Dell recalls Inspiron notebook batteries

May 3, 2001 —

Dell Computer Corp. announced a large-scale recall of batteries used in its Inspiron
notebook computers, which can overheat and catch fire, the company said Thursday.

The direct seller will contact customers that bought its
Inspiron 5000 and Inspiron 5000(e) notebooks with batteries manufactured by
Panasonic Corp., a company spokesman said.

The recall affects 284,000 batteries sold in notebooks from Jan. 7 of last year
through March 21 this year. The batteries were also sold separately by Dell
and its service providers during the same period, Dell said in a statement.

Customers will be contacted in order for battery replacements to be sent out.
Each customer will initially receive one replacement battery. A bonus battery
will be shipped when the old battery is returned, Dell said.

So far Dell has had one customer report of a notebook battery overcharging,
resulting in "minor property damage."

Dell advises owners of the affected Inspiron model notebooks to remove the
battery from the unit and go to a special section of Dell's Website to determine
if the battery is part of the recall.

In October last year Dell recalled 27,000 batteries manufactured by Sanyo Electric.
These batteries were used in various Latitude models as well as the
Inspiron 3700 and 3800 series notebooks.

ITworld.com