Dell to recall 4.1 million laptop batteries

Dell and the US Consumer Product Safety Commission plan to recall 4.1 million notebook batteries over concerns the units can critically overheat.

The recall affects certain Inspiron, Latitude and Precision mobile workstations and XPS units shipped between April 2004 and 18 July, 2006. Sony manufactured the batteries that are being recalled, a Dell spokesman said.

If they have one of the affected units, consumers are advised to eject the battery from the notebook after powering down and continue using the notebook with its AC power adapter, the CPSC said. Dell has so far received six reports of overheating units that caused property damage, but no injuries.

Dell has faced several issues this year related to exploding or flaming notebooks, and wants to ensure the safety of its customers, said the spokesman. The 4.1 million units is a subset of the 22 million units shipped during that timeframe, he said. Dell said it doesn't expect the cost of the recall to materially affect its earnings. The company reports earnings for the previous quarter this Thursday.

At the moment, this looks like the largest battery recall in the history of the electronics industry, said Roger Kay, an analyst with Endpoint Technologies Associates. "The scale of it is phenomenal."

Sony will help pay the costs associated with the recall of 4.1 million batteries the company supplied to Dell, said Rick Clancy, a Sony spokesman.

Tom Krazit and Michael Kanellos writes for News.com