Dell Announces Recall of Notebook Computer Batteries Due To Fire Hazard

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed. It is illegal to resell or attempt to resell a recalled consumer product.

Name of Product: Dell-branded lithium-ion batteries made with cells manufactured by Sony

Units: About 2.7 million battery packs (an additional 1.5 million battery packs were sold outside the U.S.)

Battery Distributor: Dell Inc., of Round Rock, Texas

Battery Cell Manufacturer: Sony Energy Devices Corp., of Japan.

Hazard: These lithium-ion batteries can overheat, posing a fire hazard to consumers.

Incidents/Injuries: Dell has received six reports of batteries overheating, resulting in property damage to furniture and personal effects. No injuries have been reported.

Description: The recalled batteries were sold with or sold separately to be used with the following Dell notebook computers:

- Latitude™ D410, D500, D505, D510, D520, D600, D610, D620, D800, D810;

- Inspiron™ 6000, 8500, 8600, 9100, 9200, 9300, 500m, 510m, 600m, 6400, E1505, 700m, 710m, 9400, E1705;

- Dell Precision™ M20, M60, M70 and M90 mobile workstations; and

- XPS,™ XPS Gen2, XPS M170 and XPS M1710.

"Dell" and one of the following markings are printed on the batteries: "Made in Japan," "Made in China," or "Battery Cell Made in Japan Assembled in China." The identification number for each battery appears on a white sticker.

Sold through: Dell's Web site, phone and direct sales as part of a service replacement program, and catalogs from April 2004 through July 2006. The computers with these batteries sold for between $500 and $2850 and individual batteries sold for between $60 and $180.

Manufactured In: Japan and China

Remedy: Consumers should stop using these recalled batteries immediately and contact Dell to receive a replacement battery. Consumers can continue to use the notebook computers safely by turning the system off, ejecting the battery, and using the AC adapter and power cord to power the system until the replacement battery is received.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Dell toll-free at (866) 342-0011 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, log on to the firm's Web site at www.dellbatteryprogram.com, or write to: Dell Inc., Attn: Battery Recall, 9701 Metric Blvd., Austin, Texas 78758.

Firm's Media Contact:

- Dell: Gretchen Miller, (512) 728-0308, gretchen_miller@dell.com or

- Ira Williams, (512) 728-8545, ira_williams@dell.com

- Sony: Rick Clancy, (858) 942-3020, rick.clancy@am.sony.com