Hewlett Packard is recalling 70,000 lithium ion batteries on
some HP and Compaq-branded notebooks after it emerged that the
China-made units are prone to overheating.
The potential dangers of overheating laptop batteries was
graphically demonstrated in 2006 when images of a burning Sony
laptop were obtained by a UK-based news agency.
In October last year laptop makers including HP, Dell and
Toshiba
recalled 100,000 Sony-made batteries deemed to pose a fire
hazard.
The US
Consumer
Product Safety Commission lists the HP and Compaq models
affected.
Owners of these products are advised to remove the recalled
battery from their notebook computer immediately.
HP said that it will
provide details to help customers obtain a free replacement
battery.
