Gizmodo: recalls

1.5 Million Durabrand DVD Players Recalled By Wal-Mart: Fire Hazard

Danny Allen — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 06:50:24 EDT

The recall comes after 12 complaints of overheating, including five cases that caused fire and property damage. The $29 Chinese-made cheapies were sold from January 2006 to July 2009, exclusively at Wal-Mart (U.S) and ASDA supermarkets (U.K).

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the product and return it to the nearest Wal-Mart for a full refund.

Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Wal-Mart Stores at (800) 925-6278 between 7 a.m. and 9 p.m. CT Monday through Friday, or visit the firm's Web site at www.walmartstores.com

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is still interested in receiving incident or injury reports that are either directly related to this product recall or involve a different hazard with the same product. Please tell us about it by visiting https://www.cpsc.gov/cgibin/incident.aspx

Those in the U.K are advised to contact ASDA. [CPSC via CNN Money via Engadget]

Canon Recalls 1D, 1Ds Mk III Cameras Due To Lube Leakage

John Herrman — Fri, 15 May 2009 08:58:05 EDT

Canon has issued a partial recall for its top-line 1D and 1Ds Mk III cameras. Apparently, Canon slopped a little too much oil into the cameras' mirror boxes, which can result in photo-ruining lubricant splatters on their low-pass filters. SEND'EM BACK. [Canon via Gadget Lab]

AT&T's Quickfire Officially Has Worst Name Ever

matt buchanan — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 13:40:00 EST

Yep, AT&T is pulling its Quickfire Sidekick-wannabe off the shelves. That's because if you shove the charger in the wrong way, as some people have done, it, well, the punchline pretty much writes itself.

Here's the text message AT&T is sending out to people who own Quickfires to make sure they don't plug it all wrong and blow up their phone (though no explosions have happened quite yet).

Please take special care when charging your Quickfire GTX75 mobile phone. There have been a few reports of significant overheating of the phone when the AC Charger adapter is inserted incorrectly and forced into the phone.
The clearly marked, embossed arrow on the AC Charger adapter should always be face-up on the same side as the display screen of the Quickfire when it is inserted into the phone. See the diagram below for proper positioning and insertion of the AC Charger adapter into the phone. You should never force the AC Charger adapter into the phone.

If you have any questions, please call 1-800-801-1101.

Sincerely,

AT&T

This Child Harness Warrants No Safety Concerns At All

Mark Wilson — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 13:20:00 EDT

This little gadget was spotted at a Taipei trade show. To those pesky kids who insist on walking but move too slowly to keep up with their parents, just let them stand at an adult's height with their ankles immobilized by nylon straps. That'll solve the problem just fine. Smart thinking, Sogo Game. Your product should catch all the buzz of bootleg milk.

Toshiba recalls another 10,000 Sony-made...

Jason Chen — Fri, 20 Jul 2007 12:30:31 EDT

Toshiba recalls another 10,000 Sony-made batteries as the exploding battery fever grinds ever closer to an unsatisfying conclusion. [eWeek via Crunchgear]

Here We Go Again; Lenovo Recalls Laptop Batteries

Travis Hudson — Thu, 01 Mar 2007 15:30:31 EST

Just when we thought all of the nonsense was done with it starts all over again. Lenovo will be recalling 100,000 ThinkPad lithium-ion batteries that could possibly overheat and damage the laptop. Surprisingly, the batteries being recalled aren't Sony-branded, rather they are manufactured by Sanyo. The affected batteries are the extended, nine-cell batteries that are optional with the R-Series, T-Series and Z-Series ThinkPad laptops sold between November 2005 and February 2007. The faulty batteries have the part number FRU P/N 92P1131, which can be found on the battery label. If you have a faulty battery, immediately stop using it and go here to get details on a replacement (for free). –Travis Hudson

Lenovo Battery Recall [Via Crave]

ThinkGeek to Make Amends for Defective PF Digital eStarling Photo Frames

Charlie White — Wed, 21 Feb 2007 07:39:15 EST

The ugly duckling of digital photo frames, the PF Digital eStarling, has gone into full recall mode, where its online retailer ThinkGeek will graciously exchange all of the original defective units that were shipped with a new version 2.0 model sometime next month. It looks like most of the problems with the first version of the eStarling might be solved, except for one:

