ExplodingBatteries
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PSA: Sony says counterfeit PS3 controllers could explode
We're not sure why anyone would buy a knock-off DualShock 3 or SIXAXIS gamepad, considering the trouble Sony's taken to make sure they don't work, but the PlayStation 3 manufacturer has another reason you might want to steer clear of counterfeit pads -- they could be tiny Li-ion bombs poised to explode. Talk about force feedback! Yes, the company that brought us exploding laptop batteries says that third-party products "which are practically identical in appearance to genuine PlayStation®3 wireless controllers" may burst into flame, and as you might expect, Sony suggests that you run out to your nearest retailer and purchase the real deal instead.
Toshiba waves the recall flag again on Sony laptop batteries
Groundhog's Day ain't got nothing on this. Yet again, we're faced with another recall on potentially defective laptop batteries, and yet again, these cells in question could catch fire when you least expect it. The latest round of recalls by Toshiba allows for some 10,000 Sony-made batteries to be replaced after a trio of fire incidents over the past ten months got its attention. Of course, Sony noted that the financial impact of this wave should be minor, particularly compared to the recall-related costs it's already trying to swallow.
Counterfeit flashlight batteries recalled due to fire hazard
Unfortunately for those 4,400 or so owners of the Xenon Aluminum flashlight sold at Sportsman's Warehouse, the recall wagon has come your way, and unless you have no fear of exploding batteries, we'd suggest you power it off at your earliest convenience. Interestingly enough, this case involves more than just a faulty design, as the Panasonic CR123A Industrial Lithium batteries packed within are believed to be counterfeits, and it comes as no surprise that these knockoffs "can overheat and rupture, posing a fire and burn hazard to consumers." So, if you happen to own the six-, nine-, or twelve-volt version of these here devices, it looks like you'll be making an unwanted trip out to Sportsman's Warehouse before long.
Chinese welder killed by exploding cellphone battery
It's all fun and games until someone gets hurt, and unfortunately, the latest case of exploding battery syndrome led to something far worse than a minor injury. Reportedly, a 22-year old Chinese welder actually perished after a cellphone battery residing in his pocket exploded. The eruption was so violent, in fact, that it "broke a rib and drove the remnants of the pack into his heart," and while rescue crews were able to get him to a hospital, he passed away shortly thereafter. Currently, the manufacturer of the phone and battery are being withheld, but expects in Jinta were dispatched in order to conduct an investigation.[Via Inquirer, image courtesy of ABC]
The 2006 Engadget Awards: Vote for Worst Gadget of the Year
Ready to get your hater on? We're at the end of the line, and your chance to cast your ballot for the 2006 Worst Gadget of the Year! (Note: nominees were not necessarily selected for having outright bad or defective gadgets -- the disappointment / let-down factor also plays a big role.) Our Engadget Awards nominees are listed below, and you've got until 11.59PM EST on Wednesday, April 18th to file your vote. You can only vote once, so make it count, and may the best tech win! The nominees: Defective Apple MacBooks (see here, here, here, and here), Exploding Sony batteries (see here, here, here, here, here, and many more), Microsoft Zune, Motorola Q, Nintendo Wiimote straps (see here, here, here, and here), and Sony PlayStation 3. %Poll-361%
Sony prez: we were "slow to react" to exploding batteries
In what may be the biggest understatement of 2006, Ryoji Chubachi (pictured), president of Sony, told the Japanese newspaper Mainichi Shimbun that his firm was slow to react to the exploding battery fiasco. "The company should have investigated the cause of the battery problem more quickly," he said. "The worries over the batteries spread as a result." In the interview, Chubachi also argued that Sony was not on the decline, despite the fact that it's had to take a $561 million hit for the battery recalls -- not to mention the continuing PS3 problems, shortages and subsequent consequences. "Either way, it was a process of challenges, still showing the Sony spirit," Chubachi added. We understand Sony's esprit de corps, but given all of its problems, we'd sure like to see a renaissance right about now. [Via Reg Hardware]
Sony apologizes for the "inconvenience" of battery recall
Oh Sony, perhaps your Sony Entertainment execs have convinced you that any press is good press, but it's not always that way in this business anymore -- when will your bad news ever get out of our news readers? After your various episodes regarding the near-10m worldwide battery recall, you issue an obviously forced apology for causing serious property damage and putting millions of customers at risk of harm or death? Because according to The Associated Press, top company executives have apologized for the "inconvenience caused by a massive global recall in laptop batteries," but seemed confident that the problem was fixed and that the company could move on. However, AP's coverage continues: "The executives were seated while they bowed and did not bow deeply standing as most Japanese executives generally do in public apologies for troubles at their companies, underlining how Sony has been reluctant to admit fault in the troubles with its laptop batteries." Sorry Sony, you don't get to invoke papal infallibility on this one. We know you basically invented the consumer electronics industry, but that doesn't mean you get to act like like a curmudgeonly old man, cursorily acknowledging the interruption that is actually a major mistake. What's more, the AP posits that you've "maintained that the short-circuiting happens only very rarely and only in certain ways that the battery is connected in a system with laptop models, or if the laptop is used improperly and gets bumped around." Not you seem to be listening, but let's face facts here: it's not as infrequent an issue as you probably wish, Sony, and time and time again it's been proved that ordinary users doing nothing unusual are experiencing these fires. C'mon Sony, it's us, Engadget. We won't even mention how incredibly angry we are about Lik Sang. You, us, let's dish.
