By AJ Siytangco
Laptops are getting cheaper and cheaper now, just like their big brothers the desktop computers. And the coming of the Intel-based Macintosh laptops spiced up the market even more.
But alas, Apple has been besieged with troubles lately, most recently with their case of the scratching and breaking iPod Nano screens. And now they have an issue with the battery packs of the 12-inch iBook G4, 12-inch PowerBook G4 and the 15-inch PowerBook G4. The battery packs are said to overheat in rare circumstances. Rare it may be but there have already been cases of minor burns and minimal collateral damage.
Not all laptops are affected though; only those bought from October 2003 to August 2006 are affected. Apple gave a chart referring to the serial numbers of the problematic lithium-ion batteries. If the first five digits of your battery match those in the given range on the chart, then it is advised that you call for a battery replacement right away. It isn’t mandatory though, but for safety reasons, they say it’s better if you do so.
The ranges are:
For the 12-inch ibook G4
Battery Number: A1061
With a serial number range: ZZ338 - ZZ427; 3K429 - 3K611; 6C519 - 6C552 ending with S9WA, S9WC or S9WD
For the 12-inch Powerbook G4
Battery Number: A1079
With Serial Number range: ZZ411 - ZZ427; 3K428 - 3K611
For the 15-inch Powerbook G4
BateryNumbers: A1078 and A1148
With Serial Number Range: 3K425 - 3K601; 6N530 - 6N551 ending with THTA, THTB, or THTC 6N061 ending with THTC
Apple has a website as well with more information about the recall: https://support.apple.com/ibook_powerbook/batteryexchange/
This time, however the problem isn’t their fault. The defect lies with the batteries produced by Sony of Japan. Dell, another major PC manufacturer has also had troubles with their batteries from Sony, and is also voluntarily issuing a recall of all affected units.
The models with possibly affected batteries are: Latitude: D410, D500, D505, D510, D520, D600, D610, D620, D800, D810; Inspiron: 500M, 510M, 600M, 700M, 710M, 6000, 6400, 8500, 8600, 9100, 9200, 9300, 9400, E1505, E1705; Precision: M20, M60, M70, M90; XPS: XPS, XPS Gen2, XPS M170, XPS M1710
For more details Dell has a website for the battery recall program: https://www.dellbatteryprogram.com/
You can email the author at broadbandmb@yahoo.com
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