Laptop battery overheating recall: Find out HP, Compaq, Acer notebook and laptop models affected

An overheated laptop computer left on a couch caused a fire that killed a 56-year-old Vancouver man, the Coroners Service of BC Canada has concluded.

The fire started after the laptop was left on a couch, plugged in and turned on. Because of the lack of ventilation under the laptop, less than an hour later the lithium-ion battery overheated and burst into flames, sparking the fire that eventually killed the man.

The coroner did not release the make of computer involved in the death, but did say several makes of laptops have been recalled in recent years due to problems with lithium-ion batteries overheating and bursting into flames.

Since 2004 in B.C., 4 other laptops have either overheated or short-circuited when left plugged in, causing fires. The death earlier this year, however, was the first in B.C. blamed on a laptop fire, the coroner said in statement.
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HP / Compaq has recalled lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are used with various HP and Compaq notebook computers. Models that can contain a recalled battery include:

HP Pavilion	Compaq Presario	HP	HP Compaq
dv2000 dv2500 dv2700 dv6000 dv6500 dv6700 dv9000 dv9500 dv9700	A900 C700 F700 V3000 V3500 V3700 V6000 V6500 V6700	G6000 G7000	6720s

The notebook model is located at the top of the service label on the bottom of the notebook. Batteries that can be subject to the recall will have one of the following bar code labels (^ in the code can be any letter or number):

62940^^AXV^^^^

65033^^B7U^^^^ 65033^^B7V^^^^ 65033^^BGU^^^^

65035^^B7U^^^^ 65035^^B7V^^^^ 65035^^BGU^^^^ 65035^^BGV^^^^

67059^^V8U^^^^ 67059^^V8V^^^^

Sold at: Computer and electronics stores nationwide, hp.com and hpshopping.com from August 2007 through March 2008 for between $500 and $3000. The battery packs were also sold separately for between $100 and $160.

Remedy: Consumers should immediately remove the recalled battery from their notebook computer and contact HP to determine if their battery is included in the recall and to request a free replacement battery. After removing the recalled battery from their notebook computer, consumers may use the AC adapter to power the computer until a replacement battery arrives. Consumers should only use batteries obtained from HP or an authorized reseller.

For information on Acer's laptop battery overheating recall programs, visit here

Acer computer locks up - updating drivers may solve the problem

I've been having problems with Windows Vista lately on my ACER Aspire computer - random system lockup that requires a power down and reboot. After researching possible causes and using Microsoft's diagnostic memory test (Control Panel - Administrative Tools) I decided to make sure I had all the latest drivers. Acer's support website ( http://www.acer.ca/acer/service.do ) had updated drivers for the NVidia display adapter as well as new audio and LAN drivers. Installing these updates seems to have fixed the problem as well as sped up overall performance of my system.

I suspect the display driver was the cause of the lockups, but in any case it is worthwhile to check that you have the latest drivers if you're experiencing any mysterious crashes or slow performance. With all the Microsoft security updates to Vista, a driver that was compatible a year ago may no longer work properly.

Also, for ACER notebook users, Acer America Corporation in cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, is voluntarily offering free replacement of certain lithium-ion battery packs containing cells made by Sony Energy Devices Corporation and used in certain Acer notebook computers. As announced previously by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, there have been 16 reports of notebook batteries overheating. These reports were associated with earlier recalls by other notebook computer manufacturers of batteries containing these Sony cells. These previous reports involved only minor property damage and two minor burns. None of these reports involved batteries in Acer notebook computers.

We encourage you to check to see if your Acer notebook may have one of these battery packs and, if it does, Acer will replace your battery pack for a new one at no cost to you.

The following Acer notebook computer models sold in the United States and Canada may have battery packs affected by this replacement program:

TravelMate Series Beginning with: 242x, 320x, 321x, 330x, 422x, 467x, 561x, C20x.

Aspire™ Series Beginning with: 556x, 560x, 567x, 930x, 941x, and 980x.

The battery packs included in this program were sold in the United States and Canada through authorized distributors as part of the identified TravelMate™ and Aspire™ notebook computers. In addition, these battery packs may have also been provided in response to service calls. The affected battery packs were shipped to distributors beginning in May 2004 and may have been sold at retail through November 2006.

tags: acer notebook computer, aspire t180 desktop, locks up, random crashes, drivers, download , battery overheating, free replacement, warranty