Sony battery recall approaches 10 million, costs mounting
We've written so much on this Sony battery fiasco that we almost feel like we could just gather our posts and sell 'em together as a PDF for $5 a download. But if we did that, we'd miss out on this latest chapter: the Sony battery recall is now nearing the 10 million mark, and that's straight from the horse's mouth. Yes, Sony announced late Thursday that it would be recalling a total of 9.6 million batteries worldwide, including 90,000 of its own Vaio batteries. Beyond that, the Japanese giant will take a 38 percent hit on its annual profit forecast -- so if you're keeping score, the battery recall has cost the company so far a total of ¥51 billion ($429 million) from July to September. Well, we're in October now, and so it stands to reason that the company is likely to lose out further. And if that wasn't enough, The Associated Press reports: "Sony spokesman Takashi Uehara said the 51 billion yen figure doesn't include 'provisions for possible lawsuits' suggesting costs may actually grow." Nope, definitely not the time to close the book on this story, no sir.
Sony recalls 300,000 of its own batteries; delays and financial woes through 2007
So it looks like Sony's battery fiasco will likely cause delays and high battery prices until June 2007, according to Bloomberg News, which reports that "prices for battery cells have risen about 15 percent in the past three months because of the shortage." If that wasn't bad enough, the news agency also adds that Sony has set aside ¥30 billion ($251 million) "for costs related to the August recall of batteries used in Dell and Apple computers, Sony spokesman Yoshikazu Ochiai reiterated today." However, that figure doesn't take into account the recalls by the laundry list of other companies like Fujitsu, nor Sharp, nor IBM / Lenovo, not to mention a few others. So we'll guesstimate that Sony's true cost is really somewhere around ¥40 billion (over $334 million), and that, of course doesn't include any future companies that may come out of the woodwork to point out faulty batteries they bought from Sony -- like, oh, say, Sony. That's right, Sony has also officially announced a recall of 300,000 batteries in their own devices. Yikes.[Thanks, Sam]Read - Sony recallRead - Sony financials
Fujitsu, Sharp recall 79,000 batteries
Well it appears that we haven't heard the last from Fujitsu concerning battery recalls. Today the company announced that it will take back 51,000 Sony-made batteries in addition to the 287,000 that it announced last week. As if that weren't enough, Sharp, who until now has been an innocent bystander to this whole affair, said that it too would be joining the party that Dell, Apple, Lenovo / IBM, Panasonic, Toshiba, Hitachi and especially Sony wished had never even started. Reuters reports that Sharp will be recalling 28,000 of its laptop batteries, bringing today's sub-total to 79,000 and the grand total of recalled Sony batteries to over 7.7 million. We're pretty sure that Acer and HP are praying that they don't have to join in on the fun too.
Sony to begin global "battery replacement" program
We're still scrounging for more info, but we've just been alerted to the fact that Sony, the mothership of all of these battery problems, is going to begin a global replacement program. As surely those of you who've been following along already know, Sony's batteries have been at the heart of this explosive saga that has already claimed IBM / Lenovo, Dell, Apple, Panasonic and Toshiba as victims. It appears, however, that because Sony makes the internal components to each of these batteries but not the actual computer-specific housing that finishes them, the company is putting the onus of recalling and replacing the bad batteries on OEMs "that choose to participate regarding the quantity and scheduling of replacement battery packs." Well, at least ol' Sony is finally going public with the scope of the problem, and no longer trying to just put the whole mess behind it in favor of pushing those PS3s out the door.
