News

Overheating Batteries Lead to HP Laptop Recall

Hewlett-Packard Co. is recalling 54,000 lithium-ion batteries used in its Pavilion and Compaq laptops due to the risk of overheating, and a potential fire hazard.

Since a prior May 2009 recall of 70,000 units, HP reported that it has received 38 reports of batteries that overheated and ruptured, resulting in 11 instances of minor personal injury and 31 cases of minor property damage.

In a May 19 announcement about the voluntary recall and replacement program, HP indicated that customers are eligible to receive a replacement battery pack for each verified, recalled battery pack at no cost.

HP and the Consumer Product Safety Commission both recommended that customers who own the affected laptops should remove the batteries immediately.

"We are taking this action as part of our commitment to provide the highest quality of service to our notebook customers," HP's announcement stated. "We are proactively notifying you of this issue and are prepared to replace all verified battery packs."

The recall pertains to battery packs shipped with certain models of HP Pavilion, HP Compaq and Compaq Presario notebooks that were manufactured between August 2007 and May 2008. Product numbers are listed on HP's Web site here. HP indicated in its announcement that fewer than three percent of the notebook PC products manufactured in this timeframe contained battery packs that are affected.

The computers, which cost between cost between $500 and $3,000, were sold both through electronic retailers and HP outlets between August 2007 and July 2008. The battery packs also were sold separately for between $100 and $160.

Battery recalls are not uncommon. In 2006, Sony recalled a massive number of lithium-ion batteries that were believed to be defective and sold to computer makers, including Apple (recalled 1.8 million batteries worldwide), Dell (4.1 million recalled), Lenovo and HP.

The BBC reported that researchers at Cambridge University have identified the cause of lithium-ion batteries overheating and catching fire. In short, metal fibers in the batteries are the key, as they can cause short circuits, resulting in the battery rapidly overheating -- and potentially catching fire.

About the Author

Natasha Watkins is a New York-based freelance writer specializing in technology and business topics.

Featured

  • MIT Finds Only 1 in 20 AI Investments Translate into ROI

    Despite pouring billions into generative AI technologies, 95 percent of businesses have yet to see any measurable return on investment.

  • Report: Cost, Sustainability Drive DaaS Adoption Beyond Remote Work

    Gartner's 2025 Magic Quadrant for Desktop as a Service reveals that while secure remote access remains a key driver of DaaS adoption, a growing number of deployments now focus on broader efficiency goals.

  • Windows 365 Reserve, Microsoft's Cloud PC Rental Service, Hits Preview

    Microsoft has launched a limited public preview of its new "Windows 365 Reserve" service, which lets organizations rent cloud PC instances in the event their Windows devices are stolen, lost or damaged.

  • Hands-On AI Skills Now Outshine Certs in Salary Stakes

    For AI-related roles, employers are prioritizing verifiable, hands-on abilities over framed certificates -- and they're paying a premium for it.