Watch out, just in case your ThinkPad ignites

What could be worse than midterms?

Perhaps having your studying interrupted by your laptop bursting into flames.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced last week a recall of the batteries used in some ThinkPad notebook computers because they may be fire hazards.

ThinkPads are popular on Penn's campus because many students and faculty choose to purchase them through the Computer Connection, a store that offers discounts for those affiliated with Penn.

So far, only a few cases of defective batteries and no laptop-related injuries have been reported at Penn, according to Associate Director for Computing Marilyn Spicer.

ThinkPad computers are made by the Lenovo Group and IBM Corp. They can contain one of several brands of batteries, but officials say only those containing Sony batteries are at risk. That's about 8 percent of those in the T, R and X series, which are some of ThinkPad's latest laptops.

Mary Lou Miller, a Lenovo representative for Computer Connection, said she did not yet know how many of the computers the store sold contained defective batteries.

This recall is the latest in a slew of laptop safety scares that don't discriminate between Apples or PCs - the only thing they have in common is that the batteries are all made by Sony.

A short-circuit within the defective batteries can lead to overheating and, in rare cases, fire. Between January 2001 and August 2006, at least 47 such fires occurred, according to statistics from the product safety commission. In this same time period, tens of millions of laptops were in use, said Mark Ross, a product safety commission spokesman.

To deal with the recall, Penn's Information Systems and Computing published an advisory on its Web site that informs students how to tell and what to do if their computer is affected, said John Mulhern, an ISC official.

ISC informed many technology departments across the University about the issue, Mulhern added.

Van Pelt Library is also equipped with ThinkPads. Students can use them in the Weigle Information Commons or borrow them from the circulation desk.

Doug Smullens, a library information technology support specialist, said that Van Pelt is in the process of checking all its laptops for defective batteries. He added that by this afternoon, all those with at-risk batteries will have been taken out of service.

But it's not only ThinkPad laptops that are at risk to overheat.

In past weeks, Dell Inc., Apple Computer Inc. and Toshiba Corp. have all asked customers to return and exchange defective batteries. In the end, the number of Sony batteries recalled is expected to amount to 7 million. Sony Corp. estimated that those recalls - excluding the most recent ThinkPad recall - will cost the company between about $200 and $300 million.

The most recent recall was spurred by a ThinkPad catching fire in Los Angeles International Airport.

For College junior Ezra Cohen, the recall on Sony batteries in Apple laptops meant navigating the first two weeks of classes without a computer.

Cohen said he had to rearrange his schedule around the times computer labs were open so he could get his classwork done. He added that it was inconvenient not having immediate access to e-mail and BlackBoard.

Nychelle Fleming, a Consumer Product Safety Commission spokeswoman, said she hopes the message of the recall will reach all affected people, especially students, and that they will take heed.

"It definitely could save their lives," Fleming said.

Yesterday, however, was the first time College sophomore K.C. Boyle heard news of the recall.

She said she noticed her ThinkPad sometimes gets really hot, and she planned to check whether it had a defective battery as soon as she could.

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