PF Digital promises the following improvements in the eStarling photo frame:

- Full Wi-Fi range of at least 120 feet
- New motherboard and updated firmware
- Internal antenna not visible from the outside of the frame
- New front bezel design with no eStarling logo on the front of the frame
- Standalone feature allows frame to pull photos from any POP e-mail address without needing to connect to the eStarling server
- View photos on a media card without needing a wi-fi Internet connection

Unless the eStarling 2.0 has a modification that ThinkGeek didn't mention in its e-mail to disgruntled buyers, one problem that we didn't see fixed is that 16x9 display, which will still show black bars on the sides of most digital photos.

The last we heard from ThinkGeek, a new Wi-Fi transmitter was in the offing, which the company said would be shipped to us within a few weeks. Fast-forward six weeks, when we received this e-mail yesterday afternoon.

Clicking through the link on the e-mail, it was a simple matter to sign up for this recall program, which includes free shipping of the new unit, and a shipping label to return the hapless version 1.0 as soon as version 2.0 arrives. ThinkGeek will also accept returns of version 2.0 if doesn't measure up for 30 days after receiving it.

It's a remarkable effort on the part of ThinkGeek to make good on a product that was certainly not up to snuff. Nice move, ThinkGeek. We'll keep you updated, dear readers and fellow eStarling sufferers, on what happens. – Charlie White

Support (links to press release) [eStarling]

Matsushita Fire-Massage Chair Not Working out as Planned

Travis Hudson — Wed, 31 Jan 2007 14:45:30 EST

Panasonic-owned company, Matsushita, is recalling thousands of massage chairs because they can ignite on fire. The incidents are supposedly extremely rare and only happened in demo chairs that are constantly being used. That's too bad—it's cold as hell here in the Midwest and I could use a good fire massage. –Travis Hudson

Massage chairs recalled after fires [Reuters]

Sony Joins the Club of 'Laptop Companies Recalling Sony Batteries'

Travis Hudson — Wed, 18 Oct 2006 13:25:01 EDT

It took the recalls of Dell, Apple, Hitachi, Fujitsu, Lenovo and Toshiba Sony-branded laptop batteries for Sony to realize that there may be a problem. They will be recalling 90,000 of the batteries used in their Vaio series of laptop computers. The majority of which are in Japan and China.

Sony also said that they may have to revise their annual earnings outlook for this year because of the battery non-sense and also to compensate for a price cut for the PS3 in Japan. Damn, Sony. Looks like it may be a tough year. – Travis Hudson

Sony to recall own batteries [Reuters via Yahoo]

Gizmodo Frankenreview: Sony Laptop Battery Recalls

Mark Wilson — Wed, 11 Oct 2006 15:00:52 EDT

Who would have thought a series of boring laptop battery recalls could explode into such mass hysteria? Flaming tempers are running rampant at Sony executives. Though they've traditionally made some hot electronics, it hasn't paid off in their battery recalls - now totaling well over 7 million units. Dell, Apple, Toshiba, IBM/Lenovo, Fujitsu and Hitachi are all taking heat from their guilt by assonyiation. Check out our warm apple pie graph, and then hit the jump for a very special frankenreview (hint: we actually got him into a speedo). – Mark Wilson

"This is an exclusive club that decided to use Sony batteries in their laptops which inadvertently causes big ba-da booms."

"Combined, the companies have recalled more than 7.9 million batteries."

"Dell has so far received six reports of overheating units that caused property damage, but no injuries."

"The odds on my balls catching fire from my laptop exploding? Very low, and I'm just willing to risk the lives of my unborn children so I can have zero-gap internet usage."

- Maybe the companies could send the new (non-weiner-roasting) batteries first.

"Dell had only six incidents over [22] million...units, [an analyst] said, but it's 'a dangerous situation'."

"Let's assume that over the next three years, a full 60 notebooks will explode if left with at-risk batteries. Doing the math: That's a 1 in 210,000 chance per year of a recalled battery exploding. Over the next two months, should you decide to wait a bit to replace your battery: The odds are 1 in 1,260,000."

"Odds of being struck by lightning (though not necessarily dying) in a given year: 1 in 400,000."

