09-29-2006, 06:30 PM
|
|
Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
|
|
Sony Issues Massive Laptop Battery Recall... What About PDAs?
"Sony has finally bitten the bullet and issued a worldwide recall of all Sony-manufactured lithium-ion batteries used in notebook computers. Earlier in the day, Lenovo/IBM joined the ranks of Dell, Apple, and Toshiba in issuing a recall for all Sony batteries that ship with their notebooks."
Huge hassle and embarrassment for Sony aside, there's something that no one seems to talk about here: why should we assume this is only the case for laptops? Could it be possible that our current PDAs have Sony-manufactured batteries capable of burning/exploding? 8O I hope I'm wrong, but... (ironically, my Powerbook G4's battery is one of the few that's exempt from the recall. Oh well... I was looking forward to a free new battery, but it looks like that won't happen.)
|
| |
|
|
|
09-29-2006, 06:53 PM
|
|
5000+ Posts? I Should OWN This Site!
Join Date: Jun 2007
Posts: 5,067
|
|
Notebook batteries are, in general, in a much hostile environment than PDA batteries. This means far bigger currents (this is what Lithium-based batteries don't really like) or, particularly with pre-Pentium-M CPU's / 7200 HDD's / powerful GPU's, excessive heat inside the notebook case (not particularly liked either).
That is, PDA users are, I'd say, safe. Except for (some) post-manufactured battery manufacturers, I don't think you'll ever run into anything similar.
|
| |
|
|
|
09-29-2006, 11:32 PM
|
|
Thinker
Join Date: Dec 2006
Posts: 426
|
|
Yeah, I think its safe to say that we will not have to deal with all of this explosiveness non-sense.
|
| |
|
|
|
09-30-2006, 01:18 AM
|
|
Pontificator
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 1,079
|
|
Does it mean those owners will have to work on wall current untill new batteries are shipped to them? How long will that take? a few months?
What battery technology will replace these? A different one or just reworked batteries?
|
| |
|
|
|
09-30-2006, 02:24 AM
|
|
Intellectual
Join Date: Mar 2002
Posts: 119
|
|
So how do we find out if our laptops are affected by the battery recall? I didn't see anything on the Sony website about it.
--Welmoed
|
| |
|
|
|
09-30-2006, 03:59 AM
|
|
Editor Emeritus
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 15,171
|
|
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by jlp
Does it mean those owners will have to work on wall current untill new batteries are shipped to them? How long will that take? a few months?
|
Typically, 4-6 weeks. I think the vendors advise removing the battery and using the laptop on power...
Quote:
|
What battery technology will replace these? A different one or just reworked batteries?
|
Reworked batteries, I think. The problem, IIRC, is when some protective wall in the battery breaks down...
Quote:
|
Originally Posted by welmoed
So how do we find out if our laptops are affected by the battery recall? I didn't see anything on the Sony website about it.
|
The individual manufacturer (e.g., Dell, Apple, Lenovo, etc.) will have to put up a recall page (Dell and Apple already have made one). Sony is essentially doing a recall from the manufacturers themselves. As for Sony laptops, I have no clue, I'd assume Sony'd do the same.
--janak
|
| |
|
|
|
09-30-2006, 03:28 PM
|
|
Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 170
|
|
Well, not only have I received a replacement for one of the two Dell batteries I have but I also have a new battery on the way from my portable DVD player.
On a recent car trip my daughter complained about the DVD player getting hot as she was watching a movie. I told her not to worry as they usually got a little warm. A few miles later, she said "it's really burning my legs", so I told her to turn it off.
When we got stopped I had a look at the player, which was made by Polaroid. The battery pack "clipped" on to the bottom of the unit and was the same dimensions as the base. The outside casing of the battery pack was so distorted that I had to use a screwdriver to pry it off the player.
When I got home, I went to Polaroid's website and low and behold there was a Battery Recall link. I don't know who makes their batteries but they are also lithium ion.
The plot thickens!
|
| |
|
|
|
09-30-2006, 03:37 PM
|
|
Intellectual
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 170
|
|
Quote:
|
What battery technology will replace these? A different one or just reworked batteries?
|
Just to confirm what Janak said, from the reading I have done the problem arises from the never-ending quest to find smaller/lighter power cells. Apparently, the dividing walls inside the battery, which separate the lithium, are getting thinner and thinner. The problem occurs when these walls breakdown prematurely and the "mixing" of these compounds creates a chemical reaction (layman's terms).
The solution is to use heavier walls so it is assumed that all of the replacement batteries will have this change...hopefully!
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
Linear Mode
