mWh
    battery technology: rechargeable
    design voltage: 10800 mV
    design capacity warning: 3980 mWh
    design capacity low: 200 mWh
    capacity granularity 1: 1 mWh
    capacity granularity 2: 1 mWh
    model number: 92P1133
    battery type: LION
    OEM info: Panasonic

    The list of recalled models is here.