Sony recalling VAIO TZ models due to overheating risk (Update: now official for US)
By Thomas Ricker 
posted September 4th 2008 5:25AM
posted September 4th 2008 5:25AM
Update: And here we have it, the official statement of voluntary recall for the US. 73,000 VAIO TZs -- VAIO VGN-TZ100 series, VGN-TZ200 series, VGN-TZ300 series and VGN-TZ2000 series sold between July 2007 and August 2008 -- are affected after 15 reports of overheating resulting in one consumer who suffered a minor burn. Full notice after the break.
Update 2: UK recalled as well. Apparently, more than 200 laptops globally have overheated resulting in seven people suffering "light burns." The recall amounts to about 440,000 laptops.
[Via Impress, thanks BigDaddyM and Chris W.]
Sony Recalls Notebook Computers Due to Burn Hazard
WASHINGTON, Sep. 4, 2008 (PRNewswire-USNewswire delivered by Newstex) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20030904/USCSCLOGO )Name of Product: Certain VAIO TZ-series Notebook ComputersUnits: About 73,000Manufacturer: Sony Electronics Inc., of San Diego, Calif.
Hazard: Irregularly positioned wires near the computer's hinge and/or a dislodged screw inside the hinge can cause a short circuit and overheating. This poses a burn hazard to consumers.
Incidents/Injuries: Sony has received 15 reports of overheating, including one consumer who suffered a minor burn.
Description: The recalled notebook computer models are the VAIO VGN-TZ100 series, VGN-TZ200 series, VGN-TZ300 series and VGN-TZ2000 series. The computers' screen size is about 11.1" measured diagonally. Not all units are affected; consumers should contact Sony to determine if their unit is included in the recall.
Sold by: The SonyStyle stores and Web site, authorized electronics retailers, and authorized business-to-business dealers nationwide from July 2007 through August 2008 for between $1,700 and $4,000.
Manufactured in: Japan and United States
Remedy: Consumers should stop using the recalled notebook computers immediately and contact Sony to determine if their notebook is affected. The firm will arrange for an inspection and repair, if needed.
Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Sony toll-free at (888) 526-6219 anytime, or visit the firm's Web site at http://www.sony.com/support.
But it makes such beautiful smoke!
I love the VAIO TZ series. But they are too expensive !!
I'd rather go for a Mac book Air.
I don't trust laptops anymore given all the health risks. I'd rather stick to pen and paper. Ever tried playing Quake with pen & paper? You need some booze to get the animation going.
Yeah, since Macbook Air is going to cost a whole lot less.
and of course you would never have overheating issues with the MBA
I have a SZ71E, just bought from a sale (£ 600), and it works just fine, although the touch pad does overheat a bit
I'd love to have a TZ but this is great, not too small and not too big either, I can carry it in my backpack without problems
Thanks for this. Girlfriend lives in Japan and has a TZ model, I'm not sure which, but I sent her the URL to check. She would've never heard about this and I doubt she sent in her registration card.
Mine has been overheating for months, but Sony denied there was any problem and sent it back twice, the second time with scratches all over the lid!!
Time to call them again~
Does *anyone* ever send in registration cards?
they should also let know about the AR31M overheating issues... i got 2 of these and mine could be cooking eggs on the left side of the keyboard...
it has now been taken in for repair (since the screen was displaing a large 5cm band from top to bottom in the middle of the screen...), the clever engineer discovered bad clusters in the HDD so he decided to relpace it, bye bye data...
sony said : no problem, you can buy the defective HDD for 400 euros, do you want us to ship it immediately?
Just wanted to say that they do indicate when you take your laptop in for repair that if they find bad clusters or what have you on the HDD they might replace it. The SONY person I talked to even asked if I had any critical data on there that I wanted to keep. Since my problem lay with the gpu I just told them not to touch the HDD and that's how it was...(This was for my VGN-FJ370) But you're right about the near-extortion prices the companies have on anything you want back from them even if it's broken. Had a bad experience with a Panasonic camcorder but that's another story.
