By now most of us are aware that Sony Corp. has issued a massive laptop battery recall of some 9.6 million affected computers. Brands involved in the recall include Dell, IBM, Fujitsu, Hitachi, Lenovo, Apple, Sharp, HP-Compaq, Toshiba, Gateway, Sony, and the list continues to grow.

So what happened? Sony states that the problem involved the “manufacturing process of the battery cells which are rolled up metal strips. During production, crimping of the rolls left tiny pieces of metal loose in the cells which can cause the battery to short circuit. There have been some reports of laptops actually catching fire and melting.”

So is your laptop involved in the recall? Your best source of information is to either contact the manufacturer directly or check on its Web site for additional information. Most manufacturers have listed on their sites either a tool to determine if your model is included in the recall or a list of models that are involved.

You can also contact the U.S. Consumer Products Safety Commission at its Recall Hotline (800) 638-2772 for additional information.

[tags]Sony, laptop, battery, recall, computers, cells[/tags]