Lenovo & IBM Announce Recall of ThinkPad Batteries

[hausdok]

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Release #06-270

Due to a fire hazard, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with IBM and Lenovo, has announced a voluntary recall of the rechargeable lithium-ion batteries used in the IBM and Lenovo Thinkpad notebook computers.

Units: About 168,500 battery packs (an additional 357,500 battery packs were sold worldwide).

Battery Distributor: Lenovo (United States) Inc., of Research Triangle Park, N.C. and International Business Machines Corp., of Armonk, N.Y. Battery

Manufacturer: Sony Energy Devices Corp., of Japan

Hazard: The lithium-ion batteries can cause overheating, posing a fire hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Lenovo has received one confirmed report of a battery overheating and causing a fire that damaged the notebook computer. The incident, which occurred within an airport terminal as the user was boarding an airplane, caused enough smoking and sparking that a fire extinguisher was used to put it out. There was minor property damage and no injuries were reported.

Description: The recalled lithium-ion batteries were sold with or sold separately to be used with the following ThinkPad notebook computers: T Series (T43, T43p, T60); R Series (R51e, R52, R60, R60e); and X Series (X60, X60s).

The recalled batteries have the following part or model numbers, which can be found on the battery label: Part/model number: ASM P/N & FRU P/N's are: 92P1072/92P1073; 92P1088/92P1089; 92P1142/92P1141; 92P1170/92P1169; 93P5028/92P1174; or 92P1173/93P5030

Sold Through: Lenovo and IBM's Web sites, telephone and direct sales, and Lenovo and IBM authorized distributors between February 2005 and September 2006 as an accessory for between $150 and $180 and as part of a ThinkPad notebook computer for between $750 and $3500.

Manufactured in: Japan and China

Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled batteries immediately and contact Lenovo to receive a replacement battery, free-of-charge.

Until a replacement battery arrives, consumers can continue to use their computer by turning off the system, removing the battery, and plugging in the AC adapter and power cord.

Consumers should use only genuine ThinkPad batteries obtained from either Lenovo or an authorized reseller.

Consumer Contact: Customers should contact Lenovo at (800) 426-7378 anytime or log on to www.lenovo.com/batteryprogram to determine if the battery is part of the recall and to receive a replacement battery.

To view this release online, click here to go to the announcement on the CPSC web site or call the Lenovo Recall Hotline: (800) 426-7378 or the CPSC Recall Hotline: (800) 638-2772.