It took 2 minutes to schedule an in-home repair visit. Probably they will clip and replace some cables and call it a day.
They are extending the warranty for 2 years.
Oh well... could have been worst.
Am so returning my extortionately expensive Vaio TZ for a FULL refund, hopefully they do the right thing!
Hong Kong is also affected: http://www.sony.com.hk/notice/20080904.jsp
Nice to see a big company like Sony actually doing something about this.
It usually takes more than 'minor burns' to get a company to start a total recall and replacement program (usually take something like, oh, say, videos leaking onto the internet of eggs frying on a chassis...)
I guess Sony is just trying to prevent another late global recall since the battery problem last time.
Yeah, can confirm Cris commented earlier... Did set up an 'in-home' repair. Will be a first for me! Didn't know Sony had laptop repair folks in my area...
The 2-year extended is great, except that I already purchased a 3 year extended warranty from Microcenter (after the 1st year was up from Manufacturer).... Damn!
Holy smokes this recall is massive. We have been working with 3 TZs at office/home with no problems. Oh well.
Yup. Set up for in-home repair. 2 years extension on the warranty is good.
Anyone know what they will do to fix it? I really hope it does not mean just making the fan run all the time. That would ruin the laptops amazing battery life [one reason I bought it].
Burn, baby. Burn!!
Disco Inferno!
I am actually using one of those laptops to type this. I haven't had any problems at all with..... Awww!! My Legs!!!! They're on Fire!!!!
I have a Vaio TZ130 model made in July 2007 and have had absolutely no problems with it.....
damn you sorny! i knew i should have bought a magetbox.
*hmph* and here i thought it was just me.. i have a Vaio TZ170N.. i do notice it gets really (almost unbearably) hot when i use the AC power and the batter is removed.. i dont really notice it too much when im running just on batter power though..
good to see Sony taking measures on faulty equipment.. lest we forget the battery debacle of '06.. to which i thankfully was not a victim of..
Cue Paris Hilton...
"That's hot".
I own an "affected unit". The repair choices are 9-5 weekday in-home repair or send it away for 7-21 days for repair. So, either miss part of a day of work (4 hour repair windows) or lose my computer for up to 3 weeks. They don't seem to have a repair center where I can bring it in.
That is horrible service on a $2,000+ laptop - which, other than being a bit slow (Vista, natch...) is awesome for its lightweight and small size, which is perfect for me since I travel all the time. Got mine before the Mac Air came out...ah well...
sssss-smokin
It tastes like burning !
Such a shame for a big company like Sony. I think they should work on hardware rather than flawless design and case materials. They have doubled after battery issue, third will be disaster >:)
BTW, I have VGN-FE21H and works perfect since April 2006.
That's nice of Sony, but I would NOT trust them to repair your laptop in a timely fashion. When you are PAYING for them to repair your machine, it takes weeks/months to get your machine fixed and sent back to you. They'll also always find something else more expensive that needs to be fixed.
@GJCATL: Take it to work and have them repair it there.
Note to TZ owners: Double check the Sony support website if your TZ wasn't originally affected by the recall. Dozens of new product codes have been added to the recall list today, and there have been consumers (including myself) that have been told by support reps that our models are not affected - even though they are now on the recall list as of today.
After constant "burning" problems Sony notebooks, I'm surprised people still buy them. Guess the stickers and colors are too much to avoid.
So I have a T37 from when they were cool all the way back in '05!
At the moment, it's unbearably hot to touch. like serious burning sensation. Im damn surprised the hard drive has actually lasted 3 years (and still appears to be going strong!). I've had to get a fan replaced in it before (which is working it's little heart out right now), but this is definitely not a new issue with sony's ultraportables.
That said I'm pretty glad they're doing something about it. Perhaps I'll have to replace this little bugger with one of their next-gen models.
Lets face it, Sony makes crappy Computers! I'll Stick with my 15" MacbookPro & my 17" Dell XPS. Cheers!