"We are supporting Dell's recall," [Sony] said. "There will be financial assistance and we are sharing engineering data and both doing further research." He declined to specify exactly how much assistance Sony would provide."

- We are guessing quite a bit, and it's more than just "emotional support".

"[for Toshiba] failures from the...affected units will not result in a fiery death for the laptop. They would simply fail to charge and store power."

- Fail to charge, and then burn the user's legs off.

"So we're waiting for a flight in the United lounge at LAX, ...when suddenly this guy comes running the wrong way up the jetway, pushing other boarding passengers out of the way, he quickly drops his laptop [IBM] on the floor and the thing immediately flares up like a giant firework...I don't remember seeing any IBM laptops nuke themselves yet on Gizmodo, just Macbooks and Dells with Sony batteries, but it was a close call nonetheless."

"Hybrid cars and power tools, however, generally use more traditional batteries, in part because of the risk of explosion."

- Though, even that is changing.

Sources
CNET Asia
Reuters
Japan Today
Something Awful
TechYahoo
Images: Getty and Morguefile

Hitachi (Sony) Battery Recall

Mark Wilson — Sat, 07 Oct 2006 13:47:47 EDT

Hitachi has just recalled 16,000 lithium-ion laptop batteries due to possible overheating problems (Japan models only). The batteries, as in other recent recalls, are manufactured by Sony. We wonder if there are actually documented problems with the latest recalls ("boomies"), or if companies are just leaning hard on Sony, threatening to pull future purchases if their old batteries are not replaced. – Mark Wilson

Japan Today

Fujitsu Joins Battery Recall Club

Travis Hudson — Wed, 04 Oct 2006 15:37:05 EDT

Dell, Apple, Lenovo, IBM and Toshiba have welcomed Fujitsu with open-arms to the battery recall club. This is an exclusive club that decided to use Sony batteries in their laptops which inadvertently causes big ba-da booms.

Fujitsu will be recalling 287,000 batteries (hit the jump to see if your Fujitsu is on recall notice). When will it end?

[Sold in Japan]
• FMV-BIBLO LOOX P70R, P70S
• FMV-BIBLO LOOX T50M, T50R, T50RN, T50S, T50SN
• FMV-BIBLO LOOX T70M, T70M/T, T70MN, T70R, T70R/T, T70RN, T70S, T70S/V, T70SN
• FMV-P8210

[Sold outside Japan]
• LIFEBOOK P1510, P1510D, P7120, P7120D
• LIFEBOOK S7020, S7020D, S7025, S7025D
• LIFEBOOK C1320, C1320D

– Travis Hudson

Press Release [Via Reuters]

Sony Knew About Exploding Batteries?

Travis Hudson — Tue, 03 Oct 2006 15:37:53 EDT

In a way, yes. Nearly a year ago a Dell laptop fitted with a Sony battery caught on fire. Sony then said that the batteries (the ones that ended up getting recalled almost a year later) were prone to overheating, but Sony neglected to examine any other batteries they produced and neglected to examine the hardware used in the Dell laptops. They didn't do so because no other accidents had been reported—in a way, they ignored the matter.

Many fires, and millions of dollars worth of losses later, I bet Sony is wishing they would have further looked into this battery issue when it first became apparent a year ago. – Travis Hudson

Sony failed to fully study battery trouble: report [Via CrunchGear]

Dell Recalls 4.1 Million Batteries, Stops Big Bada Boom(s)

Travis Hudson — Tue, 15 Aug 2006 01:47:35 EDT

So, Dell laptops like to get hot and explode sometimes, if you hadn't heard. Well, they are finally doing something about it by recalling 4.1 million notebook batteries. This is the largest recall in Dell history. The faulty batteries have cells made by Sony and were sold from April 2004 until July 2006 in Latitude, Inspiron and Precision notebooks. According to Dell, 18-percent of the machines sold during the time period have faulty batteries that can overheat and possibly explode into a fiery ka-bloom. No word yet on how to acquire a replacement battery, but we'll keep you posted as the info comes through. Thanks, everyone who emailed this in. – Travis Hudson

Dell to recall 4.1 million laptop batteries [MSNBC]
Dell Recalls Batteries Because of Fire Threat [NY Times]

Edit: You can check to seei if your battery is one of the affected here.

