Lenovo, Sony initiate massive battery recall programs
updated 02:00 pm EDT, Thu September 28, 2006
Lenovo Battery Recall
Sony has come under intense scrutiny after a critical flaw in its batteries was found to be the root cause of fires in Dell and later Apple laptops. The latest worry for the Japanese company comes in the wake of a ThinkPad fire several days ago at Los Angeles International Airport. Lenovo, maker of the ThinkPad line, announced on Thursday a new battery recall covering 526,000 batteries made by Sony between February 2005 and September 2006. The recall covers most R-, T-, and X-series ThinkPads but doesn't affect the more mainstream 3000 series. Lenovo is being as cautious as Dell and has warned users to immediately stop using the dangerous batteries until replacements arrive.
In turn, Sony issued a press release today saying that it would issue an even larger global battery recall of its own, working with system builders to exchange batteries for any company that might have used the fire-prone units in its portable systems. No specific plans were announced, but Sony says it will work with laptop producers on a case-by-case basis to ensure that they receive enough new batteries in time.
