As if we haven't already had enough (too much! actually), now Matsushita is recalling 6,000 notebook PC batteries that could overheat when subjected to a strong impact.
According to published reports (thank you, Reuters and VARBusiness for the news ...), a Matsushita spokesperson declined to identify the supplier of the batteries in question, but said that neither Matsushita (best know here for its Panasonic brand) nor Sony had made them.
(Sony and batteries ...)
When a notebook PC using the battery in question had been accidentally dropped on the floor or suffered any other strong impact, there was a chance that a tiny metal spring used in the battery pack could fall off and onto the battery cells, causing overheating. There have not been any cases of the batteries in question catching fire and no one had been injured.
The batteries are loaded in some of Matsushita's notebook PCs made in April and May 2005 and sold in Japan.
(Let's see if this bad news spreads to notebooks sold in the U.S. ...)