Sony Recalls 1700 Vaio Laptops Panasonic Battery Packs Due To Burn &Fire Hazards

(RTTNews) - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission said that Japanese consumer electronics maker Sony Corp. (SON.L, SNE) has recalled about 1,700 Panasonic lithium-ion battery packs installed in Vaio laptops, due to overheat, posing burn and fire hazards.

However, the Commission said that no related incidents or injuries have been reported.

It was sold at Best Buy, Sony retail stores, other consumer electronic stores nationwide and online at www.store.sony.com and other websites from February 2013 through October 2013 for between $550 and $1,000 as part of Sony VAIO laptops and for about $170 for battery packs sold separately.

The commission advised that consumers should immediately stop using the recalled battery packs, power off the laptop, removes the battery and follow instructions to obtain a free replacement. Until a replacement battery pack is received, consumers can use the laptop by plugging in the AC power only.

The recall involves Panasonic lithium-ion battery packs installed in 18 models of Sony's VAIO Series laptop computers. The Panasonic battery packs were also sold separately and installed by Sony as part of repairs. Panasonic battery packs included in this recall have model number VGP-BPS26 and part numbers 1-853-237-11 and 1-853-237-21.