Over 500,000 IBM / Lenovo laptop batteries subject to recall
Hooray, Lenovo has joined the battery recall party! For those of you keeping score at home, that brings the number of manufacturers to five, including Apple, Panasonic, Toshiba and Dell. The recall, anounced today, affects nearly 170,000 batteries in the US, and over 350,000 additionally worldwide, according to the US Consumer Product Safety Commission. The USCPSC also says that the recall was triggered by Lenovo's confirmation of the battery that exploded at LAX a few weeks ago and that this latest battery recall affects the following ThinkPad notebook computers "sold between February 2005 and September 2006: T Series (T43, T43p, T60); R Series (R51e, R52, R60, R60e); and X Series (X60, X60s)." Furthermore, Lenovo has put out a press release stating: "Additionally, since these batteries can also be used with ThinkPad T4x Series or ThinkPad R5x Series systems, customers who ordered an extra battery or received a replacement battery for any ThinkPad T4x or ThinkPad R5x Series notebook PC between February 2005 and September 2006 may also have a battery subject to recall." Now, Alan Cox's exploded ThinkPad 600 isn't part of the list, which leads us to believe that this isn't the last we've heard about Sony's exploding battery fiasco. Read - Lenovo press releaseRead - US Consumer Product Safety Commission[Thanks, JJL]
IEEE at work on revised Li-ion battery standard
Yeah, we're trying to hold back the snickering too. It seems the IEEE has chosen now as the time to start looking over those (previously innocent) battery protocols, and the timing couldn't be any more convenient. Rather than buckling down and getting a finalized 802.11n standard out the door, the task force is being silently forced to take a good, hard look at battery criteria. Currently focused on IEEE P1825 -- the designation for lithium-ion and lithium-ion polymer batteries used in digital cameras and camcorders -- the crew is hoping to set more uniform regulations for the "design, production, and evaluation" of said cells. The update is supposedly aimed at revising "design analysis, testing and qualification checks" to ensure those QA reports filter out any, um, potentially explosive misfits, and while the project is scheduled to be completed "within 18 months," we know how quickly these folks let their deadlines slip. But the force isn't letting those increasingly-concerned computer manufactures get too much of a head start, as the IEEE 1625 is also slated for a (very necessary) revamp -- which makes perfect sense considering its label: "laptop battery standard."
Virgin Atlantic revises complete Dell, Apple laptop ban
Virgin Atlantic has altered its sweeping policy of banning all Inspiron, Latitude, iBook, PowerBook, MacBook and MacBook Pro batteries from its flights, saying "If the battery is identified as being from the affected batch as identified by Apple and Dell, the battery must be removed. In cabins where the seats are fitted with In Seat Power Supplies, leads/adapters will be offered. Where no ISPS is provided or no laptop leads/adapters are available, the use of these affected laptops is prohibited." No word yet on whether Qantas or Korean Air has gotten the memo that it doesn't need to forbid every Dell laptop under the sun on their flights as well. But we've yet to hear of airlines banning Panasonic, Toshiba, and IBM laptops -- something that may be coming sooner than you think, if someone doesn't figure out pretty fast what the devil is going on.
Fire-retardant sleeves for your laptop
We're not sure if these new fire-retardant covers are meant to protect nearby objects in the event of battery explosion, or if they're meant to protect the MacBook from thermal disaster in its surrounding environment -- but either way, they're a pretty stylish new necessity. Wrappers, a British retailer, is now selling jumbocord covers made from graphite granules embedded in the supposed contract-quality corduroy that has passed a "100,000 wear and tear rub test" -- which we really hope doesn't mean it was rubbed 100,000 times by a person. MacBook sleeves are £19.50 ($36) including worldwide shipping, and can be embroidered with initials for an additional three quid ($5.63). Regardless of whether or not your order one, we think that Korean Air, Qantas and Virgin should get in touch with Wrappers to make some airplane-friendly fire-retardant sleeves for the type of computers that have a better chance of actually exploding.[Via Laptop]
Korean Air bans Dell laptops, Apple PowerBooks and iBooks
So it would seem that Korean Air has forbidden all Dell laptops and Apple's PowerBook and iBook models from its flights due to the risk that those computers' batteries might explode, reports The Korea Times. The newspaper also reported that Australian airline Qantas made a similar ban last month for the same reasons. Naturally, the longer it takes Sony, the batteries' manufacturer, to sort through this exploding battery fiasco, the harder and harder its going to be to get your Dell or Apple on a plane, but we know the pressure's on. Sony has already faced the wrath of the Japanese Ministry of Trade, and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission, and apparently the US Federal Aviation Administration is also looking into the problem as well. Damn, it's hard out there for Sony -- maybe it'd do well to quell everyone's fears by giving out some free PS3s for awhile, whattayasay?[Via ThinkSecret]
Battery recall cause for panic? Null says no
With all the sensational press about battery recalls and exploding laptops (much of it found right here on these very pages), you might think that your own notebook is a ticking timebomb set to blow at any moment (Qantas sure does). Therefore, many people have been tempted to eject their recalled batteries as quickly as possible and send them off to Dell (and now Apple) before they burst into flames and become fodder for numerous gadget blogs. But is the situation really that urgent? Former Mobile editor-in-chief and current Wired and Yahoo! Tech contributor Christoper Null sat down to do the math, and figured that the odds of your lappy going boom in, say, the next two months, are actually pretty slim. Using the Dell recall as a baseline, Null went in with the assumption that the problem is much worse than the company knows about (or is reporting), and that over the next three years, ten times as many batteries will blow as have already combusted so far. Even in such a pessimistic scenario, the odds of your particular Dell pulling a Dell in the next 60 days (1 in 1,230,000) are far less than the chances that you'll die this year from freezing to death, choking on your own vomit, and even falling out of bed. While you may disagree with Null's numbers and methodology, the point here is clear: there's no real need to panic, and if your notebook hasn't already turned into a charred husk of its former self, you'll probably be okay waiting out the initial flood of returns and sending your battery back in a few weeks. After all, if we let the defective batteries change our way of life, then the defective batteries have already won.
