Lenovo and IBM Recall Notebook Batteries

Lenovo Group Ltd and IBM are recalling more than half a million notebook batteries made by Sony Corp following a computer catching fire at a US airport, announced Lenovo and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Lenovo and IBM’s actions come after Dell Inc recalled 4.1 million Sony batteries and Apple Computer Inc recalled 1.8 million in August.

Sony has begun a worldwide replacement program for lithium-ion batteries for notebooks, where there is the potential for short-circuiting in the rare instance when small metal particles make contact with other areas of the batteries.

No one was injured after the small notebook fire on September 16 at the Los Angeles Airport, said the Safety Commission.

The recall affects 168,500 battery packs sold in the US and about 357,500 packs sold overseas.