The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced Wednesday that Toshiba issued a recall for more than one lakh laptop battery packs due to overheating issues, posing risks of burns and fire hazards to its users. The recall covers battery packs in laptops sold between June 2011 and January 2016, covering almost 40 different models of Portege, Satellite and Tecra laptop series.
According to the CPSC website, there have been four reports of affected batteries overheating and melting, but no injuries have been reported so far. Those affected by the recall can request a free replacement from Toshiba by raising a request on the company's official website. Most of the affected units are within the U.S., around 91,000 laptops, while the other 10,000 were sold in Canada.
Toshiba and the CPSC have advised users to remove the battery from the laptop and use the AC power adaptor only until the affected units have been replaced. To remove the battery, unlock the latches or remove the screws at the bottom of the laptop and slide out or pull up.
How to identify if your laptop battery is affected?
Toshiba has listed all the models affected by the overheating issue on the company's official website. To make the search simpler, Toshiba also has a tool to download and check if any particular laptop is affected by the recall. Users can also enter the laptop's model number on a dedicated site to check if the model is safe or not.The model number, part number and serial number can be found at the bottom of any laptop.
Users are also advised to check if they are affected by the recall by verifying the battery's model, part, product serial, battery part, and battery serial numbers. Users can find the information after removing the battery from the laptop. Although some models might not be covered in the recall, there's a likelihood of the battery being replaced during service.
In other news, Toshiba has been undergoing a serious recovery from last year's $1.3 billion accounting scandal. The company's medical unit was sold to Canon for ¥688 billion ($6.1 billion) last month. Toshiba has also been planning to invest ¥360 billion ($3.2 billion) in a new semiconductor facility in Japan.