HP Recalls R707 Digital Camera

Travis Hudson — Tue, 06 Jun 2006 14:54:17 EDT

In our continuing effort to save the lives of each and every Gizmodo reader we are proud to inform of the latest recall. This one comes from HP. They are recalling 679,000 Photosmart R707 digital cameras because they can overheat when attached to an AC adapter or docking station. This overheating happens when the camera is docked or plugged in while using non-rechargeable batteries. Wtf?

There was only one report of a problem where a camera caught on fire while plugged into an AC adapter whlie using non-rechargeable batteries. HP has released a firmware update to fix this problem here. For any other questions or problems, HP can be contacted at 866-304-7117. – Travis Hudson

HP Recalls 679,000 Photosmart R707 Cameras [Digital Trends]

HP Battery Recall

Travis Hudson — Fri, 21 Apr 2006 18:13:03 EDT

If you have ever sat down in the loo with laptop in ~~hand~~ lap then you may know how hot the batteries can get sometimes. If you happen to own a HP notebook then you may want to think twice because setting it on some bare skin.

HP is recalling 15,700 batteries due to overheating that could cause injury. The recall affects lithium ion batteries that were made in January 2005 and have barcodes beginning with L3. This recall covers a lot of laptops so listen up. If the laptop product number begins with dv1, ze2, V2, M2 or NX48 and it could have been manufactured in 2005 then you may have one of the batteries in question and should contact HP immediately for a free replacement. Keep those legs safe, and we won't tell anyone that your favorite time to read Gizmodo is in the loo.

HP Mobile Battery Replacement Program [HP]

O2 Recall X1 Handsets

Travis Hudson — Fri, 24 Mar 2006 15:44:46 EST

The UK mobile carrier, O2, is recalling their X1 handsets because of a potential charging fire hazard. Owners of the X1 are being recommended to stop using their phone immediately and return it to O2. In exchange the users who return their fire-faulty phones will receive the X2i handset. All of the X1 phones will be rendered useless on the O2 network beginning on Monday—to prevent any kind of damage or harm due to malfunctions with this phone. If you happen to be one of the users of this phone, you can visit the O2 site for more information.

O2 Recalls Fire-Hazard X1 Handsets [MobileBurn]

Sony Vaio Blunders

Travis Hudson — Sat, 21 Jan 2006 10:23:22 EST

It appears that Sony has made a big boo-boo according to the company's website. A notice was found that states four models of their S-series Vaio computers have a severe defect. The systems can possibly have two different problems: either they will randomly shut down or fail to boot completely. The affected models are:

VGN-S16GP/LP/TP
VGN-S18GP/LP/TP
VGN-S26GP/LP/TP
VGN-S28GP/LP/TP

If your computer happens to be one of these models, you should contact a Vaio service center immediately. Sony will be extending the limited warranty on the affected motherboard up to 24 months, along with replacing it free.

Sony Vaio S-Series have some problems [blog.PCNews]

Heating Things Up with Dell Batteries

Travis Hudson — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 12:23:41 EST

Dell and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission today announced a voluntary recall of 22,000 Dell notebook batteries. This is coming after Dell received three complaints of batteries overheating and causing damage to tabletops, desktops and personal effects. No personal injury was reported, but watch out for those legs, you bathroom laptop users. What does this mean for most people? Free new batteries! Here is the big list: Latitude D410, D505, D510, D600, D610, D800, D810, Inspiron 510M, 600M, 6000, 8600, 9200, 9300, XPS Gen 2, Precision M20 and M70. The batteries in question were sold from October 5, 2004 to October 13, 2005. If you own any of these models or have a question, check out the Dell Battery Program website or contact the company at (866) 342-0011.

Dell Recalls 22,000 Notebook Batteries [DesignTechnica]

Nikon Battery Blunders

Travis Hudson — Wed, 09 Nov 2005 08:50:42 EST

Nikon announced a voluntary recall of nearly 200,000 batteries for three models of their digital SLR cameras. The three models affected at the D100, D70 and the D50. The batteries are being recalled because they could potentially short circuit causing fiery explosions and deaths to millions of cute kitties and puppies—actually the battery could possibly ignite and melt. But please: think of the kitties and puppies if you own a Nikon DSLR.

Consumer Product Safe Commission Recall Notice [Via DesignTechnica]