The Fort-Worth Star-Telegram Quotes RESCUECOM on Laptop Battery Issues

Gone are the days when a computer virus was your sole PC worry. A more pressing issue has notebook users in hot water: laptop-battery recalls because of fire hazards. Dell, Toshiba, IBM/Lenovo and Apple are among the computing giants that have issued recalls affecting at least 7 million batteries around the world.

Consumers are urged to take these recalls seriously, but "so far, there have been very few people who have actually taken advantage of the recalls," says David Milman, chief executive of Rescuecom, a computer repair and services company. Doing so doesn't have to cost you any money, no matter when you realize your computer is affected. Scott Wolfson, a spokesman for the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission, says that "so long as the company is viable, you can get a replacement."

Wolfson advises consumers to "take the battery out of the computer, store it someplace safe and call the recalling firm; a free battery is waiting for you. You can continue to use the laptop on AC power."

Milman adds that you don't have to follow the headlines to know whether a recall affects your laptop. He suggests setting up a Google Alert at www.google.com/alerts for the manufacturer name and model of your laptop. You'll receive an e-mail update when it's in the news, like when a recall is issued.

This story also ran in MARKETWATCH, Marshall Loeb on 10/16/06.